jacobs-greenwood Produced and directed by Anatole Litvak, and written by George Tabori, this unique Cold War drama is difficult to describe. There is a romance element to it which doesn't quite work, though the motivations for Yul Brynner's interest in Deborah Kerr's character are clear: he's been away from home too long. That plot-line notwithstanding, there is a very real feel given for the time and place, Russian occupied Hungary in 1956, that gives the film a certain truth which makes it hard to quit watching once one has become engaged in it. Unfortunately, the story drags on for at least 20 minutes too long. The film marks the only other pairing of these actors besides The King and I (1956).A group of foreigners have found themselves unable to fly out of Budapest because of the political situation, hence they are trapped and given no choice besides the promised passage by the occupying Russian forces. They are put on a bus ostensibly headed for Vienna, but they are detained just short of their destination by a Major Surov (Brynner), who wants to make sure no natives are escaping amidst the group.Robert Morley, playing a British television journalist, serves as the defacto spokesman for the tourists which include an old acquaintance of his, Lady Diana Ashmore (Kerr). Ashmore is in fact smuggling an Hungarian friend of hers, traveling as American Paul Fleming (Jason Robards Jr., in his film debut) but fooling no one for long, out of the country. She feels she owes a debt to him because, through a complicated series of events, he was held prisoner and tortured by the Russians in part due to his association with her years previously. An American family which includes E.G. Marshall, Anne Jackson, and their two sons (one of which is played by a four year old Ron Howard in his first credited role) is among the twelve others being detained by the Major.The drama begins when, for reasons that are not explained right away, Major Surov decides not to send the foreigners' passports to headquarters. That would be the usual procedure which would have allowed these travelers the most expeditious way out of Hungary. But Surov, having been in charge of this border town for 2 years, is lonely for human conversation, perhaps even more. He is quickly frustrated when his "guests", led by a judicious Morley, are unwilling to engage him in adult discourse, and instead act like apolitical, humble prisoners.The fact that Fleming can't present himself for meals - he'd been injured in his escape - and that it's Lady Ashmore that seems to care for him, also intrigues the Major. It later becomes clear that Surov was immediately taken with/smitten by Diana such that his subsequent decision-making was/is hindered by his (unrequited?) attraction to her. When the Major seems to have figured out that Fleming is not who he appears to be, Diana makes a fateful decision of her own which leads to an escape attempt and more.

isoreno This movie was a fine drama and had a pretty good love story. The acting was mostly first-rate. I don't understand the popularity of Jason Robards and this premier performance for him in the movies is no better than a bunch of other roles I've seen him in, he's okay, but not a standout. Robert Morely was very entertaining, somewhere between the amoral crook in Beat the Devil and the spoof on Mr. Goldfinger he did in The Road to Hong Kong. Ann Jackson gave a surprise performance; I think the audience dislikes her selfish character so much they don't realize how good a job she was doing and her concern was for her unborn child - - not enough of THAT in today's world. Of course, the best work in acting was done by Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner. They were attracted to one another even though Lady Ashford was dedicated to helping her former lover, who is just a pain in the neck, even though he was a hero and a freedom fighter. I guess Deborah Kerr signifies The West and Brynner The East in the days of the Cold War. Brynner's Soviet Major can't understand why the Hungarians hate the Russians meddling in their internal affairs, since the Soviets were the ones who freed them from the Fascist yoke only 11 years before, and he gives vent to his hurt feelings under the influence of lots of vodka. You almost feel sorry for the Major - he's so tied up in defending the USSR that he's begun to believe it's twisted propaganda. Another reviewer here asks why, after defeating Nazism together, relations between The West and The East broke down so quickly and we had the Cold War...there was just no natural affinity there, that's the most-likely reason. Americans saw oppression - taxation without representation - and just refused to live that way, and fought an 8- year war to rid themselves of their unwanted Mother Country. But, with Marxists, they see most everyone as victims. Victims of bosses, victims of landlords, etc., and tell all their little people that they can't overcome their perpetual victim-hood without a strong and oppressive state to "protect" them.

FABabe There have been many excellent comments about this movie and I want to add my voice to the praise. Yul Brynner has never been more powerfully attractive. His Major Surov was riveting. Your eyes just cannot leave the screen when he's on it. This is his movie. This is not to slight the rest of the cast which was also exemplary, especially Deborah Kerr and Anne Jackson. As they were mostly stage actors, they brought many nuances to their performances. For example, I have seen this movie at least 4 times, but this is the first time I noticed the reaction of the German girl when she came face-to-face with a Russian soldier. Even though he was not threatening, her absolutely hysterical reaction made me realize that she must have been in Germany after WWII and was most likely gang-raped by the Red Army. The possibility of discovering deeper layers of story that may lie just beneath the surface makes me want to see this fascinating film again and again. Please put it on DVD.

moatazmohsen78 Yul Brynner was a symbol of villein in the tine of 50,s , he play a role of Russian leader in Hungary at the time of revolution in this country in 1956 that made it against the Marxism.The script of this film made it by good taste from the writer that mixing love and adventure with showing different characters in the journey from Hungary to England.The best point in this film was the symbol of challenge from the Hungarian Resistance to kill the Russian major(Yul Brynner) in the hall time of the film that made a meaning about the disadvantages of this major from his bad works , but at the end he made a good work to help Deborah Kerr for escaping her and her darling to London to write in his book a good working to gain at the end people,s agreement and trustment after his assassination by the Hungarian Resistance.