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Review
by
Brian Lindsey
Film:5
DVD:4
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| A
fairly routine military action-drama which should prove passably
diverting for history geeks. |
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It's
1916, and with the Western Front locked in bloody stalemate the
giant airships of Imperial Germany escalate their bombing campaign
against Britain. They appear over London at night, practically
invisible, cruising too high to be hit by antiaircraft guns or
intercepted by fighter planes. Bomb loads carried by the zeppelins
are relatively small, doing minimal damage. But the impact on
civilian morale is an entirely different matter. Unable to mount
a defense, the Brits can do nothing but take it as they race to
develop higher-flying aircraft and incendiary bullets to bring
the airships down. These improvements are months away, however,
and they know the Germans are simultaneously working to improve
their own technology. If only they could somehow get a spy into
the Zeppelin Works at Friedrichshafen... |
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Pushing
paper at a desk job in London, young staff officer Lt. Geoffrey
Richter-Douglas (Michael York) awaits his inevitable reassignment
to the trenches. Half-German by birth, related to the aristocratic
von Richter family of Bavaria, he is loyal to Britain but dismayed
that the two nations remain at war. Out of the blue he is contacted
by German intelligence — in the guise of a beautiful female spy
(Alexandra Stewart), whom he beds — with an offer to defect. Dutifully
reporting this to his superiors, Richter-Douglas is told that
the woman will not be arrested. Instead, he's to play along with
the defection scheme, pretending to switch allegiance and 'escape'
to Germany. Because the German side of his family moved in the
same social circle as the officers and scientists of the Zeppelin
Works it is hoped that he can gather information on the latest
airship designs. He isn't all that keen to get into the espionage
game but nonetheless volunteers for the job, still puzzled why
the Germans want him so badly. Of what use could a lowly lieutenant
— one not privy to important military secrets — really be to them? |
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With
the Germans convinced his defection is real, Richter-Douglas is
warmly welcomed at Friedrichshafen. He's shown around the Zeppelin
Works by old family friend Prof. Altschul (Marius Goring), chief
designer of the airships, and Altschul's much younger wife (Elke
Sommer), an aeronautical engineer in her own right. Also present
is army intelligence officer Colonel Hirsch (Anton Diffring),
who's putting in motion a top secret plan involving both Richter-Douglas
and Altschul's latest prototype, a daring raid that will strike
at the very heart of the British Empire... |
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This
plan isn't revealed until relatively late in the film. Now
I'm going to have to drop some minor 'spoilage' here and tell
you what it is, because it's one of the problems I have with the
script... Zeppelin LZ36 is to make a stealthy flight to rural
Scotland, stopping en route to take on fuel and a squad of heavily-armed
stormtroopers. These commandos are to be landed near an isolated
castle housing the cultural/historical treasures of Britain —
the crown jewels, the Magna Carta, and so forth. The treasures
are to be either carried away or destroyed, thus wrecking English
morale and knocking Britain out of the war. Say what? It's
a certifiably crackpot scheme, one that really stretches credulity.
Wouldn't such an act just piss the Brits off more, steeling
their resolve? Of course we know from history that the operation
will fail (as with The Day of the Jackal
and The Eagle Has Landed), but at
least the screenplay throws us a slight curve when the Germans
are ultimately thwarted due purely to fate and not anything the
hero accomplishes. |
The
film's top-drawer cast of European and British performers do
what they can to sell this improbable scenario. A fine actor,
Michael York (1973's The
Three Musketeers) mostly just coasts in Cardboard Hero
Mode, though, as the script doesn't really give him much to
do until the final half-hour. This makes for a fairly passive
protagonist. (It's established early on that his character is
afraid of heights, but then practically nothing is done with
this. After being aboard the LZ36 awhile he simply gets over
it.) Anton Diffring (Where
Eagles Dare, Faceless)
and Peter Carsten (as the commando leader) could play these
Prussian military types in their sleep; Rupert Davies (Dracula
Has Risen from the Grave) appears as the British intelligence
officer who, like James Bond's M, sends York on his espionage
mission. Andrew Kier (Quatermass
and the Pit, The
Pirates of Blood River) is a welcome presence
as the navy captain in command of the zeppelin but, like just
about everyone else in the film, doesn't get to make much of
an impression. Bodacious Elke Sommer (Baron
Blood), typically cast in sex kitten roles, has probably
never played a more dowdy character, staying fully dressed throughout.
(She does look pretty cute in that leather aviatrix outfit,
though.)
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Belgian
director Etienne Périer (When Eight Bells
Toll) helms in a workmanlike fashion, neither elevating
nor undermining the proceedings, while 007 franchise veteran Alan
Hume does the expected solid job with the cinematography. Composer
Roy Budd (The
Wild Geese) provides a suitably martial, if unremarkable,
score. Special effects are a mixed bag, ranging from adequate
(the zeppelin miniatures) to poor (many of the rear-projection
shots). Yet it's the script which is the film's true Achilles
Heel, as the espionage elements generate very little suspense
and the military action is all relegated to the climax. |
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An
interesting aspect of Zeppelin is
that there really aren't any villains in it. Since the story takes
place during World War I there are no Nazis on hand to commit
heinous atrocities. Uniformed Germans are depicted as patriots
merely doing their duty for kaiser and country. The closest thing
the movie has to a 'bad guy' is Diffring's sternly efficient Col.
Hirsch — and even this character is motivated purely by military
necessity. |
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| Part
of the Warner Archive Collection, Zeppelin
is available via the 'burn on demand' service of WBShop.com.
Like most (but not all) of the Archive discs, it can also
be purchased at Amazon either directly or through reputable Third
Party sellers. |
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The DVD-R is strictly bare-bones, lacking even
a trailer. There is no scene selection menu but chapter stops
are encoded at 10-minute intervals. The film is presented in its
original 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio, anamorphically enhanced
for 16x9 TVs. All in all it looks pretty darn good, with very
minimal print damage and pleasing colors. (Opening credits do
look fuzzy, it should be noted; some of the black, white-bordered
lettering is practically unreadable. No such problems are encountered
once the movie gets underway, however.) The mono soundtrack is
clean and clear, without issues. 7/16/10 |
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