''Counterpoint'' (also known as ''The Battle Horns'' or ''The General'') is a 1968 epic war film starring Charlton Heston, Maximilian Schell, Kathryn Hays and

Leslie Nielsen Leslie William Nielsen (11 February 192628 November 2010) was a Canadian actor and comedian. With a career spanning 60 years, he appeared in more than 100 films and 150 television programs, portraying more than 220 characters. Nielsen was bo ...

. It is based on the novel '' The General'' by

Alan Sillitoe Alan Sillitoe FRSL (4 March 192825 April 2010) was an English writer and one of the so-called "angry young men" of the 1950s. He disliked the label, as did most of the other writers to whom it was applied. He is best known for his debut novel ...

. In the United States the film was released as a double feature with ''

Sergeant Ryker ''Sergeant Ryker'' is a 1963 drama–war film directed by Buzz Kulik and starring Lee Marvin and Bradford Dillman that was initially run on television but released theatrically five years later in 1968. The film was originally broadcast on televi ...

'' a 1963 television film starring

Lee Marvin Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...

Plot

Lionel Evans is the director of a well-respected symphony orchestra touring European concert halls around 1944 in World War II. In the midst of one concert, the city where they are playing is attacked by German troops, and when Evans and his musicians try to escape, they are captured by Nazi soldiers led by Col. Arndt. Evans and the orchestra are taken to a castle where they are to bide their time before being executed; but it turns out that Arndt's superior, Gen. Schiller, is a big classical music fan. Schiller commands Evans and his symphony to prepare a special concert for the Nazis, but Evans realizes that the moment the concert is over, he and his musicians will be killed.

Cast

* Charlton Heston as Lionel Evans * Maximilian Schell as Gen. Schiller * Kathryn Hays as Annabelle Rice *

as Victor Rice * Anton Diffring as Col. Arndt *

Linden Chiles Truman Linden Chiles (March 22, 1933 – May 15, 2013) was an American character actor. Early years Chiles was born in St. Louis, Missouri but grew up in Barrington, Illinois. He graduated from Northwestern University with a bachelor of arts ...

as Lt. Long *

Peter Masterson Peter Masterson (born Carlos Bee Masterson Jr.; June 1, 1934 – December 18, 2018) was an American actor, director, producer, and writer. Life and career Masterson often worked with his cousin, writer Horton Foote. Acting from the mid-1960s ...

as Sgt. Calloway *

Curt Lowens Curt Lowens (17 November 1925 – 8 May 2017) was a German actor of the stage and in feature films and television, as well as a Holocaust survivor and a rescuer who saved about 150 Jewish children during the Holocaust. Life and career Born Curt ...

as Capt. Klingermann *

Neva Patterson Neva Louise Patterson (February 10, 1920 – December 14, 2010) was an American actress. Early years Born on a farm near Nevada, Iowa, Patterson was the daughter of mailman George Patterson and seamstress Marjorie Byers Patterson. After gradu ...

as Dorothy *

Cyril Delevanti Harry Cyril Delevanti (23 February 1889 – 13 December 1975) was an English character actor with a long career in American films. He was sometimes credited as Syril Delevanti. Early years Delevanti was born in London to the Anglo-Italian mus ...

as Tartzoff *Gregory Morton as Jordon

Music

The orchestra's performances, which include works by Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Brahms, Wagner, and Schubert, were performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.

Production

Filmed at

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

including a set built for the 1923 film ''

The Hunchback of Notre Dame ''The Hunchback of Notre-Dame'' (french: Notre-Dame de Paris, translation=''Our Lady of Paris'', originally titled ''Notre-Dame de Paris. 1482'') is a French Gothic novel by Victor Hugo, published in 1831. It focuses on the unfortunate story ...

'', the film began shooting on 21 November 1966 and concluded 24 January 1967. Two days were removed from the production schedule and the script was rewritten without consulting the director Ralph Nelson.p.84 Worsley, Sue Dwiggins ''From Oz to E.T.: Wally Worsley's Half-century in Hollywood'' Scarecrow Press, 1 Jan 1997

Translations

Also known as: Denmark : Krigens symfoni
West Germany : Der Befehl
Greece : Nyhtes kolaseos
Finland : Sankareitten sinfonia
France : La Symphonie des héros
Italy : Sinfonia di guerra
Spain : Una tumba al amanecer
Sweden : I krigets järngrepp
Turkey : Esirler Kampı
USA (working title) : The Battle Horns
USA (working title) : The General

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Counterpoint (1968 Film) 1967 films American war drama films Films about classical music and musicians Films directed by Ralph Nelson Films scored by Bronisław Kaper Films set in Belgium Universal Pictures films Western Front of World War II films World War II films based on actual events 1960s English-language films 1960s American films