The Heroes of Telemark [Blu-ray]

An excellent War film. Used to be a perennial on weekends and Bank Holidays as a child. One of my late Mothers favourites - Douglas and Harris being two of her favourite actors. She particularly enjoyed the scene in which the Quisling played by Roy Dottrice gets shot in cold blood by Douglas!Recently shown on BBC2 just after Christmas 2020...oddly part of a double bill that afternoon with another great War film - "Operation Crossbow" preceding it....I hadn't seen either in years, a few decades in fact....I was surprised that the BBC decided to put both films on...having enjoyed the film after all these years and remembering how brilliant it was, I just had to buy a copy.Yes, the filmmakers did take some liberties with the story as compared to the real mission, but, all in all, the combination of Kirk Douglas and Richard Harris and a scene stealing Eric Porter make this one to watch....they certainly don't make them like this anymore...which, given the fact the great Directors and Actors of film and television are now (sadly regrettably and indeed inevitably) long gone is reason why. Film and TV today pales in comparison and is only good for conserving electricity by switching off the tv.Imdb.com and the Wikipedia article on the film have some very interesting trivia concerning the making of the film too.Highly recommended.

Based on a true story, the film tells of how a small group of Norwegian resistant fighters led by Knut Strand (Richard Harris) joined by reluctant participant Rolf Pedersen (Kirk Douglas) a Norwegian physics professor mount an assault on a German Hydro-plant situated on the outskirts of Rjukan in the county of Telemark in occupied Norway.After the realisation that the Germans were manufacturing the component Hard-Water in an effort to win the race to develop the Atom Bomb, an assault force is sent from Britain to assist the resistant fighters to destroy the ability to produce it, however when the craft carrying the force crashes killing them, Knut's small team along with Rolf must go it alone.Successfully halting production it was felt, job-done, however, the Germans had back-up equipment to send to the plant from Berlin, instead of a year it takes them just a few weeks to get the plant producing hard-water again.After an air-raid fails to stop operations it is left again to Knut and Rolf to prevent the Germans from shipping the water.The film also starring amongst it's cast-list Michael Redgrave and Ulla Jacobsson.Although arguably dated in many respects in comparison to the high-tech modern-day presentations, the 1965 offering does give a very watchable account of the heroics by the few to prevent the war being lost because of the Germans having the Bomb at their disposal.With a superb cast list, the film takes you back in time to the movies that captured audiences at that time.Worth a re-visit or nostalgic viewing.Footnote -If you have access to network TV, give the new Shaft a spin, great action, great fun with three generations of John Shaft on view.

This is a review of the 2019 Region 2 ‘Special Edition’ DVD, from ITV Studios Home Entertainment. It is one of an extensive list of available versions, including American and foreign language listings. But the sad truth is that the actual UK options (in 2022) are limited to this or an eye-wateringly expensive All Region Blu-ray. Here, the 1965 film has been digitally remastered, and there is a generous array of bonus material. The resultant film looks and sounds reasonably good, the colour is fine, but the picture clarity in particular, is not as good as the term ‘remastered’ tends to suggest.The lack of absolute sharpness and clarity is a pity, because this 125 minute War film is visually stunning. Set as it is, in Telemark, a county in Southern Norway, that northwards runs up into high mountains, this is a lavish feast of snowy peaks and elysian fjords. The house interiors are all craft-worked pine, wood stoves and soft duvets! And the action scenes are beautifully shot and majestically directed by Anthony Mann: superb ski chases, magnificent nighttime operations, climbing, creeping and plenty of good explosions.The story is basically true. The Nazis were producing Heavy Water at Vermork, a hydroelectric plant in Telemark, run by Norsk Hydro.The plant had been established to fix nitrogen for fertiliser; Heavy Water was easy to produce from that process. And Norsk Hydro was partly owned by German chemical company IG Farben, which came to have close relations with the Nazi regime. Heavy Water, used to help moderate nuclear fission, was crucial to German plans to build an atomic bomb ~ the production of which would have ended the war immediately. The French had taken all the existing Heavy Water from Vermork in 1940, but production continued, and increased after Norway was invaded. Well-justified Allied concern led to the operations portrayed, reasonably accurately, in the film. But German brutality, particularly towards captured British Commandoes (who were executed in direct contravention of the Geneva Conventions) is seriously underplayed by the film.The film succeeds in providing a good outline of the military issues (and the moral ones) taxing those trying to halt production. One small town set against total victory for Hitler: a hideous moral equation. It also underlines nicely, the risks taken by ordinary Norwegians fighting on the Home Front, and the threat from collaborators.The film was 2 years in the planning, by Mann’s own production company. Several different stars were considered. The final choice was Kirk Douglas as the charming and finally committed Dr Pedersen, and Richard Harris as the energetic and dedicated Knut Straud, based on the real life Norwegian commando centrally involved in the Vermork operations, Knut Haukelid. They are both excellent. So too is the great Eric Porter, as the chilly, ruthless Nazi Reichskommissar of Norway.This film is an excellent workman-like movie, handsome and exciting to watch, but never quite more than the sum of its parts. It never quite lights up. But a seriously good British War film, worthy of 4 strong Stars.

I was disappointed with the picture quality of this dvd, being a digital remastered copy, I would buy a standard version of this film and save at least £15. I have no issues with my blue ray player as I had where Eagles Dare as part of a bundle package and the quality on where Eagles Dare was outstanding, better quality than what you see on tv.