MOVIE REVIEW - JUGGERNAUT (1974)

 

In the mid '70's, I was introduced to one of my Marvel supervillains, the Juggernaut, who is most associated with the X-Men. At the same time, my dad got me a book on the films of Boris Karloff, who starred in a non-horror role in a 1936 suspense movie with this title. Neither of those have anything in common with each other, nor with the 1974 movie "Juggernaut," which I'm reviewing (though both movies are suspenseful and are British movies).

The 1974 Juggernaut fits neatly into the disaster movies of the '70's, and like those, it has a large cast of good actors: in this case, it's Richard Harris, Omar Sharif, Anthony Hopkins, Ian Holm (received a nomination for supporting actor for "Chariots of Fire," though is probably better known for his role in the original "Alien"), Julian Glover, and one of my favorite actors, Freddie Jones ("Firefox," "Dune, "Firestarter," "Krull"). 

The plot is typical for this type of movie. The owner of the ocean liner Britannic gets a message from someone who calls himself "Juggernaut," stating that he has seven barrels with high exploves on the ship, and any attempt either to disarm them or failure to pay five hundred thousand pounds will mean the ship with the 1200 passengers and crew will go boom.

If you enjoy end-to-end suspense and action, this movie will deliver. It is a definite PG. The worst part is one minor story that the captain is seeing a married woman. Other than that, I would unconditionally recommend this movie.

PRE-OSCAR LOOK AT MOVIES THAT HAD AN IMPACT ON ME, PART 6 OF 12: CHARIOTS OF FIRE

 We are at the half point of this series, and you may be wondering, "Will Jeff let us know what his favorite movie is?" I'll be glad to, but we need a rolling drum... or better, the pounding low D-flat on Vangelis' synthesizer. Oh, you've already guessed "Chariots of Fire,' because that's the name of the film and the picture. I suppose I'll need to make it more challenging next time.

This is the 1st Best Picture in my collection (my list contains one other best picture winner and two nominees - including "Mary Poppins", which did win best  actress). Unlike the other winner (which you'll see at some point in the second half), this was a surprise, winning over "Reds" and "On Golden Pond." It also won for best original screen play, costumes, and, unsurprisingly, Vangelis' score. (It also was nominated for director, editing, and supporting actor Ian Holm, who lost out to John Guilguld; Guilguld won for his role in "Arthur," but also was in "Chariots.")

I heard producer David Putnam interviewed. He commented some people said about "Chariots," "Great movie about Harold Abrahams, and the Eric Liddle character was interesting," and others commented, "I love that movie about Eric Liddle, and that Abrahams character was intriguing." 

I've watched it about 9-10 times. The last time was about two years ago, and I noticed something in it I didn't before: in one scene Vangelis played "Eric's Theme" in a minor key, and that definitely added to that scene.