MartinHafer The 1970s had a genre that many loved but which I personally hated....disaster films. They all had a couple things in common-- all-star casts filled with MANY 'special guests' and some sort of impending doom for them all. There was "Airport" with a plane about to crash due to a maniac with a bomb, "The Poseidon Adventure" with a ship that capsizes, "The Towering Inferno" with it's huge skyscraper ablaze, "Earthquake" with an entire region under attack from the forces of nature...not to mention the killer bee pics!! In general, the films were very superficial and if you've seen one you've pretty much seen 'em all.In the case of "The Cassandra Crossing" you have the basics of this formula. It all begins with three criminals or terrorists breaking into a government facility. The place holds deadly illnesses and in the process of stopping them, some of the crap in the containers is released and one of the criminals escapes. It's a bummer (good 70s lingo, huh?) and the infected criminal boards a train...and everyone aboard is now potentially going to die. But the Colonel in charge of this* (Burt Lancaster) decides that no one will leave the train...and the disease will run its course. And if that means holding everyone captive in the train, so be it. What does the bridge at Cassandra have to do with all this?Through the course of this very long movie, you see lots of soap opera-like stories unfold...the old Jew who is afraid because the train is being re-routed to Poland (where he was in a death camp during the war), the rich lady and her boy-toy, the special agent posing as a priest, the doctor and his ex-wife and more. None of the stories are all that engaging and are the usual genre stories. Overall, I found it to be a rather long-winded and occasionally dopey time passer--just the sort of thing that folks seemed to love back in the day but which is no longer popular (thank goodness). It's not a terrible movie (until the ending!)...but it is silly when you think about it. *Apart from this Colonel, you see no one in any authority handling this situation. This is odd...and odder still that only a Colonel is in charge of such an important case. And how can a mere Colonel get the governments in Switzerland, Germany and Poland to take directions from him? Also, when the passengers begin fighting against the trained soldiers, how is it that the passengers are so proficient and the soldiers are complete idiots?? Inquiring minds would like to know.

ma-cortes Suspenseful and intriguing disaster movie with all-star-cast and well-directed . Exciting and interesting catastrophe movie with some clichés and stereotypes , containing enjoyable performances from Burt Lancaster , Richard Harris and Sofia Loren . This disaster movie blends action , intrigue , breathtaking spectacle , suspense and emotional byplay . ¨Cassandra crossing¨ was a successful film that grossed at box office . The film's storyline features the potential outbreak of a deadly pneumonic plague virus on a train from an germ infected passenger and the legend of the Cassandra Crossing add to the suspense . As passengers on a European train have been exposed to a deadly disease . As a motley group of passengers are quarantined on a train destined to prevent the spread of the disease at the cost of their lives . One of them is Doctor Chamberlain (Richard Harris , though Peter O'Toole turned down the role) along with his ex-wife (Sofia Loren) . Furthermore , a suspicious priest called Haley (James Coburn turned down the role of Haley which was in the end played by 'O J Simpson') , a millionaire spouse (Ava Gardner) , her lover (Martin Sheen) , among others . The Fear Is Spreading but nobody will let them off the train . As when the train carrying plague approaches a weakened bridge the events go wrong .This is and amusing and entertaining disaster movie though has some sloppy executions . This formula intrigue movie belongs to catastrophe genre of the 70s , being the undisputed king , ¨The towering inferno¨ along with ¨Earthquake¨ , ¨Two minutes warning¨ , ¨Rollercoaster¨ , among others . Filmed at the height of the disaster genre from the 7os , this entry in the spectacular series profits of a decent acting by protagonists and overwhelming action scenes . It blends thrills , chills , shootouts , noisy action-packed , government intrigue, international smuggling , and many other things . It is a crossover in which "Outbreak" meets ¨Under siege 2¨ , "The Runaway Train" and ¨Death Train¨ , taking parts here and there . The "Cassandra Crossing" of the film's title refers to a bridge in the movie called the Kaslindrliv Bridge, being shot in France and Italy . The architectural structure used to play this was the Viaduct of Garabit which is located in the South of France , it was built between 1881 & 1884, and was manufactured by Gustave Alexandre Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame . This moving picture which is short in realism instead we have far-fetched but moving blow up , crossfire , fighting , it should please most adventure-action buffs . The main and support cast is frankly good , it is plenty with known faces such as Ingrid Thulin , Ava Gardner , Lee Strasberg , Lionel Stander , Lou Castel , Ann Turkel, John Phillip Law , Ray Lovelock , Alida Valli and several others . Producer Carlo Ponti saw the movie as a showcase for his wife Sophia Loren . The movie also co-starred the then husband and wife actors Richard Harris and Ann Turkel, with Turkel being pregnant during principal photography . Luminous and shimmer cinematography by Ennio Guarneri . Fitted to action and stirring misical score by the great Jerry Goldsmith . This improbable motion picture was professionally directed by George Pan Cosmatos . He's a good director who got a great success with ¨Tombstone¨ and flops as ¨Shadow conspiracy¨, ¨Leviathan¨, ¨Escape to Athena¨ , ¨Massacre in Rome¨ and this ¨Cassandra crossing¨ was a hit at European box office . This typical epic disaster grade story will appeal to Lancaster/Harris/Loren fans . Although the movie has some aspects a little tough to take , this catastrophe film still has its moments .This large-scale and lavishly produced pic attempts a spectacular atmosphere with acceptable results.

TBJCSKCNRRQTreviews While often goofy, this can be quite exciting and even engaging. In fact, the very beginning is just the first of several scenes that are cool(and could be awesome, if their execution had been better). This is helmed by George P. Comatose(no, I realize that's not the correct spelling of his last name... but it is my guess as to how he directs, since he messes this and Rambo II up), and some of the action is honestly not half bad. The (unintentional) silliness is increased all the more by the music, which has a hilarious tendency towards being *ridiculously* over the top. This also holds numerous sequences that help prove the rule that... and pay attention, because a lot of film-makers can learn from this... not everything looks good in slow-motion. The acting is reasonable enough; wise men fear this movie's attempts at accents, though. You can't ignore the amount of famous people - most of them their career long dead - cast yet given little if anything to do here. I wonder how many people see O.J.'s performance in a completely new light today. The effects vary. This all adds up to being fairly entertaining, if you can turn your brain off(and tolerate the excessive running time). There is brief sensuality and infrequent moderately strong language in this, as well as a little mild violence and disturbing content. The DVD holds three trailers. I recommend this to fans of simplistic disaster flicks. 6/10

wes-connors Terrorists spread the Plague on an all-star cast aboard a luxurious European train. After a fairly decent opening, the star-studded cast gets down to the task at hand, making you bored silly. In the underwear scene sweepstakes, Sophia Loren easily beats Martin Sheen (Ann Turkel and Ray Lovelock are disqualified, for not showing enough). Richard Harris portrays a doctor. O.J. Simpson masquerades as a priest. Lee Strasberg impersonates an actor. Burt Lancaster and Ingrid Thulin aren't actually on the plague-infected train, but look pained anyway. In the softest focus, Ava Gardner appears to be having some fun. If only Lionel Stander did an impression of Hervé Villechaize exclaiming, "The plague, the plague!" they'd have had a potential comedy, instead of a disaster.*** The Cassandra Crossing (12/18/76) George P. Cosmatos ~ Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Martin Sheen, Ava Gardner