Force 10 from Navarone (1978)

During World War II, several oddly assorted military experts are teamed in a mission to raid and destroy a bridge vital to enemy strategy.

Director:

Guy Hamilton

Writers:

Alistair MacLean (novel), Robin Chapman (screenplay)

Stars:

Harrison Ford, Robert Shaw, Edward Fox

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Shaw	...	Mallory
Harrison Ford	...	Barnsby
Barbara Bach	...	Maritza
Edward Fox	...	Miller
Franco Nero	...	Lescovar
Carl Weathers	...	Weaver
Richard Kiel	...	Drazak
Alan Badel	...	Petrovitch
Michael Byrne	...	Schroeder
Philip Latham	...	Jensen
Angus MacInnes	...	Reynolds
Michael Sheard	...	Sgt. Bauer
Petar Buntic	...	Marko
Leslie Schofield	...	Interrogation Officer 1
Anthony Langdon	...	Interrogation Officer 2 (as Antony Langdon)

Storyline

Mallory and Miller are back. It seems that there was traitor with them at Navarone, whom they thought was executed. But it seems that not only was he not executed, and he was not a traitor but a German spy. Intelligence believes he made it to Yugoslavia and is now with the Partisans. So, Mallory and Miller being the only ones who can positively identify him are sent along with a unit called Force 10, which is led by Colonel Barnsby, who objects to their presence. It seems that Force 10 has a mission of their own which Mallory and Miller know nothing about. When their plane is shot and most of the team is killed, they mistakenly believe that some of the locals they meet are Partisans but in reality are German Allies, so they are taken prisoner, and have to convince the German commander that they are not spies or else they will be killed.

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Plot Keywords:

partisan | german army | collapsing bridge | booby trap | prison guard | 

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Taglines:

The Odds Against Them Were 10,000 to 1...But What the Hell!

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Genres:

Action | Drama | War

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English Croatian Serbian

Release Date:

8 December 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

Alistair MacLean's Force 10 from Navarone

Filming Locations:

Brigde on the River Tara near Djurdjevica Tara, Zabljak, Montenegro

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$7,230,000, 31 December 2017

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Navarone Productions, American International Pictures (AIP)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min 126 min (restored)

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Color:

Black and White (archive photographs in opening credits) Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Initially there had been plans to film this movie shortly after The Guns of Navarone (1961) with Gregory Peck and David Niven reprising their roles. Following the success of the original movie producer Carl Foreman asked Alistair MacLean to write a hardcover sequel novel on which a follow-up film would be based, but the author was reluctant to write an entire novel and instead delivered a screen treatment. The film was announced for 1967 but after the script got bogged down in studio development hell MacLean decided to develop the screen treatment as a book and Force 10 from Navarone was published in 1968. Throughout the 1970s Foreman tried to get enough financial backing for the movie and eventually patched together enough money to finance the production from no fewer than five different international sources.

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Goofs

When the diversion is created at the dam and German trucks leave to investigate, dawn is breaking, but a few seconds later when the cameras switch back to the dam, it's still dark.

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Quotes

Maj. Schroeder: Ah, tell me what has all this to do with that, uh, suitcase case you keep looking at?
Mallory: Well, that suitcase is full of our penicillin.
Maj. Schroeder: Oh, indeed. Perhaps I could see some it?
Mallory: Certainly, Major. Open it Miller.
Miller: You can't do that here, sir. You'll ruin the lot. You know perfectly well that any contamination will destroy it. It's got to be opened under laboratory conditions.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits prologue: SOMEWHERE IN ENGLAND 1943

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Alternate Versions

The 2009 MGM Blu-ray has newly generated opening credits adding a new opening credit "Samuel Z. Arkoff and Oliver A. Unger present". This credit is over a black background and then the usual graphical credit background begins with the credit for "Robert Shaw". However, due to this addition the music begins earlier and thus the progression of the images and music is not the same as in previous versions without the new credits. There is also an addition to the "co-produced by John R. Sloan" credit which now has "Anthony B. Unger" credited underneath.

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Connections

Featured in Sneak Previews: Force 10 from Navarone, Moment By Moment, Superman, Oliver's Story, King of the Gypsies (1978)

User Reviews

Rainy Day Favorite

I actually saw this movie before I saw "The Guns of Navarone", and I have to say, I prefer "Force 10". It seems like it always comes on TV on a rainy Saturday afternoon, and I'll always get sucked right in. I've probably seen it about 10 times. Despite some laughable special effects, and otherwise dated production value, this war movie packs a good action punch. Not many WW2 movies are set in Yugoslavia, and that's one of the interesting elements of the film. The story itself is a classic "Against the Odds" type affair, involving a covert Allied mission with a dual purpose. The great Robert Shaw is a standout, and a young Harrison Ford shows why he eventually became the superstar he is. Rousing music, tense action sequences, shootouts, knife fights, bombings,rescues,deceit and trickery make "Force 10" a lot of fun.