| The Blockhouse | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Clive Rees |
| Produced by | Edgar Bronfman Antony Rufus Isaacs |
| Written by | Jean-Paul Clébert (book) John Gould Clive Rees |
| Starring | Peter Sellers Charles Aznavour |
| Music by | Stanley Myers |
| Cinematography | Keith Goddard |
| Editing by | Peter Gold |
| Release date(s) | 1973 |
| Running time | 93 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
The Blockhouse is a 1973 film, based on a novel by Jean-Paul Clébert. It was directed by Clive Rees and starred Peter Sellers and Charles Aznavour. It was filmed entirely in Guernsey in the Channel Islands and was entered into the 23rd Berlin International Film Festival.[1] Apart from Never Let Go, it is perhaps the only purely dramatic film Peter Sellers ever appeared in.
Contents |
On D-Day, a mixed group of forced labourers held by German forces take shelter from the bombardment inside a German bunker, but are then entombed when the entrances are blocked by shelling damage. By coincidence, the bunker is a store house and they have enough food and wine to last them for years. And they are trapped for years. The film analyzes how they deal with their underground prison, with their relationships, and with death.
The book and film appear to have been inspired by a possibly true story: on June 25, 1951, Time magazine reported that two German soldiers claimed to have been trapped for six years in an underground storehouse in Babie Doły, Poland.[2]