Wolff rating: EXCELLENT
Plot summary: A plane crashes in the desert, and as the days go by and rescue doesn't seem likely, tension builds.
Biased, pithy comments: Solid character drama is very compelling. All the details from the makeup to the scrubby desert dunes surrounding the plane lend believeability. Stewart and Attenborough really show their talents, though Borgnine could have been missing without much loss (though partially that was scripting). It is actually in dramas like these and ``The Great Escape'' that remind us how far we've come in portraying foreigners in movies; though the German engineer transcends the stereotype, a few of the minor characters here are really one-note summations of our preconceptions; the drunken Scot, the stoic British soldier, etc. But very good.
Other Notes: This movie confirms my belief that any movie with Alec Guiness as a warrior is a quality film.
How many times I have seen it: x1
Starring: James Stewart, Richard Attenborough, Hardy Krueger, Ernest Borgnine.
Directed by: Robert Aldritch