The Guns of Navarone Overview:

The Guns of Navarone (1961) was a Action - Adventure Film directed by Alexander Mackendrick and J. Lee Thompson and produced by Carl Foreman, Cecil F. Ford and Leon Becker.

Academy Awards 1961 --- Ceremony Number 34 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonNominated
Best Film EditingAlan OsbistonNominated
Best Music - ScoringDimitri TiomkinNominated
Best PictureCarl Foreman, ProducerNominated
Best WritingCarl ForemanNominated
.

The Guns of Navarone BlogHub Articles:

Alastair MacLean's The Guns of Navarone

By Rick29 on Jun 14, 2020 From Classic Film & TV Cafe

A long movie that doesn't seem long is a carefully-crafted motion picture. Such is the case with The Guns of Navarone (1961), which clocks in at a brisk 158 minutes. Based on Alastair MacLean's 1957 novel, it tells the story of a small military team tasked with destroying two huge German guns. Th... Read full article


The Guns of Navarone (1961)

By Beatrice on Jul 14, 2017 From Flickers in Time

The Guns of Navarone ? Directed by J. Lee Thompson Written by Carl Foreman from a novel by Alastair MacLean 1961/USA Columbia Pictures Corp/Highroad Productions Repeat viewing/Netflix rental This is a solid war movie with a fantastic cast and lots of explosions. Mallory (Gregory Peck) is a multi-... Read full article


The Guns of Navarone

By Alyson on Mar 12, 2010 From The Best Picture Project

Action and adventure await six men on a dangerous mission to destroy the two powerful guns on German occupied Navarone.? These guns control the fate of the seas and nearby Greek islands, including one full of trapped British troops.? No one can get to or leave the island, not even by plane and more ... Read full article


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Quotes from The Guns of Navarone

Maria Pappadimos: They're burning Mandrakos in punishment.


Squadron Leader Howard Barnsby RAAF: First, you've got that bloody old fortress on top of that bloody cliff. Then you've got the bloody cliff overhang. You can't even see the bloody cave, let alone the bloody guns. And anyway, we haven't got a bloody bomb big enough to smash that bloody rock. And that's the bloody truth, sir.


Commodore Jensen: Gentlemen, these men have a special interest in Navarone. I got your radio report, but I thought perhaps you could be more specific.
Squadron Leader Howard Barnsby RAAF: I'll be specific! As you can plainly see, it was ruddy awful. But we'd love to go back. Wouldn't we, boys?
[His boys give several loud cheers]
Squadron Leader Howard Barnsby RAAF: Just as soon as we can! BUT - we've got one condition. We want the joker who thought this one up to come with us. And when we get there, we're gonna shove him out at ten thousand feet - without a parachute.


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Facts about The Guns of Navarone

There is no Navarone in real life.
Director J. Lee Thompson's first American feature was also his opportunity of working with some of the biggest Hollywood stars.
"Yialo Yialo" ("Seashore, Seashore"), heard sung at a wedding celebration, is a Greek folk song about love and the sea. As with many provincial folk songs, verses are often improvised as it's sung. The first verse heard in the film (asking the sea not to wake the singer's beloved) is standard, while the second verse, sung by actor/singer James Darren, is ostensibly improvised. The verse asks the mountains to bow down so that he can see his dearest love, "Anoula", and far-away home, "Rahoula". This improvisation came about as follows. Carl Foreman's production coordinator with the Greek government, Daniel Bourla, who also functioned as the producer of two shorts made on the filming of Guns of Navarone - one directed by 'John Schlesinger' and one by Bourla - tried to obtain an affidavit from the Greek government certifying that Yalo Yalo was in public domain. The certification was issued but it erroneously listed Bourla as its author. Whereupon, Bourla issued a release himself for the use of this song and added a needed additional verse to the song using the name Anoula (Anna being his girlfriend at the time).
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Best Picture Oscar 1961






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Also directed by J. Lee Thompson




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Also produced by Carl Foreman




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Also released in 1961




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