The Night of the Generals (1967)

A Sam Spiegel-Anatole Litvak Production for Horizon Pictures (Sam Spiegel) (London) and Filmsonor (Paris). Copyright 1 February 1967 by Horizon, Filmsonor. Released through Columbia. New York opening at the Capitol and Cinema I simultaneously: 2 February 1967. U.S. release: February 1967. U.K. release: 5 March 1967. Australian release: 21 April 1967. French release: April 1967. 13,213 feet. 147 minutes. Cut to 140 minutes in France. Filmed on locations in France and Poland. (Available on a very good Uca DVD).French release title: LA NUIT DES GÉNÉRAUX.SYNOPSIS: In Warsaw in 1942, a prostitute who doubles as an agent for the Germans is sadistically murdered by one of her clients. Sharif, from the German intelligence service that employed the unfortunate girl, sets out to track down the killer and soon narrows the field of suspects down to three generals. Eventually, Sharif's nearly obsessive mission to prove one of the three guilty annoys his superiors and he is transferred to Paris. Two years later, all the suspected generals are present in Paris when another prostitute is murdered.COMMENT: Anyone who doesn't guess the murderer in this film can't have seen many pictures. There are only three to choose from, anyway. However, to add another puzzle to their narrative, the producers have deleted a few scenes and added a few unexpected transitions from the past events depicted to unexplained present-day ones; — so that one has a bit of a puzzle following the story as well. Added to the plot problem, the acting is not very good either. O'Toole repeats all his Lawrence of Arabia mannerisms, and thus spoils the whole effect. Anatole Litvak's direction is surprisingly mundane and undistinguished. Even Decae's normally lush camera-work is way below his usual brilliant standard here. It's just as well the sets are so atmospherically attractive, and there seem to be so many crowds of realistically costumed extras milling around. Obviously, stacks of money were prodigiously expended on the movie, and most of it is up there on the screen for us to marvel at and admire.

With Peter O'toole in the cast, you cant go wrong, so it had to be worth a second look over 30 years later. Sorry to other reviewers, this was a dated and tired looking film. A poorly told story for the silver screen, and an ordinary script, with a dull ending. My wife fell asleep, and she was dead right . O'toole was a fantastic performer to watch, but this one was not one of his best efforts. With many remakes being churned out, this story could certainly be re told today, and with the right casting and direction be a cracking film.

This movie essentially begins with a German Intelligence Officer by the name of "Major Grau" (Omar Sharif) conducting an investigation into the brutal murder of a prostitute in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation of that city in 1942. Although certainly heinous, the problem in this investigation isn't so much about the victim but rather the potential suspect who happens to be one of a possible three German generals. Knowing this Major Grau has to proceed with utmost caution as his investigation, military career and possibly his life may hang in the balance. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that I though this movie started off pretty good. Unfortunately, it seemed to lag in the middle part of the film which focused too heavily on "General Tanz" (Peter O'Toole) and his eccentricities at the exclusion of the other subplots, some of which could have used more coverage. Likewise, I also thought that the mystery should have been maintained a bit longer as the ending seemed rather anti-climactic once the killer was identified. At least, that is how it seemed to me. In any case, this was an entertaining movie for the most part and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

this film transcends the usual agenda of the usual film financiers.it is a metaphor to show that there was murder beyond the murder we have all been trained to see.there were almost 27 million soviets slaughtered in what they call the "great patriotic war", that is their war with the Germans.but who talks about that.and that is the point of the film. there are crimes committed far beyond those we have been spoon fed to digest. there is a multitude of German resistance we have not been allowed to absorb, because the group that controls the media needs a total villain deserving no mercy in order to maximize the sympathy and guilt we are all programmed to feel.if you feel repulsion at this review, then you and i are both victims of this propaganda.