Escape to Athena *** (1979, Roger Moore, David Niven, Elliott Gould, Sonny Bono, Telly Savalas, Claudia Cardinale, Stefanie Powers, Richard Roundtree) – Classic Movie Review 6792

Director George Pan Cosmatos’s game, high-spirited 1979 British war caper is endearingly daft hokum from Lord Grade just before Raise the Titanic sank his company, ITC, with an all-star cast in a World War Two adventure about prisoners-of-war on a Greek island planning an escape and an art heist.

With high spirits like they are acting in an end-of-term pantomime, everybody is having a wonderful time playing parts they really should not have played: Roger Moore as a Nazi officer (Major Otto Hecht), David Niven as Professor Blake, Sonny Bono as Bruno Rotelli a member of the Italian Resistance, Elliott Gould as Charlie Dane, a concentration camp hippie, Telly Savalas as Zeno, a sensitive Resistance leader, Stefanie Powers as Dottie Del Mar, Richard Roundtree as Nat Judson, Anthony Valentine as SS Major Volkmann and Claudia Cardinale as the island’s patriotic madame, Eleana.

Escape to Athena is beautifully filmed in Greece by Greek director Cosmatos (who also provided the story with Richard S Lochte) and British cinematographer Gilbert Taylor.

William Holden has a jokey guest cameo as a cigar-smoking prisoner. Also in the cast are Siegfried Rauch, Michael Sheard, Richard Wren, Philip Locke, Steve Ubels, Paul Stassino and Paul Picerni.

Escape to Athena is directed by George Pan Cosmatos, runs 124, is released by ITC, is written by Edward Anhalt and Richard S Lochte, is shot by Gilbert Taylor, is produced by Lew Grade, David Niven Jr and Jack Wiener, and is scored by Lalo Schifrin.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 6792

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Roger Moore as Nazi officer Major Otto Hecht in Escape to Athena.