The Last Valley

I had not seen The Last Valley from beginning to end in probably 40(!) years and, well, it was not as good or profound as I had thought/remembered.Michael Caine is cold and suitably steel-eyed in his role as the well groomed, red bearded Captain. He even musters an Austrian accent for his part.Omar Shariff certainly fits in his role as the philosophical, level headed mediator. He not only can speak well enough to the soldiers to spare his own life but has the logic and wherewithal to suggest the invaders live in the Last ‘rich’ Valley not rape and pillage for immediate gratification.The script for The Last Valley is at its best when confronting religious bias and hypocrisies—between Catholic and Protestant—that were at the center of the 30 Years War (1614-1645?). Also, in The Last Valley, is the spectre of witchcraft and atheism.Yes, The Last Valley can get violent with the war looming on the horizon as well as the prospect of religious persecution within.Florinda Bolkan is well cast as the woman the Captain has his conquering eye on. Is she smarter than the viewer realizes? Does she actually like the Captain’s power? Is she simply In survival mode?Interesting that Arthur O’Connell is cast as a village farmer! Checkout commentary! How did the American actor get the role?James Clavell wrote and Directed The Last Valley (1971) about 4 years after his feel good hit To Sir With Love. Christian Roberts played Denham—the main tuff kid at the London school—and Clavell gave him a good part as a young villager on the verge of marrying (Madeline Hind). Things don’t work out as planned—marriage delayed et cetera—because of the impending invasion and it’s aftermath.The Last Valley starts to drag a bit but concludes with (I believe) appropriate originality. At least 3 characters commit acts of civility—after 2 hours of harsh division and unrest.4.4 starsKino Lorber usually develops-remasters a better DVD picture. It is widescreen but the picture reminds of tv viewing before HD. Colorful but kind of fuzzy,

The Last Valley, written and directed by the historical novel writer James Clavell. It is co-written by J. B. Pick, whose only other claim to fame is being the screenwriter of the Dean Martin, Matt Helm movie, The Wrecking Crew. That aside this is a well made film with a great story. Filmed on location in the Tyrol area of Italy, these natural and scenic backdrops add historical credibility to this film, as well as providing breathtaking views.The story is about a Captain, played brilliantly by Michael Caine, in charge of a group of multi-national mercineries during the 17th Century Thirty Years War. It is also about a wanderer, seeker, and a man escaping from the ravages of war, Vogel, played by Omar Sharif. There is also a large international supporting cast, who all do their part, most notable being Nigel Davenport as the Village elder, Per Oscarsson as the village priest, and Arthur O'Connell, most known for his part on the 70's TV show, Chico and the Man.What started out as Religious Wars, mainly in what is present day Germany, and Alpine Valleys quickly turned into political jocking by petty German Princes, the Holy Roman Emporer, the Kings of France, Sweden, and Denmark. Added to all this war destruction were outbreaks of the plague. The film does a wonderful job with reconstructing this historical backdrop, even with minor details, like when the village priest asks one of the soldiers "Are you a Lutheran Protestant, a Calvin Protestant, or God forbid a heretical Anabaptist or Satan worshiper." While the Catholics and Protestants, throughout the 17th century, had a love-hate relationship, to put it mildly, the both agreed on their disdain for all things Anabaptist (present day Mennonites, Amish and Hutterites.)Michael Caine, as the Captain, plays a freebooting leader of a religiously mixed group of mercenaries, who wreak havoc and destruction on any city, town, or village in their way. They have two rules, the Captain calls the shots, and they are not allowed to discuss religion. Omar Sharif plays Vogel, an educated wanderer, all too familiar with the ravages of this hypocritical war. He has been running from it for 20 years. Things are so bad, that even gold and silver, have lost their appeal. All people want is peace and the ability to farm their small part of the world. The film opens with an emaciated Vogel wandering into a small village trying to purchase food and shelter, not seconds later, rumbling down the moutains into the valley are the Captains soldiers, who burn, pillage, and rape with abandon, and some with a self-imposed blessing by God in their warrior pursuits. So, once again Vogel is forced to run, over mountains and valleys until he comes by a deserted, idyllic, little village in a naturally protected valley. But, his peace doesn't last long before the Captain arrives in the same place. They find the villagers hiding in the mountains. Vogel convinces the captain that this, little piece of paradise, would make a great place to winter over, and he being educated could act as the go-between soldier and peasants. I don't want to give more away, but against the backdrop of war, fanatical religion, lust, and a search for peace this story continues to unfold.This is a great movie, running, 2 hours and 5 minutes. Michael Caine is brilliant as the pragmatic, unbelieving warrior. Omar Sharif, as a kind of naive 17th century, Parsifal, plays off of Caine's cynicism and hatred of all things religious and political. There is great inter-personal relationships in this film also.This movie should be shown in all world history classes as it provides a great tool for what life was like during the Thirty Years War. 5 Stars Plus for this wonderful movie.

...since I apparently cannot leave a Seller Review, I’ll just have to put it here: Ordered this dvd on around August 6 2022, it was supposed to turn up between 7 and 26 September. I live in Germany so U.K. Amazon stuff sometimes takes a while. However, it’s now the beginning of December and I still have not received the dvd (ordered well before the current Postal Strike). I contacted the seller ‘OldPoppasRetirementFund’ and they haven’t bothered to reply. So ONE STAR for them, if not ZERO.So that’s ten quid ‘donated’ to the retirement fund for nothing, with no replacement nor a refund (apparently outside the time limit)- which is either a canny business model or a very poor one.The film, by the way, is terrific, one of Michael Caine’s and Omar Sherif’s best (with terrific chemistry between them) and deals with morality in war. (Yes, I’ve seen it, and was buŷing a replacement for my old VHS copy). FIVE STARS FOR THE FILM.

First off a few words about the DVD I purchased (Fremantle home entertainment, 2008). The aspect ratio is 4 : 3. What you get is not the promised widescreen picture, but a cropped version with broad black edges on both sides. And with this film it really matters. There are dialogues, beautifully shot with the actors facing each other, and the backs of their heads are cut off. Or worse, you see one, but only the nose and forhead of their opposite. Apart from that the picture quality is adequate for a film from the early 1970s, the colours are good and the sound is nice. No subtitles. The extra features don't amount to much, merely brief text on screen production notes and actor bios and a few still photos.The film itself, while basically a war film set during the Thirty Years War in 17th century Austria, is not so much an action film but a drama about politics and survival. The Valley of the title is a remote valley in the Alps where a single village, cut off from the rest of the world, has so far escaped the horrors of war. A travelling German scholar (Omar Sharif) and a band of soldiers under the command of their captain (Michael Caine) happen upon this village and decide to stay there and try and live in peace and survive rather than fight a war for those who pay them. The hapless scholar is called upon to make decisions and act as a kind of judge an mediator between opposing sites. And he knows his position is a precarious one and that he will be loved by no-one. Basically it's the story of sectarianism and politics and compromise and human nature through history.It's not a particularly great film, but it's worth watching for the performances of the two leads. Michael Caine is always solid and a joy to watch, but it is Omar Sharif I particularly like in this. He has the haunted look of a man who has seen untold horrors and it suits his character. Also, I found his character the most interesting and relatable. The filming locations in the Alps are very nice as well as is the John Barry score. If you don't set your expectations too high there is quite a lot to like here.

This is a film that required a good Blu Ray issue. Unfortunately, the audio on this disc let’s it down. Dialogue is sometimes difficult to hear and the musical score is too intrusive. In fact, at times I feel that it is at odds with the screen action. Lovely to look at though and it’s wide screen.

I saw this movie in the early 70s and was captivated by it. It has stood the test of time well. Story revolves around a scholar and a mercenary captain whose lives intersect in the Thirty Years' war in Europe. Vogel (Sherif), a scholar, is fleeing the hordes ravaging the mountains of Europe and comes by accident upon an isolated valley in the Swiss Alps where peace and prosperity reign. It seems to have escaped the conflicts by mere chance. But not for long, as a the band of mercenaries from whom we find him fleeing at the beginning of the story track him down and take over the village. They are headed by a seemingly ruthless and murderous Captain (Caine) who is quickly convinced by Vogel to winter out in the valley and to enjoy the food and women. Religious fanaticism intervenes in the form of the village's Catholic priest who believes that the shrine of Our Lady at the entrance to the valley is responsible for its safety. Vogel thinks to the contrary that it is an advertisement to outsiders of the valley's existence and waxes lyrical to the villagers to convince them of the necessity of relocating the statue. He thus prevents an uprising against the invaders and gains Brownie points with Captain. Captain falls in love with an attractive local devil-worshipper who, on his departure is burnt at the stake, as is the priest who has tortured her to expiate her devils. Captain returns from the wars mortally wounded. Excellent script by Clavell with several memorable lines. Fine performances by Caine and Sherif and a host of other actors.

A box office flop back in 1970, and now nearly 50 years on the film does not hold anything interesting for a new audience.Sadly the presence of Caine and Sharif couldn't lift this slow actioner, which is a generous description, into something watchable as it just muddles along at a snails pace and you soon really don't care about the outcome between Caine's mercenary and Sharif's wandering philosopher.Picture quality is poor and NO ENGLISH SUBTITLES on the dvd which didn't help my enjoyment.