''Under Ten Flags'' ( it, Sotto dieci bandiere) is a 1960 Italian-American
war film
War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that war fi ...
directed by
Duilio Coletti
Duilio Coletti (28 December 1906 – 22 May 1999) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 29 films between 1934 and 1977.
Career
Born in Penne, Abruzzo, he took a degree in medicine and surgery and practiced the profession ...
and starring
Van Heflin
Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin Jr. (December 13, 1908 – July 23, 1971) was an American theatre, radio and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. H ...
,
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future w ...
, and
Mylène Demongeot
Mylène Demongeot (born Marie-Hélène Demongeot; 29 September 1935 – 1 December 2022) was a French film, television and theatre actress and author with a career spanning seven decades and more than 100 credits in French, Italian, English an ...
. It was entered into the
10th Berlin International Film Festival
The 10th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 24 June to 5 July 1960. The Golden Bear was awarded to the Spanish film ''El Lazarillo de Tormes'' directed by César Fernández Ardavín.
Jury
The following people were announc ...
.
Plot
Loosely based on actual events during World War II, the film depicts real-life German Captain
Bernhard Rogge
Bernhard Rogge (4 November 1899 – 29 June 1982) was a German naval officer who, during World War II, commanded a merchant raider. Later, he became a Konteradmiral in West Germany's navy.
Rogge became a ''Vizeadmiral'' (vice-admiral) by the end ...
commanding the navy raider ''
Atlantis
Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas (mythology), Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works ''Timaeus (dialogue), Timaeus'' and ''Critias (dialogue), Critias'' ...
'', which from May 1940 to November 1941 sank 22
Allied
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
merchant ships. The story alternates between scenes at the
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
*Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
*Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
* Admiralty, Traf ...
and scenes at sea, particularly showing Captain Rogge's humanity and chivalrous conduct of his military engagements. Rogge was one of the few German flag rank officers who was not arrested by the Allies after the war, due to his conduct as a military officer. After eighteen months of successful raids, ''Atlantis'' is sunk on 22 November 1941 by the British
cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles.
The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...
''
Devonshire
Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is a ...
''.
Cast
*
Van Heflin
Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin Jr. (December 13, 1908 – July 23, 1971) was an American theatre, radio and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. H ...
as Captain
Bernhard Rogge
Bernhard Rogge (4 November 1899 – 29 June 1982) was a German naval officer who, during World War II, commanded a merchant raider. Later, he became a Konteradmiral in West Germany's navy.
Rogge became a ''Vizeadmiral'' (vice-admiral) by the end ...
*
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton (1 July 1899 – 15 December 1962) was a British actor. He was trained in London at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and first appeared professionally on the stage in 1926. In 1927, he was cast in a play with his future w ...
as Admiral Russell
*
Mylène Demongeot
Mylène Demongeot (born Marie-Hélène Demongeot; 29 September 1935 – 1 December 2022) was a French film, television and theatre actress and author with a career spanning seven decades and more than 100 credits in French, Italian, English an ...
as Zizi
*
John Ericson
John Ericson (sometimes spelled Erickson; September 25, 1926 – May 3, 2020) was a German-American film and television actor known primarily for his co-star role with actress Anne Francis on the ABC television series ''Honey West'' in the 196 ...
as Krüger
*
Cecil Parker
Cecil Parker (born Cecil Schwabe, 3 September 1897 – 20 April 1971) was an English actor with a distinctively husky voice, who usually played supporting roles, often characters with a supercilious demeanour, in his 91 films made between ...
as Col. Howard
*
Folco Lulli
Folco Lulli (3 July 1912 – 23 May 1970) was an Italian partisan and film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1946 and 1970. He was the brother of actor Piero Lulli.
Selected filmography
* ''How I Lost the War'' (1947)
* '' ...
as Paco
*
Alex Nicol as Knoche
*
Liam Redmond
Liam Redmond (27 July 1913 – 28 October 1989) was an Irish character actor known for his stage, film and television roles.
Early life
Redmond was one of four children born to cabinet-maker Thomas and Eileen Redmond. Educated at the Christi ...
as Windsor
*
Eleonora Rossi Drago
Eleonora Rossi Drago, born Palmira Omiccioli, (23 September 1925 – 2 December 2007) was an Italian film actress. She was born in Quinto al Mare, Genoa, Italy, and had the leading role in ''Le amiche''. She appeared in ''Un maledetto imbro ...
as Elsa
*
John Lee John Lee may refer to:
Academia
* John Lee (astronomer) (1783–1866), president of the Royal Astronomical Society
* John Lee (university principal) (1779–1859), University of Edinburgh principal
* John Lee (pathologist) (born 1961), English ...
*
Ralph Truman
Ralph du Vergier Truman (7 May 1900 – 15 October 1977) was an English actor, usually cast as either a villain or an authority figure. He possessed a distinguished speaking voice. He was born in London, England.
Truman originally studied at t ...
as Adm. Benson
*
Grégoire Aslan
Grégoire Aslan (born Krikor Kaloust Aslanian; 28 March 1908 – 8 January 1982) was a Swiss-Armenian actor and musician.
Early life
Krikor Kaloust Aslanian ( hy, Գրիգոր Գալուստի Ասլանյան) was born in Switzerland or in Cons ...
as Master of Abdullah
*
Peter Carsten
Peter Carsten (30 April 1928 – 20 April 2012) was a German actor and film producer. He appeared in 90 films between 1953 and 1999, including in supporting roles, ''Dark of the Sun'' (1968), '' Hannibal Brooks'' (1969), ''Madame Bovary'' ( ...
as Lt. Mohr
*
Helmut Schmid
Helmut Schmid (1925–1992) was a German actor. He was the husband of actress Liselotte Pulver
Liselotte Pulver (born 11 October 1929), sometimes credited as Lilo Pulver, is a Swiss actress. Pulver was one of the biggest stars of German cinem ...
*
Gian Maria Volonté
Gian Maria Volonté (9 April 1933 – 6 December 1994) was an Italian actor, including roles in four Spaghetti Western films: Ramón Rojo in Sergio Leone's ''A Fistful of Dollars'' (1964) and El Indio in Leone's '' For a Few Dollars More'' ( ...
as Samuel Braunstein (as Gianmaria Volonté)
References
External links
*
1960 films
American black-and-white films
American war films
English-language Italian films
Films directed by Duilio Coletti
Films produced by Dino De Laurentiis
Macaroni Combat films
World War II naval films
Films scored by Nino Rota
1960s English-language films
1960s American films
1960s Italian films
{{WWII-film-stub