In a Scandinavian country, -name given to the three countries of Norway, Denmark and Sweden- , there a national security chief Colonel called Tahlvik (Sean Connery) is tasked to rescue the passengers of a high-jacked British airliner , only to discover that all is not what it seems . The gang of hijackers is led by Ray Petrie (Ian McShane) who seize the British plane as it is landing in Scandinavia . Meanwhile , the British Ambassador is being held hostage at his Embassy by another terrorist team. Skyjack , kidnap : A time-bomb of suspense has started ticking. Two nations are being held for ransom and... Sean Connery is the agent who takes on The Terrorists . Connery Won't Pay Ransom .Hijackers. Kidnappers. Killers. Only one man can stop them.
The action is set in Scandinavia and it concerns two terrorist events : the hijack of a passenger plane on the tarmac of a nearby airport and the kidnap of the British Ambassador whose Embassy residence has been seized by a second group of terrorists . A simple and modest thriller in the same mould as ¨The Intercine Project¨ by Ken Hughes and others at the time , which seems similarly intent on dealing with issues of contemporary relevance as grisly ¨Terrorism¨ during the violent 70s ; however all roles and events in this film are fictitious and any similarity to actual events or persons living or dead is purely coincidental . Generic title betrays its poor as well as sloppy execution . Some stock roles and formula dialogue don't help either . It turns into a straightforward , pretty enjoyable , but slow-moving and complex thriller . It results in a twisted kidnapping movie , being a decent story but middlingly adapted , if somewhat implausible terrorism tale . The movie gains in weight thanks to its typical implications and plot twists . All in all , a neat and unpretentious intrigue movie that offers more food for thought than most such unshamedly commercial movies . Although director Wrede and his cameraman Sven Nykvist are more than compelling , the film nevertheless has a distinct air of triviality due mainly to the made-for-TV ethos that seems to surround the whole production . Sean Connery gives an a decent acting as tough , law and order , Military Police Chief Colonel Tahlvik assigned to rescue the plane and its passengers but he must also deal with several problems . Just like he was a Scottish Lithuanian subcommander in ¨The hunt for Red October¨ (1990) , here Sean is a Scottish Norwegian Securirity Chief . He is very well accompanied by Ian McShane , a veteran actor still working . And a good but unknown support cast , such as : Isabel Dean , John Quentin , Robert Harris , James Maxwell , John Cording, Christopher Ellison , and other Norwegian local actors dubbed with familiar sounding British voice-over players credited at the closing credits , among others.
Good photography by Sven Nykvist , Woody Allen and Ingmar Bergman's ordinary cameraman , being shot on location in Norway , and breathtaking musical score by Jerry Goldsmith are wasted . The motion picture was professional but regularly directed by Caspar Wrede . He was a director , writer , and producer, usually for TV , known for One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich , The Barber of Stamford Hill , The New Inferno , No No ,No ¡ , Private Potter (1962), ITV Play of the Week (1955) and BBC Sunday-Night Theatre (1950) . Wrede was married to actress Dilys Hamlett and he had short but prestigious career . Rating : 5.5/10 . Acceptable and passable .
