The Night of the Generals (1967)
A German intelligence officer investigates a prostitute's killing in Warsaw during World War II. He lands on three major Nazi generals as suspects, two of whom are also involved in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler.
- Anatole Litvak
- Andrzej Żuławski
- Alice Ziller
- Tom Pevsner
- Jean-Pierre Périer-Pillu
- Hans Hellmut Kirst
- James Hadley Chase
- Paul Dehn
- Joseph Kessel
- Gore Vidal
Rating: 6.8/10 by 155 users
Alternative Title:
Die Nacht der Generäle - DE
A Noite dos Generais - BR
La noche de los generales - ES
Generalernes nat - DK
La notte dei generali - IT
Tábornokok éjszakája - HU
Noc generalów - PL
Noaptea generalilor - RO
Tank Force - PH
将軍たちの夜 - JP
La nuit des généraux - FR
Country:
France
United Kingdom
United States of America
Language:
English
Français
Español
Polski
Italiano
Runtime: 02 hour 28 minutes
Budget: $5,200,000
Revenue: $2,400,000
Plot Keyword: prostitute, general, world war ii, investigation, flashback, murder, conspiracy, nazi occupation, 1940s, 1960s, warsaw, poland, adolf hitler
**_Intrigue in the heart of Europe during World War 2_** In German-occupied Warsaw in late 1942, a major of the Abwehr (Omar Sharif) conducts an investigation concerning the grisly murder of a German agent working as a prostitute. All he knows is that the culprit is a German general and this narrows it down to Gabler (Charles Gray), Kahlenberge (Donald Pleasence) and Tanz (Peter O’Toole). Nineteen months later they all happen to be in Paris when several senior Wehrmacht officers conspire to assassinate der Führer. “The Night of the Generals” (1967) is a worthwhile pick if you’re in the mood for the décor and intrigues of WW2 minus the battles, similar to “Triple Cross” from the year prior. Christopher Plummer starred in that earlier film and has a cameo here as Field Marshal Rommel. Both movies include the July 20, 1944, plot to assassinate Hitler in the last act, which is what Cruise’s “Valkyrie” was based on four decades later. There’s a subplot concerning the beautiful daughter of General Gabler (Joanna Pettet) and her romantic relationship with a lance corporal (Tom Courtenay). The latter becomes General Tanz’s driver and tour guide in Paris. For another WW2 drama that focuses on parallel behind-the-scenes events of the German high command (minus the fictitious murder mystery), check out “Rommel” (2012). The film runs 2 hour, 27 minutes, with the first act shot behind the Iron Curtain in Warsaw (a rarity for Western films at the time); the second act was filmed in Paris; and the final sequence in Munich, Bavaria, southeast Germany. GRADE: B
