Counterpoint (1968 film)

Counterpoint
	Film Poster
Directed by	Ralph Nelson
Produced by	Richard Berg
Written by	James Lee (Screenplay); Joel Oliansky (Screenplay)
Based on	The General; by Alan Sillitoe
Starring	Charlton Heston; Maximilian Schell; Leslie Nielsen; Kathryn Hays
Music by	Bronislau Kaper
Cinematography	Russell Metty
Edited by	Howard Epstein
Production; company	Universal Pictures
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date	March 13, 1968 (New York City);
Running time	107 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Counterpoint (also known as The Battle Horns or The General) is a 1968 epic war film starring Charlton Heston, Maximilian Schell, Kathryn Hays and Leslie Nielsen. It is based on the novel The General by Alan Sillitoe. In the United States the film was released as a double feature with Sergeant Ryker a 1963 television film starring Lee Marvin.

Plot

Lionel Evans is the director of a well-respected symphony orchestra touring European concert halls around 1944 in World War II. In the midst of one concert, the city where they are playing is attacked by German troops, and when Evans and his musicians try to escape, they are captured by Nazi soldiers led by Col. Arndt. Evans and the orchestra are taken to a castle where they are to bide their time before being executed; but it turns out that Arndt's superior, Gen. Schiller, is a big classical music fan. Schiller commands Evans and his symphony to prepare a special concert for the Nazis, but Evans realizes that the moment the concert is over, he and his musicians will be killed.

Cast

Charlton Heston as Lionel Evans
Maximilian Schell as Gen. Schiller
Kathryn Hays as Annabelle Rice
Leslie Nielsen as Victor Rice
Anton Diffring as Col. Arndt
Linden Chiles as Lt. Long
Peter Masterson as Sgt. Calloway
Curt Lowens as Capt. Klingermann
Neva Patterson as Dorothy
Cyril Delevanti as Tartzoff
Gregory Morton as Jordon

Music

The orchestra's performances, which include works by Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Brahms, Wagner, and Schubert, were performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.[1]

Production

Filmed at Universal Studios including a set built for the 1923 film The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the film began shooting on 21 November 1966 and concluded 24 January 1967. Two days were removed from the production schedule and the script was rewritten without consulting the director Ralph Nelson.[2]

Translations

Also known as:[3]

Denmark : Krigens symfoni
West Germany : Der Befehl
Greece : Nyhtes kolaseos
Finland : Sankareitten sinfonia
France : La Symphonie des héros
Italy : Sinfonia di guerra
Spain : Una tumba al amanecer
Sweden : I krigets järngrepp
Turkey : Esirler Kampı
USA (working title) : The Battle Horns
USA (working title) : The General

References

"allmovie.com". Counterpoint. Archived from the original on May 9, 2006. Retrieved October 15, 2007.
p.84 Worsley, Sue Dwiggins From Oz to E.T.: Wally Worsley's Half-century in Hollywood Scarecrow Press, 1 Jan 1997
"Counterpoint (1967) - Release dates". IMDb. Retrieved January 25, 2007.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[AMG-1] "allmovie.com". Counterpoint. Archived from the original on May 9, 2006. Retrieved October 15, 2007.

[2] .84 Worsley, Sue Dwiggins From Oz to E.T.: Wally Worsley's Half-century in Hollywood Scarecrow Press, 1 Jan 1997

[imdb1-3] "Counterpoint (1967) - Release dates". IMDb. Retrieved January 25, 2007.