RELEASED IN 1975 and directed by Lewis Gilbert, "Operation: Daybreak" tells the true story of Britain sending a trio of Czech-born commandos (Timothy Bottoms, etc.) to Czechoslovakia in 1942 to assassinate SS-General Reinhard Heydrich (Anton Diffring), Hitler's buddy, infamously known as "the butcher of Prague." Unfortunately, the Czechs paid heavily with the SS eradication of the innocent village of Lidice, as well as (not shown) Lezhaky, the village where the parachutists dropped and received aid in the first act.
The movie plays like a docudrama with a haunting synth-based score, which some love and some hate (regardless, there's some period music as well). The story is a mix of drama, suspense, thrills and tragedy. It's not a typical WW2 movie due to the covert mission. It's more akin to "The Guns of Navarone" (1961), "36 Hours" (1964), "The Eagle has Landed" (1977) and "Valkyrie" (2008), although of course the story is totally different.
One element of the plot will tick you off, but it happens (I'm not going to give it away). Nicola Pagett is jaw-dropping beautiful. The authentic Czech Republic locations are a plus. This really happened; and the ending chronicles what happened to the Czechs.
THE FILM RUNS 118 minutes and was shot in the Prague area. WRITERS: Ronald Harwood (screenplay) & Alan Burgess (novel).
GRADE: B
The movie plays like a docudrama with a haunting synth-based score, which some love and some hate (regardless, there's some period music as well). The story is a mix of drama, suspense, thrills and tragedy. It's not a typical WW2 movie due to the covert mission. It's more akin to "The Guns of Navarone" (1961), "36 Hours" (1964), "The Eagle has Landed" (1977) and "Valkyrie" (2008), although of course the story is totally different.
One element of the plot will tick you off, but it happens (I'm not going to give it away). Nicola Pagett is jaw-dropping beautiful. The authentic Czech Republic locations are a plus. This really happened; and the ending chronicles what happened to the Czechs.
THE FILM RUNS 118 minutes and was shot in the Prague area. WRITERS: Ronald Harwood (screenplay) & Alan Burgess (novel).
GRADE: B