The Riddle of the Sands (1979)

Erskine Childers may have written the prototype of the modern day spy thriller with the book this movie is based on, but it doesn't change the fact that this movie adaptation is a big bore for the most part. Like many British movies, this plays like "illustrated radio", having a screenplay that may work on the radio, but becomes deadly dull when filmed. The movie is mostly talk talk talk, and not particularly interesting talk at that. The talented cast does give it a shot, but their lively performances only adds a tiny amount of spark. It doesn't help that the fairly low budget of the entire enterprise is evident throughout. In the end, the movie is a drab bore, which is a real shame because one can see the potential for a really good thriller here and there.

Have not read the novel about two Brits trying to uncover Imperial German skullduggery in 1901 around the Wadden Sea and Frisian islands in NW Germany, so cannot comment whether it captures its essence. What you get is a slow paced, tribute to messing about in small boats, kind of detective tale that does not really convince. Some holes here and there, some rush at exposition at vital moments, prevent the piece from fully working. There's a lot of good humour between York and McCorkindale as two ill assorted Oxford men, but when the action hots up, the film is a little unconvincing and a trifle rushed. While Hitler from Indy and the Last Crusade appears as a German spy at the turn of the century - yes, the Germans are a bit clichéd in portrayal yet again. A pity we do not find out why Dollman is a traitor! The film needed perhaps a Hitchcock to make it a classic like '39 Steps' which is set very similarly in theme and time. Must read the book or get to see the German TV version - German actors playing Edwardian Brits!!!!

As a long-time fan of the book I went to see the film with some trepidation, afraid it would have been mangled into an Edwardian James Bond parody. I need not have worried, for all but the last minutes - seconds even - this is as good a rendition as I could hope for. Fans of the book though, be warned (not a spoiler!), the ending, which I always believed would translate most effectively to film, has been replaced by a scene so crass that I cannot believe it was made by the same team as the rest of the film, but probably at the insistence of the producers. Otherwise this might well rate as my second favourite film of all time after The Third Man.

The people who commented obviously loved it so much. So did I. No movie can be perfect, and anything with a strong nautical theme is very, very hard to get looking right. Look at all the pirate movies where it is obvious that a period ship, recreated at huge expense, has its sails hanging slack and is being propelled through the water by engines. There was a Columbus movie not long back where the bottom edge of a sail was flapping round his face while he said something deep and meaningful.RofS is one of the few films that manage to sustain realistic nautical action and atmosphere right through. My only very minor quibble was that in the scene below decks where Clara puts on the kettle, there is far too much space above her head. But that could not detract from the "awkward English chap" conversation Arthur has with her.Of course anything with Jenny Agutter in it is a good movie, but with Jenny and sailing boats as well, this is one to love.