Up today: The Hill (1965).
I think this was part of another DVD box set so I don't really know if this is one my Dad sought out. The rest of the films don't seem to be in the same league as this one, at least emotionally. The box set is called "The World War II Collection, Vol. 2: Heroes Fight for Freedom" which is a bit of a stretch for this movie.
I somehow had the idea going in that this was at least somewhat a WW2 combat film; the film's title is vague enough for this idea.
Instead, this turned out to be a fantastic prison drama that points its spotlight at the English military and abusive authority. The movie takes place during the war but confines its subject to the central characters and the cruel system they are all trapped in.
The film mostly takes place in one location set but never feels stagey. The screenplay is tight and Lumet really paces the film well and lets the cast do their best.
That cast is something else. Everyone is great and yes, at times the performances are almost over the top but no one chews the scenery; the high voltage scenes and emotional dialogue are all earned.
Connery is so good here; one of his very best performances with a lot more range than he usually had in his acting. It's kind of hard to believe he did this movie while making his iconic Bond films. I picked this movie, which I'd not seen before, to mark the passing of Connery and I'm very glad I did. I like him in anything he did but this movie really stands out.
This is one of the few times I've had to turn on the English subtitles in an English language film. The location (I assume) dialogue recording can get a little muddy and the accents get thick for me when the actors are screaming at each other.
The Hill is sometimes hard to watch and of course a very tense 2 hours but I am looking forward to revisiting. It deserves to be better known.
