The Eagle Has Landed (1977)

Why so much hype?

Expected more

A Disappointing Continuation

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Always a pleasure to see Michael Caine and Donald Sutherland. It's a WWII story, told from "the enemy's" point of view, but one thing doesn't make sense to me: why is Michael's Caine's character so keen on completing his mission? Christ. Yes, he's an honorable man, but his organization isn't, and he knows it. But then again, Germans ARE reliable. Robert Duvall and Donald Pleasence are great as usual. Jean Marsh, Jenny Agutter and Judy Geeson are forces to be reckoned with. Larry Hagman is a perfect comic relief - to the end.

The guy with the eye patch quotes Jung (I think), about the way fate sometimes delivers just the thing we really really want!The movie starts with news clips showing the daring rescue of Mussolini and tells us that Hitler gets the idea of doing the same to Churchill. Of course, we know that didn't happen, so why bother watching all the rest of it? Coz we also know that Higgins can write action-packed thrillers (Was this really his first book?)Having got the basic idea, the Germans set out to do a feasibility study and they have the ideal guy to do it for them, Steiner (Caine) and his band of paratroopers. Conveniently, they have captured an intact MTB AND a C47 plane.Their plan is to pretend to be from the Polish Free Force, but they wear their German uniforms underneath so that if (when) they are caught, they won't be summarily executed as spies.Right on very early on, the movie has the feel of a Higgins super- thriller and so I watch, wondering... how is it going to end? Other reviews will tell you if you don't want to watch it. There are a couple of silly scenes, the instant "love" between Molly and Devlin - nah, and the silly vicar, but apart from that it is all "GO".Treat Williams an American who replaces Larry Hagman's character is the best of the support cast, and he gets a great line.. "there's no such thing as death with honour, only death". Yeah, but tell that to the jingoists.

Mussolini is rescued by German special forces. Hitler supported by Himmler (Donald Pleasence) has an idea to kidnap British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The one-eyed Max Radl (Robert Duvall) is ordered to command the operation. He recruits IRA member Liam Devlin (Donald Sutherland) in Berlin. Churchill is visiting Studley Constable in Norfolk. Kurt Steiner (Michael Caine) leads a squad of experienced troops from the eastern front. He's weary of the Nazis and tries to save a girl from the cattle train. For that, they are forced to take part in the impossible mission. Devlin sneaks into the country and joins up with sleeper agent Joanna Grey (Jean Marsh). Local Molly Prior (Jenny Agutter) falls for charming Devlin. The squad parachutes in dressed as Polish troops. Opposing them is the pompous US Army Colonel Pitts (Larry Hagman) and his more competent second-in-command Captain Clark (Treat Williams).This is a fun war high adventure. It's got funny scenes and some good action. The main thing holding it back is the reversal of roles. It's harder to root for the Germans in a WWII movie. It tries very hard to make Michael Caine a hero in this despite the German uniform. The story is highly unlikely but it's not really surreal. Plot believability goes out the window in this one.

Based on Jack Higgins' bestselling 1975 novel, The Eagle Has Landed can be summed up rather easily. The year is 1943: World War II rages in Europe and, following the rescue by German commandos of defeated Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, Hitler orders the kidnapping of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Though not a serious suggestion, events quickly lead to a group of German paratroopers being sent into a quiet English village on a mission that could change the course of the war. The film features a strong cast. There is Michael Caine as the German paratrooper officer Kurt Steiner which Caine fills rather admirably and, even without a German accent, believably as a leader. Donald Sutherland as IRA turned German agent Liam Devlin manages to bring a lot of charm and humor to his rather duplicitous role, despite an at times shaky accent. There's also Robert Duvall as Colonel Radl, the mastermind behind the operation, which Duvall plays a rather subdued but intriguing character. The supporting cast ranges from Jenny Agutter as village girl Molly Prior, Jean Marsh as villager Joanna Gray, John Standing as the village vicar to Sven-Bertil Taube as Steiner's second in command. The film also features the clichéd and over the top character of the American Ranger Colonel Pitts played by Larry Hagman in a performance that is nothing short of cringe worthy. More successful as both a character and a performance is his underling Captain Clark played by a young Treat Williams. Last but not least is Donald Pleasence who makes a couple of brief appearance as Heinrich Himmler, working an oddly menacing quality over the real life Nazi leader. The result is a well-acted film for the most part.The production values of the film are strong as well for the most part. There's some good recreations of the World War II settings ranging from German military offices to the English village where the bulk of the film's back half takes place (though as noted elsewhere there are goofs). The film's action sequences are well staged and feature some strong stunt work as well. In particular, the parachuting sequence and the initial battle in the village work splendidly. That said the film's pace is rather pedestrian at times, due to almost uninterested direction from John Sturges (this was to be his last film and it has been reported that Sturges took the film on mainly for money and walked out on the post production entirely). What keeps the film moving during those times is the score from Lalo Schifrin which suits the film's various settings and events admirably. The film's script and plot, adapted from the Higgins' bestseller as mentioned earlier, also works well. Like Fredrick Forsyth's The Day Of The Jackal (and its' own excellent film adaptation), the film works despite the fact that we clearly know that German paratroopers didn't manage to kidnap Winston Churchill in the middle of World War II. The film, as with the source material, instead works through the sheer power of its "what it?" premise by taking the audience along throughout the entire mission from its planning to the recruitment of Steiner and his men through the mission right up to the finale. The script by Tom Mankiewicz follows the Higgins' novel quite closely though it does jettison a few characters and plot points (including a member of S.S. British Free Corps sent in with the paratroopers for example) but the result is a by and large faithful presentation of the novel for the screen. Despite uninterested direction and a sometimes pedestrian pace, The Eagle Has Landed stands up well after more than thirty-five years. That is in large part thanks to a strong cast, good production values and action sequences. Above all though, it may well be down to the power of the Mankiewicz adaptation of Jack Higgins' original novel and the strength of its premise. The film then stands up as a good example of the World War II action/thriller, pure and simple.