Popular reviews

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  Review by pirateneckbeard ★★★ 7

  Hot dang this was a fun watch. Sure it has flaws a plenty with an over the top score at times but it's also curious to see a "young" Anthony Hopkins running Bond style around the scenic Scottish seaside trying to uncover deaths and corruption with a little romance on the side. It's hardly groundbreaking but a fun romp with some picturesque vistas and actually has a decent cast. I have to say I was steered towards this by Keith Grubb and his love of Alistair MacLean so thanks for it Grubb it's exactly what a pirate would want. Boat action and loot!

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  Review by Blake Bergman "Various Spaghetti" ★★★½

  "When Eight Bells Toll" is a 1971 espionage action film directed by Étienne Périer. The film stars Anthony Hopkins in the role of British secret agent Phillip Calvert who is investigating a series of maritime hijackings out on the British northern seas. This eventually takes him to the Scottish Highland areas uncovering a major heist of gold bullion around the rural setting of old-world castles and seaside villages. This is all based upon a novel written by Alistair MacLean in 1965, the same personality who wrote novels that eventually became infamous films such as "The Guns of Navarone" (1961) and "Ice Station Zebra" (1968). In actuality, not only did MacLean write "When Eight Bells Toll" prior, he also was brought…

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  Review by panos75 ★★★

  A British secret agent and an MI6 analyst are investigating the mysterious disappearance of five ships carrying gold bullion off the northern coast of Scotland. For some reason though everyone is unwilling to help them, even the local authorities.

  Quick and cheap action thriller that openly rips off James Bond films, who were at the height of their popularity back then. The central hero, Phillip Calvert, is definitely more brutal and less refined than 007, and the backdrop of the rugged Scottish coastline can't compare with the globetrotting exoticism of the Bond franchise. But there are still enough things to like here. The mystery is quite engaging and Calvert's cynicism is refreshing. He is a resourceful man who isn't afraid…

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  Review by Fint ★★★ 4

  And all because the lady loves ... Robert Morley.

  Letterboxders of a certain vintage will recognise just what I mean when I say that the opening sequence featuring Anthony Hopkins as a frogman climbing aboard a ship in dead of night carries strong echoes of the Milk Tray ad. Although, given the timing, I guess the Milk Tray ad carries strong echoes of When Eight Bells Toll.

  Chief enjoyment in the film comes from seeing Anthony Hopkins as an anti-establishment maverick action hero. (Is there such a thing as a pro-establishment rule-based action hero?) Chief absurdity in the film is Robert Morley joining him on his mission. Morley's casting weakens the film because the rotund old ham renders it impossible…

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  Review by Scott Huston ★★★

  Release date: March 10, 1971

  British agent Philip Calvert (Sir Anthony Hopkins) is on a mission to discover the fate of a ship carrying gold bullion.

  At first, this seems like a lukewarm James Bond 007, but then Hopkins makes the character come alive, and the action keeps building till the end of the film.

  There is comedy and humor as Calvert shows up his “old school” boss. Calvert might be from the wrong side of London, but he is still right all the time.

  This was a blast to watch; Hopkins made a really believable Secret Agent Man, and there were underwater fights.

  If this had been given a bigger budget and a few more “Page 3 Girls" this could have been a blockbuster.

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  Review by Michael501 📺 ★★

  1971 In Review - March
  #5

  An English secret agent (Anthony Hopkins) links hijackings of gold bullion to a Greek tycoon and an underwater cave.

  This movie was to be the first in a series of spy movies featuring the character Philip Calvert (Sir Anthony Hopkins). Since Sir Sean Connery had stated that he would be doing no further James Bond movies after Diamonds are Forever. So the producers saw a vacuum in the spy-action genre. However, they also failed to see why the Bond franchise was so successful and instead gave us this very dull and lifeless imitation, which is only interesting now because you get to see what Anthony Hopkins would have been like had he been cast…

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  Review by em ½

  "mum, can we watch a James Bond film?"
  "no, we have a James Bond film at home."
  James Bond film at home:

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  Review by Keith G ★★★½ 3

  After several ships carrying gold bullion have been hijacked, Robert Morley reluctantly agrees to send in Navy Treasury agent, diver and "professional bastard" with a questionable attitude towards authority but unique at levels of extreme pressure, Philip Calvert (Anthony Hopkins). With his friend and colleague Corin Redgrave he hatches a plan to ensure the next shipment is safe and the pirates brought to justice. The plan does not go well. Calvert travels to Scotland to investigate further, finding allies and enemies in equal measure. The main suspect is a Cypriot tycoon (Jack Hawkins) who has settled into the Scottish way of life with his much younger wife (Natalie Delon). Initial intimidation eventually turns deadly and Calvert's job is going to…

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  Review by Wes Edwards ★★★ 8

  Anthony Hopkins had been acting for over 25 years in the UK when he made The Silence of the Lambs. He worked across venues there–on stage, on television and in movies–but his work was not widely seen here in the US.

  Dr. Lecter was quite an introduction for US audiences. The role transformed Hopkins from respected journeyman actor in his home country to A-list Hollywood star.

  That character was so vivid and the mature Hopkins is now so familiar that it's a surprise to see him in earlier works like this one. This movie has Hopkins, twenty years before Lecter, playing an action role. In his first scene he sneaks onto a boat by climbing up its anchor chain. He…

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  Review by Lauren! ★★★

  Anthony Hopkins turned down the offer to play James Bond in Live and Let Die after this film’s release. He’s quoted as saying, “I didn’t think I was the right material for Bond but it was flattering to be offered it”, and I’m actually glad he didn’t accept. Mostly because I don’t like the film Live and Let Die, but even so, I can’t help but be curious as to how 007 fans at that time would have reacted to a 5′ 9″, baby-faced James Bond. 

  This movie was an attempt to make a “grittier” Bond-esk film. No gadgets or one-liners, stuff like that. Which also means it was pretty boring, but it’s not bad. Anthony was fine, but it’s really not his kind of role, and I guess he also realized that. It’s a lot better on second watch.

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  Review by AlexandreFR ★★★½ 1

  Ce film confirme, entre autres choses improbables, l'existence jusqu'alors purement hypothétique d'un jeune Anthony Hopkins.

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  Review by loureviews ★★★ 2

  If Anthony Hopkins had been cast as 007, this is what he would have been like, and the signs are all positive. His secret service agent works to Robert Morley and spars with Jack Hawkins, while his trusty geeky sidekick Corin Redgrave adds the scientific angle.

  Part action thriller, part Bond parody (right down to the music), this is an entertaining romp - thin on the women, though, with only Nathalie Delon available to make much of an impact. Taken from the novel by Alastair MacLean.