Not perhaps the sort of film I would normally be drawn to but something about the theme intrigued me and the fact that it was directed by Robert Aldrich and featured Richard Attenborough, of whom I have recently had cause to reassess my opinion of. Plus there was James Stewart. I had not realised that the film was well over two hours but didn't notice this watching it either. The theme of a crashed plane having to be rebuilt in the desert by a varied group of guys is not a wondrous one (and presumably why this failed at the box office - as did a subsequent remake) but the interaction between this varied bunch and the interplay and jostling for leadership and survival is well observed. Indeed Aldrich does a fantastic job in maintaining intense interest in the goings on from the very first dramatic frames to the finale and gets great performances, particularly from Attenborough and Stewart but also from Hardy Kruger and others, excepting Ernest Borgnine who over acts appallingly, as he has a tendency to so do. Compelling watch.
