The Greatest High Adventure Ever Filmed!|Apr. 27, 1961|United Kingdom | United States|158 Min.|n/A
Genre: Action;Drama;History;Thriller;War
Description: The Guns of Navarone is a 1961 film set in 1943 during World War II. The Axis powers plan an attack on the island of Kheros, where 2,000 British soldiers are stranded, to demonstrate their military might and persuade neutral Turkey to join their side. A rescue by the Royal Navy is blocked by two massive radar-controlled guns on the nearby fictional Navarone Island. When aerial bombings fail, Allied Intelligence assembles a commando team to infiltrate Navarone and destroy the guns. The group, led by Major Roy Franklin (Anthony Quayle), includes Captain Keith Mallory (Gregory Peck), a renowned spy; Colonel Andrea Stavrou (Anthony Quinn), a Greek officer; Corporal Miller (David Niven), an explosives expert; Spyros Pappadimos (James Darren), a native of Navarone; and “Butcher” Brown (Stanley Baker), an engineer and knife-fighting specialist.
Disguised as Greek fishermen, the team crosses the Aegean Sea and overpowers a German patrol boat. During the journey, Mallory reveals to Franklin that Stavrou has vowed to kill him after the war, blaming him for the deaths of Stavrou’s family. After their boat is wrecked in a storm, the team climbs the cliffs of Navarone, where Franklin suffers a severe leg injury. While hiding in the mountains, Mallory prevents Franklin from taking his own life and deceives him by claiming their mission is merely a diversion for a larger naval attack. They later meet resistance fighters Maria (Irene Papas) and Anna (Gia Scala), the latter of whom escaped German captivity.
The mission is constantly threatened by German forces, and the group is eventually captured in the town of Mandrakos while seeking medical help for Franklin’s gangrenous leg. During interrogation by SS officer Sessler (George Mikell), Stavrou distracts the Germans, allowing the team to overpower their captors and continue their mission.
Cast director: Peter Yates
Cast actor: Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn, Stanley Baker, Anthony Quayle, James Darren, Irene Papas, Gia Scala, James Robertson Justice, Richard Harris
Original name: The Guns of Navarone