The Night of the Generals (1967) User Reviews (94)

Nazis and serial killers, oh my!

[mattbaxter72 · 7/10 · 12 June 2007]

Well, if nothing else, we can agree that they don't make 'em like this any more. A cast of super-prestigious actors, including a reunion of Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif from Lawrence of Arabia, is employed in a huge, unwieldy Euro-pudding of a production about Nazis, murderers and a Nazi murderer.

This isn't an easy movie to summarize, since there are at least three major plot-lines going on at the same time. In one, someone is killing prostitutes in occupied Warsaw and Paris, and Omar thinks the murderer is one of three leading Wehrmacht generals. In the second plot, various high-ranking officers are conspiring to overthrow Hitler and bring the war to an end. And in a third plot, Tom Courtenay's corporal is getting very close to the daughter of Charles Gray's untrustworthy General Gabler.

All three plots intersect, sort of, but I can't help wishing that someone had made up their mind just what sort of movie they wanted to make and stuck with it, rather than trying to make three at once. Courtenay's romantic sub-plot is entirely redundant, and should have been cut out completely, thus shortening the movie to a manageable two hours or so. And was there really any need for Christopher Plummer to saunter on in a minuscule cameo as Rommel? His appearance adds nothing to the story, and the only reason for him being here at all was presumably in order to employ every great British actor alive at the time. I'm only surprised that Laurence Olivier didn't turn up as Goebbels, or Himmler or someone.

And yet, despite the bloat, despite the stunt casting, despite the fact that Philippe Noiret is more wooden than the Black Forest, it works. I watched it for two and a half hours without getting bored, and I loved a lot of things about it - the characters interact beautifully, the tension in the conspiracy sequences builds up to near-unbearable levels, and the look of the thing is sumptuous in the extreme. You really feel you're there with these people, and you can't help but care about them and how the story comes out. In the end, that's what movies are supposed to do, isn't it? Night of the Generals is a long way from perfect, but it just about forced me to like it.

Worth a look, but ultimately disappointing.

[KEVMC · 6/10 · 23 May 2005]

Warsaw, December 1942. When a prostitute is savagely murdered, German Intelligence Officer Major Grau is called to investigate. An eyewitness who caught a glimpse of the perpetrator through a crack in a door, reveals that the killer wore grey trousers with a red stripe down the side - the uniform of a Wehrmact General. Grau quickly narrows the suspects down to three men whose whereabouts on the night in question cannot be accounted for.

Having been aware of this film for many years, I finally managed to catch a rare screening of it last night on British TV. Part of my curiosity to see it was due to the sheer weight of the cast:- Omar Sharif as Major Grau, Peter O'Toole, Donald Pleasence and Charles Gray as the Generals, plus Christopher Plummer, Tom Courtenay, Philip Noiret, Gordon Jackson, John Gregson, Harry Andrews, Nigel Stock and Patrick Allen - phew! The film itself starts quite promisingly as a murder mystery and maintains the interest while based in Warsaw. It features an impressive sequence involving the flushing out of Polish Resistance fighters in the city. An interesting side-note at this point is that the armour used here appeared to be either real Tiger tanks, or pretty good replicas. This attention to detail was quite unusual for a film made in 1966. Usually, contemporary armour was used in war films of this vintage - I'm thinking particularly of 'Battle Of The Bulge', 'The Bridge At Remagen' and even 'Patton'.

However, once the scene shifts to Paris in the summer of 1944, the film starts to lose focus, meandering off on sub-plots about the Hitler assassination conspiracy and Tom Courtenay's character's love life. For long stretches Omar Sharif disappears altogether and the momentum is lost. Another distraction is the way the film jumps forward at intervals to the '60's, where we find Philip Noiret's Policeman interviewing some of the secondary characters in an attempt to solve the mystery. But by this point the killer's identity has become all too clear.

The film is by no means a total waste. It is in part an interesting study of German senior officers. The acting is good throughout, and to see stalwarts of British war films like Harry Andrews and John Gregson playing Germans is both curious and original. The script is literate, production design handsome, and the 1.78:1 presentation on ITV3 gave a tantalising glimpse of how good Henri Decae's photography would look in it's full 2.35:1 Panavision frame. But overall I was left feeling that with tighter handling regarding the killer's identity, and more emphasis on the central plot, the film could have been a far more satisfying whole.

Not bad at all...

[Adam Frisch · 7/10 · 22 July 2005]

I agree with the above general sentiment that the story strays a bit too much at times, especially with the rather useless bombing of Hitler as a detour. I do however understand why it's there - it's because by attaching the "good" German generals to the plot of killing Hitler, they let the audience not feel bad for rooting for them. Simple trick, but all in all detrimental to the momentum of the story.

The film is brimming with exceptional acting - O'Toole turns in a particularly vicious and strong performance as General Tanz, but everyone holds their own. It's rare to find a villain so distasteful and yet so intriguing - most filmmakers just content themselves with giving the villain an evil shtick without much character development - not so here.

I saw a newly mastered DVD in full 2.35:1 widescreen presentation and the the cinematography by the late Henri Decae is wonderful in all its glory.

Very interesting movie, please see it.

Dramas in the drama

[michelerealini · 14 October 2004]

"Night of the generals" is big Anglo-French production of 1966, which talks about dramatic facts in a dramatic period (World War II). Two prostitutes are assassinated (in Poland and in France respectively) by a mysterious killer. A colonel of the German army (Omar Sharif) investigates and suspects three generals -two of them (Charles Gray and Donald Pleasence) are involved in a plot to kill Hitler, the other one (Peter O'Toole) is the most crazy and dangerous-. Twenty years later the same French inspector (Philippe Noiret) who helped Sharif in the inquiry faces another case of a murdered prostitute, the crime is executed in the same way as the previous ones...

This film is excellent. With a supercast (O'Toole, Sharif, Pleasence, Gray, Courtenay, Noiret) director Anatole Litvak directs a classic, a masterpiece. This film, maybe, is not as famous and as remembered as it should be... It deserves to be rediscovered, thanks to the recent DVD release.

Sensational and intriguing thriller about a Nazi officer investigating brutal crimes

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 28 December 2010]

Franco-British co-production includes a phenomenal casting as Omar Sharif and Peter O'Toole stars this intense thriller set in WWII about a Nazi general who turns series-killer . A Nazi intelligence official (Omar Sharif) goes after three Nazi generals (a formidable trio formed by Peter O'Toole, Donald Pleasence, Charles Gray) who can be involved in the grisly killing of a Polish whore . Meanwhile , it happens historical facts as the Warsaw uprising and the 20th July Plot (1944) in which appears as collaborator Field Marshall Rommel (Christopher Plummer) .

This terrifying and sinister story turns out to be a big budgeted whodunit set in Nazi-occupied Poland and Paris full of big stars , thrills , emotions and too tense at times. Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif give terrific performances as maniac general and upright investigator respectively . Tom Courtenay gives the best acting as a disillusioned German Corporal and Philipe Noiret is top-notch as Police Inspector who works for both sides. The splendid cast includes Joanna Pettet who contributes the most controlled interpretation , John Gregson , Coral Browne, Gordon Jackson and the French singer-actress Juliette Greco singing a wonderful song . The best scenes result to be when general O'Toole is watching paintings have been selected and requisitioned from private collections by the Reichsmarshall Herrmann Goering , then he observes the ¨Decadent Art¨ as Touloise Lautrec (Le Divan) , Renoir (Nudes), Gauguin (On the beach) Soutine, Degas (The tub) and Vincent Van Gogh (self-portrait ) , when he suddenly bursts on real crazy.

Well adapted for the screen by Joseph Kessel from the best-seller novel by Hellmut Kirst with additional dialogue by Paul Dehn -Planet of Apes- and based on an incident written by James Hadly Chase. . Marvelous musical score by Maurice Jarre conducting the New-Philharmonic Orchestra-London . Excellent title sequence and spectacular production designed by Alexandre Trauner . Finely photographed on location in Poland and at studios De Boulogne-Paris . Glamorous and glimmer cinematography in Technicolor by extraordinary cameraman Henry Decae . This dark motion picture of epic proportions is stunningly produced (along with Sam Spiegel) and realized by Anatole Litvak (Snake pit , Sorry wrong number , Mayerling , Anastasia). This steam-roller based partially on fact has a high-rating : Better than average , though may be little slow for some tastes. Well worth watching .

Nice mix of genres

[Renaldo Matlin · 10/10 · 19 April 2004]

"What is admirable on the large scale is monstrous on the small."

It's Agatha Christie meets "The Battle of the Bulge" meets... oh you get the picture. Great cast lead by the always fabulous Peter O'Toole who delivers a memorable performance as General Tanz. Also nice to see French veteran actor Philippe Noiret in an ensemble that includes Omar Sharif, Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasence and Christopher Plummer.

It is tense all the way mostly thanks to the great use of – first Warsaw (and the atrocities performed there) as a backdrop for the story and then we move to Paris where the plot to kill Hitler is nicely interwoven.

"The Night of the Generals" is at parts predictable, yes, (with the great exception of Omar Sharif's final scene) but I guess that's also what makes it kinda' enjoyable at times - at least in the very last scene - when you know what's coming (and boy does it feel good).

Some may find it a bit tedious and yes it is long, but when it was over I knew I would definitely see it again sometime in the future so in short: it works! If you think this movie is your cup of tea, based on the IMDb-information, you're probably right.

8/10

Doomed From Its Source Material

[vox-sane · 6/10 · 24 January 2005]

"The Night of the Generals" is a who-dun-it set in the most audacious (and almost successful) plot by German moderates to assassinate Hitler. The movie is worth watching for the cast alone -- Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif, Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasance, Charles Gray; and with cameos by Harry Andrews, Christopher Plummer and Gordon Jackson. Unfortunately, the mystery isn't much of a mystery. Looking for a psychotic killer among generals, you immediately think of the most psychotic general. Not only are these expectations fulfilled, the killer is given away far too early in the movie. Only with a drawn-out and dull post-war sub-plot is there some semblance of justice.

For once, fidelity to an original novel is a movie's downfall. The novel itself is sprawling, giving too few suspects for the murderer and not hiding it very well. It does not integrate the who-dun-it with the plot to kill Hitler very well, and it has a drawn-out post-war sub-plot. The movie follows the novel too doggedly, when it should have used judicious cutting and reshaping.

Everything about the movie is first-class. Unfortunately, it's too sprawling and formless to create much tension. The mystery story is, as in the novel, not much of a mystery; and it is not very well integrated with the assassination sub-plot. The post-war story from the novel should have been dumped. A movie is never too long if it's good and holds the attention. This movie is too long. But wonderful stars act their hearts out, and any fan of sheer thespian-ism can enjoy seeing the stars rub shoulders.

Well made movie that combines murder mystery and war.

[douglasadcom · 10/10 · 15 May 2004]

An overlooked little gem that gets better with each viewing. Murder mystery set in the German Army during World War II, involving 3 generals who are suspects. Entire cast in good form; fine ensemble acting. Peter O'Toole in top form as a fanatical SS general suspected in the murders. Donald Pleasence and Charles Gray portray the other 2 generals with secrets to hide. Omar Sharif does an excellent job as the Army colonel investigating. Film set in both 1942 occupied Poland, and 1944 occupied Paris. Also neatly ties in the July, 1944 plot to assassinate Hitler, with a cameo appearance by Christopher Plummer as Field Marshal Rommel. Recreates the actual bombing of Hitler's headquarters, and the efforts by the Paris generals to unseat the SS and Gestapo. Highly recommended viewing.

Stacks of money but no sense!

[JohnHowardReid · 6/10 · 10 October 2017]

A Sam Spiegel-Anatole Litvak Production for Horizon Pictures (Sam Spiegel) (London) and Filmsonor (Paris). Copyright 1 February 1967 by Horizon, Filmsonor. Released through Columbia. New York opening at the Capitol and Cinema I simultaneously: 2 February 1967. U.S. release: February 1967. U.K. release: 5 March 1967. Australian release: 21 April 1967. French release: April 1967. 13,213 feet. 147 minutes. Cut to 140 minutes in France. Filmed on locations in France and Poland. (Available on a very good Uca DVD).

French release title: LA NUIT DES GÉNÉRAUX.

SYNOPSIS: In Warsaw in 1942, a prostitute who doubles as an agent for the Germans is sadistically murdered by one of her clients. Sharif, from the German intelligence service that employed the unfortunate girl, sets out to track down the killer and soon narrows the field of suspects down to three generals. Eventually, Sharif's nearly obsessive mission to prove one of the three guilty annoys his superiors and he is transferred to Paris. Two years later, all the suspected generals are present in Paris when another prostitute is murdered.

COMMENT: Anyone who doesn't guess the murderer in this film can't have seen many pictures. There are only three to choose from, anyway. However, to add another puzzle to their narrative, the producers have deleted a few scenes and added a few unexpected transitions from the past events depicted to unexplained present-day ones; — so that one has a bit of a puzzle following the story as well.

Added to the plot problem, the acting is not very good either. O'Toole repeats all his Lawrence of Arabia mannerisms, and thus spoils the whole effect. Anatole Litvak's direction is surprisingly mundane and undistinguished. Even Decae's normally lush camera-work is way below his usual brilliant standard here. It's just as well the sets are so atmospherically attractive, and there seem to be so many crowds of realistically costumed extras milling around.

Obviously, stacks of money were prodigiously expended on the movie, and most of it is up there on the screen for us to marvel at and admire.

An Excellent and Very Underrated European Super Production

[claudio_carvalho · 9/10 · 28 January 2004]

In 1942, in Warsaw, a Polish prostitute is murdered in a sadistic way. Major Grau (Omar Sharif), a man from German Intelligence that believes in justice, is in charge of the investigation. An eyewitness saw a German general leaving the building after a scream of the victim. A further investigation shows that three generals do not have any alibi for that night: General Tanz (Peter O'Toole), Maj. Gen. Klus Kahlenberge (Donald Pleasance) and General von Seidlitz-Gabler (Charles Gray). They three avoid a direct contact with Major Grau and become potential suspects. As far as Major Grau gets close to them, he is promoted and sent to Paris.

In 1944, in Paris, this quartet is reunited and Major Grau continues his investigation. Meanwhile, a plan for killing Hitler is plotted by his high command; a romance between Ulrike von Seydlitz-Gabler (Joanna Pettet) and Lance Cpl. Kurt Hartmann (Tom Courtenay) is happening and Insp. Morand (Phillipe Noiret) is helping Major Grau in his investigation.

The story ends in 1965, in Hamburg, with another similar crime.

The first time I watched this film, I was a teenager and I recall that I left the movie theater very impressed. Two days ago, a friend of mine saw this movie again and sent me an e-mail. I decided to watch it again, on VHS, since it has not been released on DVD in Brazil. This movie is really an excellent and very underrated European super production, having a spectacular international cast. Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif, from 'Lawrence of Arabia', have another outstanding performance working together, highlighting the role of Peter O'Toole as a deranged man. It is amazing how Omar Sharif was a great actor in the 1960's. The story has war, mystery, crime, romance, drama and thriller, in right doses. Further, the character of Omar Sharif, as an ethic man who believes and pursues justice, no matter the price, is exciting. The reconstitution of the period is also fantastic, specially the scene of the madness of General Tanz in a block of Warsaw, when he burns and destroys many buildings. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): 'A Noite Dos Generais' ('The Night of the Generals')

Note: On 23 Aug 2020, I saw this film again.

Moments of interest and effective scenes, weakened by clumsy narrative.

[alexanderdavies-99382 · 7/10 · 28 July 2017]

I have to admit to having high hopes for "Night of the Generals." My previous viewing experience was 20 years ago when my brother rented the video. Alas, my expectations were only half met. The film suffers from a rather clumsy narrative as it keeps shifting from The Second World War to what was then modern day 1966. I found the constant shift in emphasis to be irksome as the film didn't seem to know which setting it was focusing on. In addition, the story about a German officer who investigates the murder of a prostitute in Nazi occupied Poland, took a backseat to what was really a general look at army life amongst the Nazis. Peter O' Toole doesn't really take centre stage as he should have done. He is out of the film for many minutes at a time and that disappointed me. The same applies to Omar Sharif as the officer investigating the murder. Luckily, the film does maintain my attention and interest, thanks to a brilliant supporting cast. We have Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasence, Charles Gray, John Gregson, Harry Andrews, Christopher Plummer and others. Peter O' Toole - when he is in the film - gives an outstanding performance as the cold and ruthless killer in "Night of the Generals." His blue eyes look almost piercing. Not the classic I was expecting but still good.

Great movie

[BerlinDancer · 10/10 · 29 June 2006]

Wartime Europe - Warsaw 1942: A Polish man visiting the communal toilet in his tenement block hears the screams of a local prostitute being killed in the flat above. A few minutes later he hears footsteps coming down the stairs and he peers through the crack in the lavatory door and is shocked to see the uniform of a German general coming down the stairs. He reports the murder to the authorities and the investigating officer Major Grau believes him and establishes that only 3 of the German generals in Warsaw were without alibi on that night - Generals Tanz, Kahlenberge and Gabler. He begins his investigation but just as he is getting close to the truth, he is transferred to Paris by higher authority. Two years later in July 1944, another prostitute is murdered and Major Grau establishes that once again all 3 generals - Tanz, Kahlenberge and Gabler are all in Paris on the night of the murder. The hunt for the killer is on.....

An excellent murder mystery full of intrigue and suspense set against the background of wartime Europe, The Night Of The Generals is one of few movies incorporating historical fact with fiction and succeeding admirably. As well as the fictional murder storyline, readers will be treated to the cleansing of the Jews in the Warsaw ghetto (1942) and the infamous July bomb plot to kill Hitler (1944) which are both incorporated into the story. Anyone who likes war or murder mystery movies will not be disappointed by The Night Of The Generals.

Please Pass the Tofranil

[rmax304823 · 7/10 · 3 December 2001]

This movie mixes several points together. They are not exactly seamlessly joined, true, but each is followable and interesting in its own right. In no particular order, we have the irony of ex-Wehrmacht officers and men doing quite all right in the 1960s Wirtschaftswelle of Germany. One of the characters we've been following remarks that these damned Spaniards and Italians he now has working for him in his factory don't know how to make Volkswagons. Back to the occupation of Europe, there is the overall context in which the Germans are losing the war, but nothing much is made of this except to the extent that it generates a movement among (some of) the officers to eliminate Hitler, a movement about which Major Grau (Omar Sharif), investigating the slaughter of a prostitute, observes cynically that it took quite a while for the movement to develop since the army seemed satisfied enough as long as they were winning.

The French police officer who is helping him (the ever-sympatico Philippe Noiret) asks Major Grau why he is obsessed with tracking down the murderer of a whore in the midst of mass demise, and Grau says he resents the murderer's thinking he can play God. Noiret asks, "And you can?" Grau replies neatly, "My blasphemy is on a smaller, more secular scale." (Some of the dialog is pretty nifty.) Omar Sheriff gives what may be his finest performance on film. He may have been all masculine in "Lawrence of Arabia" but here he is effete, suggestive in the most delicate way of homosexuality. It's in the way he holds a cigarette, the way he dances up a flight of stairs.

The search for the murderer, whose identity is stupefyingly obvious shortly into the picture, provides a police procedural that forms the movie's spine or at any rate its notochord. There is even a romance that is not simply thrown in but is fairly well integrated into the plot and important to the outcome. The cast is good -- and what a caste! Peter O'Toole has been criticized for repeating his neurotic tricks from Lawrence of Arabia, but I didn't find it derivative at all. Lawrence was subtly mad. General Tanz is completely, screamingly, eye-twitchingly, dripping with sweatly, NUTS. There are two scenes in which Tanz enters a locked room to view "decadent art." One of them is a self portrait of Van Gogh. In each scene Tanz and Vincent stare back at one another, two psychotics, and "I know exactly who you are" seems to be written all over Van Gogh's scowling face. Both times Tanz is overcome and seems to dissolve into a myoclonic fit.

The novel by Hans Helmutt Kirst was a lot funnier than the movie, taking advantage of every opportunity to poke fun at German military precision. But there are still amusing incidents left in the film. When Grau meets Tanz at a fancy reception and begins to query him, Tanz leans forward with an expression of distaste and asks, "Are you wearing PERFUME?" Grau, never flappable, replies, "I use a rather strong cologne." I don't understand, though, why Tanz wears the uniform of a Wermacht general through most of the film, then shows up at his last confrontation with Grau dressed as an SS officer.

Maurice Jarre was writing effective scores in the late 60s. His "crazy music" sounds like an accompaniment to a marionette show that, when one thinks about it, isn't entirely inappropriate. The murderer meets his just end (while sensibly drunk as a skunk in the novel) but the story is fundamentally a tragic one. Too many deaths of good people. Too many lives ruined for nothing. What a shame the Hitler plot didn't work. It should ideally have been mounted back in 1938.

Night of the Gerbils would have been more suspenseful

[ArtVandelayImporterExporter · 4/10 · 25 June 2018]

This film fails on almost every level: uninspired direction; banal dialogue; weak murder mystery; a 60s sitcom soundtrack, and self-conscious acting that includes what must surely be Peter O'Toole's worst performance. I started fast-forwarding about 45 minutes into this mess. It was clear by then that nobody actually cares about the murder. As a result I also realized I didn't care about the suspected generals or investigator Sharif. It becomes obvious even the director or producer didn't care about the original murder investigation when, halfway through the movie, the Hitler assassination plot is hatched. The whole thing is as tawdry and cheap as O'Toole's character trolling for hookers in cheap Paris boozers. Special shout-out for Tom Courtenay, who must be the most bland, forgettable British actor of his generation. My gawd he's boring on every level, whether he's making out (unconvincingly) with a good-looking woman, wearing a German army outfit, or trying to look conflicted about whatever it is he needs to do next.

Great 60s war mystery

[TheRealArbiter · 13 August 2003]

I remember seeing this film in the theater when I was a kid and being fascinated by it. When I finally located a copy on VHS, I was able to enjoy it once again. Do not over analyze it. Just enjoy Peter O'Toole as the nutcase Tanz, Donald Pleasance as the General-with-a-conscience, and especially Omar Sharif as the dogged, honorable military investigator. Charles Gray as General Gabler (and Coral Browne as his wife) are perfect as oldschool Wehrmacht junkers. ("We are well suited, aren't we?") Yet another film that needs to be released on DVD.

" But Murder is the Occupation of Generals "

[thinker1691 · 7/10 · 4 September 2007]

One night when you have time on your hand for an interesting 'Who-done-it' set during a war, this is your film. It is a story with-in a story. The plot begins in war torn Europe, Poland, to be exact. The Warsaw night is laden with black smoke from the on-going destruction by the German Army. Somewhere, in the 'red-light' district, a high shrill and fatal scream rips the air as a woman is being savagely butchered. A Polish eye witness to the murder puts in an anonymous call to the police who in turn summon the German occupational police. The authorities send a dedicated, tenacious and zealous Intelligence Officer, Major Grau (Omar Sharif) to investigate. What he discovers is, whoever murdered the woman was not only a sex crazed lunatic, but a maniacal sword swinging maniac too. That's when it gets additionally dramatic, the eye-witness said the murderer wore a German Officer's uniform, . . with a red stripe. Only German generals wear the red stripe. Peter O'Toole plays General Tanz, a highly decorated and meticulous officer of the Waffen SS tank Corps and a favorite of Adolf Hitler. Donald Pleasence is Maj. Gen. Kahlenberg, a distinguished general who disappears from time to time and is an aid to the last general, General Von Seidlitz-Gabler (Charles Grey) who likes women and is a 'bit of a voyeur.' The only thing which ties them together is Lance Cpl. Kurt Hartmann (Tom Courtenay) a German witness. Philippe Noiret is great as Inspector Morand who's friendship with Major Grau extends beyond the war. They believe, any day is a good day to catch a murderer. Even a day when the whole world is falling down around them. An excellent film with which to slay a somber afternoon. ****

Excellent Throughout

[elpasotoyman · 10/10 · 24 August 2005]

Omar Sharif is excellent in this film. The fact is that the film needs to be restored to its widescreen version and released on DVD.

The acting is fantastic throughout and the locations are perfect.

The point I wanted also to make is that, unlike your "factual errors" there were in fact several Regular German Army units and soldiers who were later brought into the Waffen SS. Several of the foreign volunteer units were brought into the SS as well.

There were foreign volunteer units that were in the Leningrad area in 1941-42 and later became Waffen SS in whole or in part.

The movie does a great job of making almost perfect copies of German material and when it gets to France even has a shot of tanks made up to look very much like Panthers, in addition to the many kubelwagons and schwimwaggons.

Grau is one of the best characters in cinema and he should have had more screen time. A great film! A great indictment of the Nazis.

Murders within Murders within Murders

[theowinthrop · 7/10 · 5 August 2007]

When the novel THE NIGHT OF THE GENERALS (by Hans Helmut Kirst) was published in the 1960s, it was a best seller. It has a very clever (devilishly clever) theme - when is a murder considered heinous? The plot is basically three levels or intertwined murder.

1) The organized murder (both normal and war crime) of World War II as practiced by the Nazi German Government.

2) The activities of a select band of German Generals (led by Field Marshall Erwin Rommel) to assassinate Adolf Hitler during a conference at Raustenburg, in July 1944, seize the German Government, and negotiate an end to the war with the British and Americans (probably not with the Communist Russians).

3) A series of apparently random prostitute killings across Europe (first in Warsaw) that appears to be linked to one of three leading German Generals: General Kallenberg (Donald Pleasance), Seydlitz-Gabler (Charles Gray), and Tanz (Peter O'Toole). The crimes are being investigated by Major Grau (Omar Sharif), who is as determined to solve this case as Inspector Javert was to capture Jean Valjean a century earlier.

Now, one can make a general statement (and it has been seriously made) that warfare is organized killing and murder and is no different from Jack the Ripper's activities (which resembles the activities of the prostitute murderer here). Yet while abhorring (or supposedly abhorring) the Rippers, Christies, Mansons, etc. in our society, people do still glorify and reward the officers and soldiers of armed forces (for the most part) who serve their countries. Rommel, for example, by his eleventh hour switch to support the Stauffenburg bomb plot, was technically committing treason - and was forced to commit suicide to protect his family from Hitler's full anger. But today, "the Desert Fox" is one of the few Axis generals to be regarded as great by both sides for his abilities, and a hero by both sides for his trying to get rid of a really evil madman. Yet that bomb plot actually killed two others in the bunker with Hitler who were closer to the bomb itself. Doesn't that (even if we don't want to think it) make Rommel an accessory to two murders?

Rommel is no more blamed for the deaths of Allied and Axis soldiers in his battles in North Africa than say George Washington and Lord Cornwallis are blamed for deaths at Yorktown. Yet their plans and orders set things up for such deaths - but we tend to ignore these. If people are blamed for wars it is the civilians or governments heads who are usually blamed.

And what happens with crimes that are government policy at the time. The issue is still cropping up in the U.S. actions in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq. With the Nazis, you have the Holacaust and various battleground horrors (i.e. "the Malmedy Massacres" during the Battle of the Bulge) that are not considered normal (if any warfare is normal) actions in war. Are the soldiers involved in such activities true criminals or are they considered "doing their duty". The answer depends on whether the country involved is willing to cover-up for them, and also successful in the war. Don't forget, we live in a post- Nazi defeat world. Had Hitler won, the war criminals would have included Churchill, F.D.R., and Eisenhower, not Goering, Hess, and Von Ribbentrop. Survivors in Nazi controlled Europe (no Jews or Slavs or Gypsies, or Communists or enemies of the Nazis) would have barely heard of the death camps and the Holacaust.

Here Major Grau is determined to find which of his three suspects is the murderer of the prostitutes. He has followed them across Europe. Tanz is the most ideological of the generals - a favorite of the Fuhrer. We see him destroying a section of Warsaw (presumably the ghetto) while being questioned by Grau. Tanz looks disdainfully at the Major and remains in his tank during the interview (looking downward at the Major). Kallenburg is the most secretive and mysterious of the three suspects - and we realize he is not as cooperative as he pretends to be. Seydlitz - Gabler is in a loveless marriage, and seems to hide behind his aristocratic lineage.

Grau does get some help from a French inspector Morand (Philippe Noiret) when the generals turn up in Paris. Morand actually makes some headway - he finds a crime being planned. But it is the bomb plot against Hitler. Grau hears this and laughs it off calling the plotters traitors (which again makes us wonder when is a crime no longer a crime and a murder what it is supposed to be).

Seydlitz - Gabler's daughter Ulrike (Joanna Pettet) is having a love affair with Corporal Hartmann (Tom Courtenay). Her parents are not thrilled by her romance with this untitled nobody. Hartmann is assigned to chauffeur Tanz around Paris while he is on vacation there. They go to one of the forbidden museums of impressionistic art there, and Tanz discovers a somewhat kindred spirit in Vincent Van Gogh's art style. In fact Tanz keeps returning to the museum day after day. Tanz's reaction to the paintings is one of the most effective moments of the movie.

In the end the case cannot be solved in wartime - it requires 20 years for the solution to emerge. And (although the audience does know who did it long before the conclusion) the end of the film shows that the sometimes a sense of disgrace can be brought about by the type of killing one gets tangled with.

I highly recommend this movie to O'Toole fans and lovers of WWII murder

[jhevents · 10/10 · 15 May 2005]

I saw this movie in the year of its release. I have always been a great fan of Peter O'Toole and his performance in The Night of The Generals, as General Tanz is amazing.

There are no weak performances in this film and I consider the story line to be sound throughout. The plot against Hitler's life - which is a well known historical fact, in no way detracts from the murder mystery at hand.

The musical score associated with the film, composed by Maurice Jarre, is stirring and memorable. After more that 30 years, I still remember the haunting musical theme very clearly.

The Night of the Generals is a terrific murder mystery. I hope that I will have an opportunity to view this picture again in the future. Sadly, it appears that it is now difficult to find.

Disappointing

[guylyons · 6/10 · 2 March 2017]

With Peter O'toole in the cast, you cant go wrong, so it had to be worth a second look over 30 years later. Sorry to other reviewers, this was a dated and tired looking film. A poorly told story for the silver screen, and an ordinary script, with a dull ending. My wife fell asleep, and she was dead right . O'toole was a fantastic performer to watch, but this one was not one of his best efforts. With many remakes being churned out, this story could certainly be re told today, and with the right casting and direction be a cracking film.

A Strange but Great Movie

[ragosaal · 9/10 · 25 August 2006]

I like II World War movies and I like Thrillers too. Night of the Generals is both, and both good. Actually, it has two plots that go along perfectly. On one side the historically accurate intent leaded by Col. Von Sauffenberg to kill Hitler on July 20, 1944, and on the other the murders of prostitutes by an unrevealed German general in Warsaw and occupied Paris that are investigated by a German officer who believes that "any time is good to catch a murderer" (even war time). Although the identity of the assassin -out of three suspects- can be anticipated early in the picture tension and interest do not decrease at all due to a strong direction by Anatole Litvak. As for acting the cast makes its job fair enough. Peter O'Toole plays really good his tortured character and Donald Pleasence is in high level too. No complaints on Tom Courtney, Charles Grey and Joanna Pettet's performances. The music score is also a credit. Omar Sharif's complete miscast as a German officer is the only flop I could find in such an interesting and well assembled movie. The Egyptian actor, no matter how hard he tries, can never be taken seriously in such a rol. This aside, the film is one of the best of all times in its genre.

Oddly compelling.

[gridoon · 7/10 · 3 August 1999]

This mix of WWII film and murder mystery should be a turkey. The identity of the killer is revealed much earlier than it should, and the pacing is ABYSMAL. But the film isn't a turkey. It's oddly compelling and consistently interesting.

A polished, entertaining, surprising epic

[stuart-288 · 9/10 · 13 February 2007]

I am surprised that some reviewers are a little disappointed with this great film. I found it to be hugely entertaining, with many surprising twists and turns. OK some of the accents are a bit questionable, for example; most of the lead actors playing German officers use an authentic accent, whilst others in minor roles don't bother with one. The only two pieces of casting I have a slight problem with is using quintessential Scotsman Gordon Jackson as Omar Sharif's colleague and an American unknown actor as the German news-reporter. Sharif himself is excellent as the dogged, principled investigator, but it is O'Toole who dominates the film. He is simply chilling and quite believable as the withdrawn, intensely private, psychotic 'Butcher' of Warsaw. Well worth watching.

night of the generals

[ruben-snuf · 6/10 · 3 November 2005]

when i was just a boy('67) I watch this being 14yrs old i was disgusted by way of fear that was put in me after watching this picture I had nightmares for several weeks It was most bloody than...(!?) but now it seemed rather tame(no bloody scenes what so ever) however the Peter O'Toole still put fear in me now being 52yrs of age the film with his performance Still wish to see the original film cause the question remains was it a different copy now cause this back in '67 for 16/18 old approved film can be bought over here in the Netherlands for 6 yrs and above however the film struck me by surprise being this tame now all together!?...

Not The Sum of its Parts.

[GordJackson · 5/10 · 27 August 2013]

Sadly, I can not join in with the chorus of those who rhapsodize over the many merits of "Night of the Generals." It isn't that I don't want to - I would love to. You have a uniformly excellent cast (Peter O'Toole, Omar Sharif, Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasance, Charles Gray, Coral Browne and many others) doing some very fine acting, solid if not inspiring direction, brilliant cinematography and a music score by Maurice Jarre that almost atones for the blood-congealing treacle that was his earlier "Dr. Zhivago." Unfortunately you also have from my perspective a tome that loses focus once the story shifts from Warsaw to Paris.

I won't waste time with a story synopsis as other posters have already done that most brilliantly. Instead, I will move on to some of the thoughts with which the film left me.

What is the value of one human life? Does it matter whose human life we are talking about - trained soldiers - freedom fighters - nationalists - innocents caught up in the cross-fire - prostitutes! Can killing of any sort ever be justified? If so, how? If not, what about 'the greater good' question?

In one form or another, "Night of the Generals" poses all of the above questions - and a good deal more. But regretfully, the impact upon us of those very pertinent questions is diminished by a screenplay that gets bogged down, indeed becomes obsessed with the character study of one man. And further adding to the lessening of what I trust was the intended emotional impact of this film is the setting up of the investigating officer as a heroic white knight, galloping along on his white charger, pointing his lance and singing 'stronger than dirt.' Sorry folks, but it just doesn't wash!

To conclude, a previous poster suggested a series of 'what if' questions one can see as encircling this picture. Absolutely - with each question being perfectly valid. However for me, one question got left out, namely, 'What if each of the three story lines in this film had been more economically presented through some very necessary (albeit judicious) editing? What if then?'