The Heroes of Telemark
| The Heroes of Telemark | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Anthony Mann |
| Produced by | Benjamin Fisz |
| Written by | Ben Barzman Ivan Moffat |
| Starring | Kirk Douglas Richard Harris Ulla Jacobsson Michael Redgrave |
| Music by | Malcolm Arnold |
| Cinematography | Robert Krasker |
| Distributed by | Rank Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | 1965 |
| Running time | 131 min |
The Heroes of Telemark is a 1965 war film directed by Anthony Mann based on the true story of the Norwegian heavy water sabotage during World War II. It was filmed on location in Norway.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
The Norwegian resistance sabotage the Vemork Norsk Hydro plant in the town of Rjukan in the county of Telemark, Norway, which the Nazis are using to produce heavy water to make a nuclear bomb.
Besides this impressively filmed sequence, Operation Gunnerside, Operations Grouse and Freshman and the final attack are depicted in location filming, in which snowy Norwegian locations serve as a backdrop for the plot.
Kirk Douglas plays Rolf Pedersen, a Norwegian physics professor, who, though originally content to wait out the war, is soon pulled into the struggle by local resistance leader Knut Straud (based on Knut Haukelid, portrayed by Richard Harris).
They are both smuggled to England to have microfilmed plans of the Hydro examined, and then return to Norway to plan a commando raid on the Hydro. When a force of Royal Engineers, who were to carry it out, are all killed, Petersen and Straud lead a small force of saboteurs into the plant. The raid is successful, but the Germans quickly repair the equipment.
They then plan to ship tankers of heavy water to Germany. Petersen and Straud sabotage a ferry carrying the tankers, and it sinks in the deepest part of a fjord.
[edit] Other versions
Ray Mears made a documentary entitled The Real Heroes of Telemark. Despite mainly sticking to the factual evidence, some scenes in the documentary, like the film, were partly dramatised, focusing more on the survival skills involved in the operation.
The same story was also covered in the 1948 Franco-Norwegian film Kampen om tungtvannet. Quite faithful to the real events, it even had many of the original Norwegian commandos starring as themselves.
[edit] Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Kirk Douglas | Dr Rolf Pedersen |
| Richard Harris | Knut Straud |
| Ulla Jacobsson | Anna Pedersen |
| Michael Redgrave | Uncle |
| David Weston | Arne |
| Sebastian Breaks | Gunnar |
| John Golightly | Freddy |
| Alan Howard | Oli |
| Patrick Jordan | Henrik |
| William Marlowe | Claus |
| Brook Williams | Einar |
| Roy Dotrice | Jensen |
| Anton Diffring | Major Frick |
| Ralph Michael | Nilssen |
| Eric Porter | Terboven |
| Wolf Frees | Knippelberg |
| Karel Stepanek | Hartmuller |
| Gerard Heinz | Erhardt |
| Victor Beaumont | German Sergeant |
| George Murcell | Sturmfuhrer |
| Mervyn Johns | Colonel Wilkinson |
| Barry Jones | Professor Roderick Logan |
| Geoffrey Keen | General Bolt |
| Robert Ayres | General Courts |
| Jennifer Hilary | Sigrid |
| Maurice Denham | Doctor |
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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