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starring: Michael Caine, Omar Sharif, Florinda Bolkan, Nigel Davenport, Per Oscarssondirected by: James Clavell
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 9780764005022
Format: Color, Original recording reissued, NTSC
ISBN: 0764005022
Label: Starz / Anchor Bay
Manufacturer: Starz / Anchor Bay
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Starz / Anchor Bay
Release Date: January 26, 1999
Running Time: 125 minutes
Sales Rank: 14973
Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
Theatrical Release Date: January 28, 1971
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Editorial Review:
Amazon.com:
James Clavell's heartfelt film of paradise found and lost in the midst of the bloody Thirty Years War, a senseless religious conflict long since degenerated into a rabble of looters preying on peasants, is a triumph of passion over style. Michael Caine stars as the Captain, a happily tolerant leader whose army of mercenaries, a mix of Protestants and Catholics, murders, pillages, and rapes side by side for whatever faction is paying more this month. Omar Sharif is Vogel, a lone refugee whose flight from the marauding band leads them all to a beautiful village in the mountains. The Captain and Vogel make an unlikely pair, the shrewd mercenary with the dream of peace, and the philosopher peasant hanging on to his own life in the face of certain death, and their alliance to preserve this Eden and her people stands in contrast to the soldiers who soon become splintered by greed, lust, and religious zealotry. Clavell isn't exactly subtle, but his sense of irony is biting: one Christian soldier is ready to lead an mob in righteous battle after a perceived blasphemer, and in the next scene attacks and rapes an innocent Christian maiden he's sworn to protect. The film falters in clumsy battle scenes and awkward dramatic staging, but Caine's complex characterization of the guarded Captain and Sharif's haunted performance keep the story alive, and the beautiful photography sets the film like a jewel into its setting. --Sean Axmaker
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - The Expurgated Cut
This is very much a movie worth seeing, but I am not at all pleased that some ninny took it upon themselves to censor this film. This is not the movie as it was released to theaters and shame on ABC Pictures for failing to release this in its original form. The image of the DVD itself is grainy and apparently no effort was put into trying to clean the film up (from a technical stand point at any rate).
Having said that, IMO this is the single best performance Michael Caine ever turned ... Read More
Rating: - Involving, Low-Key Epic
Smart script but mostly uninspired filmmaking prevent this from being quite the lost classic it's sometimes billed as. Both leads are good with Caine doing one of his rare accents and it doesn't falter. Florinda Bolkin fascinates. Unfortunately, the villagers are done up in such garishly colorful clothes the picture at times looks like Heidi and the brutal truths the film tries to get at are undercut.
Rating: - The Last Valley
At best a 3 star production. Old style filming looking more like a spagetti Western at times. Good story line with mediocre results.
Rating:  - Bad acting especially in fighting scenes. Lots of illogical holes.
The acting is ridiculously bad especially in fighting scenes. It looked like the actors were teasing each other not fighting! It also has lots of illogical holes.
I understand some people like it because it's an anti-war movie but I can't stand bad acting and so many illogical holes.
I wish I had not bought it.
Rating:  - One of my absolute favorite movies...
This movie was made a bit before my time (nine years before, to be exact), and I'd never even heard of it until my dad requested it as a Christmas present one year, saying it was an old favorite of his. I found it for him and figured, well, Michael Caine and Omar Sharif--it has to be pretty good, right? I watched it with him, and I was absolutely blown away. It's now one of my favorite movies of all time.
My dad likes it because he says it's an action movie (I somewhat disagree...this ... Read More
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