Robert Duvall in The Eagle Has Landed (Image: undefined)
A wartime drama celebrated by cinema enthusiasts as ‘powerful’ and ‘wonderful’ is currently available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
The Eagle Had Landed features Michael Caine, Robert Duvall, Donald Sutherland and Jean Marsh, and has captured the hearts of film lovers everywhere.
Adapted from Jack Higgins’ 1975 novel of the same name, the picture centres on German intelligence operative Max Radl in 1943 as he devises a daring plan to abduct Winston Churchill during a trip to a quiet English village.
Colonel Kurt Steiner commands a squad of camouflaged paratroopers, supported by Irish operative Liam Devlin.
The operation, which initially proceeds smoothly, unravels when a soldier’s disguise is accidentally exposed during a rescue attempt, alerting American troops.
Michael Caine also starred in the film (Image: undefined)
Released in 1977, the production may not have impressed critics or secured any Oscar nominations, but it certainly won the hearts of audiences who continue to champion it.
Film review platform Rotten Tomatoes features numerous glowing testimonials, all contributing to the movie’s 71 per cent score, reports the Mirror.
One viewer said: « Its a brilliant lazy afternoon war film packed with actors you recognise and a wonderful performance from Larry Hagman. »
Another added: « Watched the film for the first time recently. It was better than I thought. Great cast and moves quickly. »
Michael Caine Actor in The Eagle Has Landed (Image: undefined)
A third contributor wrote: « This is as much a thriller as a ‘war movie’. It has great characters, a wonderful soundtrack and has an authentic vibe throughout. Suspect negative reviews are from gamers. This film requires thought and attention to fully enjoy. The book is Higgins best and is a really enjoyable read.
« A powerful beginning, great build-up, an interesting side-story to keep us interested and great finishing action sequences make for a World War II movie that is well worth seeing, » declared a fourth viewer.
A fifth contributor said: « A neat little WWII spy thriller. Caine and Duvall are great, and Pleasence and Sutherland ham it up in an agreeable fashion.
« It’s not attempting to reinvent the genre, but it goes about its business with confidence (the steady hand of veteran director Sturges is felt in this regard), and it’s unique in that it presents the story (fairly exclusively) from the point-of-view of the ‘enemy.' ».
Another fan praised the stellar cast, adding: « Michael Caine and Robert Duvall are two of my favorite actors of all time and yet somehow, Donald Sutherland totally steals the show. Awesome story out of the WW2 era. Not your typical boring war movie either.
« Well made little war film based on the novel by Jack Higgins. Last film directed by Sturges is not as good as « The Great Escape » or « Magnificant Seven » but its not bad. Duval, Sutherland, Caine and Wiliams all do well while Hagman acts like he’s in a different movie entirely, » observed another reviewer. Another simply wrote: « One of the best action war movies. »
The Eagle Has Landed is now available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
