Maidexpl Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

DubyaHan The movie is wildly uneven but lively and timely - in its own surreal way

Sienna-Rose Mclaughlin The movie really just wants to entertain people.

andrew-york80 So I was 8 or 9 years old when this was released and even younger when I spent three weeks on-set with my parents and siblings. On-set because my dad was a film lighting technician working as part of the production team. I'm now 52, and watching it again brings back some vivid memories of those days, for example my brother and I taking turns steering an 8-tonne generator lorry around the marshes (sitting on the drivers knee in my case), or staying up late in our rented villa near Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer listening to the tales and jokes of the film crew and sitting on benches enjoying the food provided by the mobile catering (not to mention the end of production feast - where I even tasted and liked frogs legs).Several of the scenes in the film I remember vividly, for example the VW beetle driving through the burning cabin, waiting in a building outside the bull-ring in Arles (it was a real bull-fight, so rightly I wasn't allowed in) and especially the circus bull-ring at the end where I was sat with my brother and sister on the fence watching as they were filming.To the film itself, I'd agree it's not the best Alistair Maclean film, the action stilted, the dialog disjointed and the story has gaps (no worse than a tacky Roger Moore Bond film). But, for when it was made, the camerawork is simply excellent and the acting was by and large ok for a 70's film (I have seen much worse). I also like the fact that it's unashamedly bilingual with both French and English dialogue.So all in all, I think this is an underrated film for the reasons I mention and for me personally, is forever part of my life. Unfortunately this site doesn't allow you to post photos or else I'd post some production photos as my dad took his camera on many of his jobs.

JohnHowardReid PLEASE NOTE: This is a review of the British version, which runs no less than 98 minutes. Understandably, the movie was cut to 84 minutes in the U.S.A., but this version seems to have disappeared.SYNOPSIS: An attempt to smuggle an East European scientist into the U.S.A., is hampered by international gangsters.COMMENT: The popular thriller writer, Alistair MacLean, tackles the Camargue in this one. As might be expected, the action scenes are genuinely exciting. The photography and music score are also most effective, but the film is unfortunately saddled with an unimpressive cast (aside from the lovely Miss Rampling), directed in a monotonous TV style of close-up, after close-up, after close-up. This remarkably dull and ham-fisted approach not only emphasizes the tedious, hokey dialogue, but it also points up and draws audience attention to all the the seams and red herrings in the plot. True, actual locations help to restore a bit of interest, but not enough to capture an audience's constant attention.

ceandre This must rank as one of Cinema's greatest debacles. I was wandering Europe at the time and had the misfortune to stumble upon the crew making this movie in what was, even then, one of the world's idyllic, unspoiled settings. I was enlisted as an extra, and what followed was an exhibition of modern day debauchery. Forget all the accusations you've ever heard of Peter Mayall's intrusions on this rare piece of French life- Geoff Reeve and his cohorts embarked on a level of revelry at the restaurant at Les Beaux that left the Maitre'd slack-jawed in disbelief. They were, quite simply, awful, uncultured and undeserving of French hospitality.

doire Of all the adaptations of books by Alistair MacLean, I feel that this qualifies as the worst, but don´t blame MacLean!. It would appear that all that this film shares with the novel is the same title. We have no suspense, no sense of foreboding of mystery, no chance to really empathize with the main characters. We spend the entire duration (or at least I did) waiting for Charlotte Rampling to shed her clothing (for Charlotte, this appears to take a remarkably long time!). Still, a glimpse of Charlotte Rampling´s tits really can´t save this disastrous film. MacLean has once again been kicked into the gutter to endure the sniping of those bitter hacks and nit-pickers who would appear to blame him for all the ills that befall attempted filming of his books. Poor old Alistair must have crawled into a corner and whimpered when this one came out. At least "Bear Island" - which also uses the Maclean name but apparently none of his novel - was a LITTLE exciting. The excitement here is in waiting for the final credits.