Judith (1966)

Beautiful woman who survived concentration camp goes to Israel in 1948 to track down Nazi husband who betrayed her.

Director:

Daniel Mann

Writers:

Lawrence Durrell (story), John Michael Hayes

Stars:

Sophia Loren, Peter Finch, Jack Hawkins

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sophia Loren	...	Judith Auerbach
Peter Finch	...	Aaron Stein
Jack Hawkins	...	Major Lawton
Hans Verner	...	Gustav Schiller
Frank Wolff	...	Eli
Shraga Friedman	...	Nathan
André Morell	...	Haim
Zaharira Harifai	...	Dr. Rachel
Arnoldo Foà	...	Interrogator
Joseph Gross	...	Yanek
Roger Beaumont	...	Ze'ev
Zipora Peled	...	Hannah
Peter Burton	...	Conklin
Terence Alexander	...	Carstairs
Daniel Ocko	...	Arab Guide

Storyline

In Palestine in 1948, the British prepare to end their Mandate, leaving an independent Israel behind. The problems of the British may be ending but for the new state of Israel they're just beginning. Israel is surrounded by hostile Arab nations and must fight to defend itself from aggression. The Israeli defense force, the Haganah, has received intelligence that Arab forces, Syria in particular, are employing former German Panzer commander General Gustav Schiller to train them in tank tactics against Israel. The Israelis also learn that General Schiller's wife, Judith Auerbach Schiller, is a Jewish woman who was betrayed by her husband and was left to die in a concentration camp. Judith has survived the camp and is searching for her husband to exact revenge and to locate their son. The Haganah decides to find Judith and use her knowledge in order to locate the general, positively identify him and make him reveal the Syrian attack plans. Judith is smuggled into Israel and hidden in a ...

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Plot Keywords:

character name as title | forename as title | nazi | death of husband | army | 

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Taglines:

The adventure, the ecstasy, the supreme suspense of a woman wronged beyond words, almost beyond revenge...

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

UK Israel USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 January 1966 (USA)

Also Known As:

Conflict

Filming Locations:

Israel

Company Credits

Production Co:

Command Productions, Cumulus Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Because of this movie, Sophia Loren was blacklisted in the Arab countries in the 70's.

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Goofs

In the attack on the kibbutz, the "Arab" tank has a Star of David and Hebrew letters painted on it.

User Reviews

Interesting story set at time of Israel's nationhood

This is the story of Jewish underground fighters' efforts to track down a former Nazi Panzer commander who has been helping the Syrians with tank strategies in the months before Israeli nationhood was declared. Only one woman can help them identify the commander, so they smuggle her into Palestine. Judith, the central character in the story, is a survivor of Dachau where she lost her son. But she has a darker past at the concentration camp which gives her the ability to identify the German commander. Played by Sophia Loren, Judith certainly has the physical ability to appeal to various men and get the information she needs. She also has a personal reason to find the German which complicates the story. For some reason, this movie has gotten a bad rap from some of the ratings guides but it is an entertaining and well-produced film. The technical aspects are first-rate as is most of the acting with Peter Finch and Jack Hawkins acquitting themselves admirably in opposing roles.