wouldn't care, he would sooner be elsewhere, Pursuing the enemy, where ever they hide in the class system, tap, tap, he's slotted, move on. A perpetually restless individual, as Mr Hopkins no doubt was at that point in his life. Drowning his frustrations in alcohol when off duty as does every professional? I am off to Scotland this month, to the Kyle of Lochalsh. To me as a teenager this was a significant film in my development, as well as the book. In a politically correct world, where cynical reality can only be found in 'spin', a world in which the late author could only bemoan; I find solace in this film. Where people actually disprove of my children playing with their toy guns and reading Commando magazine; in the comfortable cities which refuse to recognise the reality of living and surviving in the Hebridies; Please take me back to 1971!. These old values are as strong as ever and this films principles and values remain the same to this day.Alan David Noorkoiv.

performance, and the rest of the cast don't disappoint either.

he ain't afraid to bend the rules to do it.I'm half way in to the film - i don't want it to end ..

one of them – as a possible James Bond he would have landed somewhere between Sean Connery and Timothy Dalton, the two best. But MacLean for his realism, intelligent plots and great characterization is much better than Ian Fleming and his heroes much more interesting than Bond, since they always have to go a very hard way to get out alive in the end – James Bond is a snug playboy in comparison. Here, as so often in MacLean's stories, the hero Anthony Hopkins has to take everything on himself, as he gets very little help from his boss, the ridiculous peacock Robert Morley, who only thinks of his dissatisfaction with what he has to eat under the circumstances, but in all his exaggerated pedantry he always caps all his films by his splendid diction and eloquence – he is ridiculous, but very eloquently so.This MacLean thriller differs from his normal intrigues by adding a very spicy romance to it, as the lady comes swimming across cold waters a long distance just to get to Anthony Hopkins, but he does well in not feeling flattered or jumping at the opportunity but rather, as the experienced veteran he is, regard the invitation with some misgivings.It's a small but great adventure film and you get to see a great deal of the Scottish wildest archipelago.

does have friends, but they seem to die at the hands of his enemies. Indeed, those enemies keep Calvert jumping through metaphorical flaming hoops in this straightforward saga. Calvert isn't a man to quibble when it comes to enemies, particularly if they have killed some of his friends. He rams two armed thugs in a boat with his yacht, knocking them overboard so they lose their assault rifles and then swim desperately to shore. Does this keep Calvert from shooting them as they swim away from him in the back? No, it doesn't, and you know that you're watching a gritty, above-average thriller when he guns those guys down without a qualm. Interestingly enough, "When Eight Bells Toll" was Hopkins' first role as the leading man. He knocks the bottom out of the role, and it would have been a recurring character for him to play, except this S 7-million Maclean thriller floundereed at the box office. Nevertheless, "The Day the Hot Line Got Hot" helmer Etienne Périer, who also directed "Zeppelin," maintains momentum throughout all the action and intrigue and never deviates from his destination. Maclean and he see to it that nothing Calvert does is without peril. Meaning, this don't give our hero a break. During one sequence, Calvert goes aloft courtesy of the Royal Navy to fly around the area in search of places where the villains might hide the bullion ships. Naturally, the trigger-happy villains complicate his life by shooting down the helicopter. The helicopter pilot, Lieutenant Williams Maurice Roëves of "The Eagle Has Landed" takes enough bullets through the chest to die at the control stick, and the helicopter not only crashes but also sinks to the bottom of the bay near the coast. Calvert conceals himself with the help of a respirator just beneath the villains as they survey the waters for him. When they weren't shooting this item at Pinewood in England, the filmmakers were doing exteriors in Scotland in Fingal's Cave, Staffa, Argyll, and Bute. "Where Eagles Dare" lenser Arthur Ibbetson's widescreen cinematography captures all the grit and the beauty of the rugged Scots locations. As Sir Arthur Artford Jones 'Uncle Arthur' , Robert Morley is good as Calvert's supercilious superior. Uncle Arthur and Calvert don't immediately get off on the right foot, and Arthur considers Calvert both insolent and insubordinate. These two wind up working together to thwart the villains. "When Eight Bells Toll" contains all the ingredients of a sturdy Maclean thriller: mystery, surprises, a hero competent on land, sea, and beneath water, and a sterling cast that includes Jack Hawkins and Ferdy Mayne. This movie is worth watching!

memories of seeing the film 34 years ago help! was of the waves crashing against huge black cliffs and *feeling* the cold dampness of North-West Scotland on the edge of the Atlantic. The locations are very well used indeed, the viewer gets a real sense of place. The cast perform their roles well, Anthony Hopkins and Robert Morley particularly playing mutual antagonism with some nice comic touches.One reviewer mentioned that Charles Gray's dubbing of Jack Hawkins's voice seemed a bit slapdash. When Charles Gray was interviewed about dubbing Hawkins which he did quite regularly after the mid-60's he said that Hawkins insisted on *speaking* his lines even after his voice was gone. The result was to make his delivery very erratic and therefore difficult to voice-over. Jack Hawkins was one of the best actors we've had Cruel Sea, Bridge on the River Kwai, Ben-Hur, Lawrence of Arabia, etc., etc. and these supporting roles made a rather sad postscript to his career.

favourably to the Bond character played by other actors.There is some great dialogue between the upper middle class boss of Agent Calvert Uncle Arthur played by Robert Morley and Agent Calvert, which helps keep interest in the film between the action scenes. Compared to many of the scenes produced by action heroes of the last 10 years, some are a little dated, although there were still enough to keep me interested.Nathalie Delon was a great choice as the leading lady requiring rescue from the sea were her intentions good or bad? , and its a pity that most outside of her native country did not see much more of her in other things.One of my personal favourite pieces of work by Anthony Hopkins.If you're an action fan, I still think this is worth a look. Long overdue a worthy remake I think.

a brisk, fun way to idle away the best part of two hours.The script is sharp, the dialogue cynical, the action belts along nicely - and Robert Morely's Whitehall mandarin thrust into the field is an eccentric delight. Nathalie Delon whatever happened to her? is an icy femme fatale who couldn't act to save her life or anyone elses and Jack Hawkins, who had throat cancer, is voiced by Charles Gray. Jack's lip-synching is well-duff to say the least. He's almost a good five minutes behind. Add Old Vic stalwart Corin Redgrave as Calvert's pragmatism-challenged sidekick and you have a recipe for some top fun.The plot McGuffin is some nonsense about missing bullion ships, but it's no more than a hook to hang the action on. For me, this is a case of nostalgia most certainly being what it used to be. I just love it.For anyone who likes the early seventies Bond movies, it's almost an essential accoutrement.Right, next stops on the Alistair MacLean '70s movie DVD trail - Fear Is The Key, Caravan To Vaccares and the sublime Puppet On A Chain.