vuittion

This is another one of my favourite british films.

Yes it's a bit over the top in places but Peter O'Toole was brilliant in it.

Just look at some of his facial expressions when he's flying the plane, makes it a joy to watch.

I could never understand why this film never got the recognition it deserved.

harryfielder

I got the dvd free with a news paper the other week and watched it a couple of times...
Nice to see some old mates on the sub scenes....

Aitch,

http://www.turnipnet.com/aitch/aitch/gallery.htm

christoph404

Yes its a good film and I can only remember it being on Tv once in the 70s then seemingly never again and Peter O'Toole is very good in it. Not sure why it has not had the exposure it deserves.

lordtednfs

An excellent movie, but the accent just a little dodgy.

Wait until dear Peter pops his clogs and it will be heralded as a work of art and will be aired on a regular basis, shame on you tv companies.

A great line from the movie I will never forget is when the sumarine commander shouts out over the megaphone, "Hey Englander!" and Peter comes back with "He can't be talking to me". And then attacks the sub, a brilliant movie, worth seeing again. Does anyone have a copy to trade?

_______________________
Hooked off the line

NappieB

Same experience here! I saw it on US television in the late 1990s... and neary a sign of it before or after that.

A real good movie.

"The future is yet to come" - George W. Bush

Moor Larkin

It was on some channel or other just the other week wasn't it? (UK viewers)

I do recall seeing it for the first time on telly, many moons ago and thinking it wasn't half bad...... and how come I'd never heard of it before.........

It happens a lot.

Redstar

It is a super film and worked much better on the big screen where you really got the atmosphere of sweaty heat, oil and engines, again like all good films a lot of attention was paid to the detail. Unfortunately the one exageration was the bottle bombs, they would have never set of such explosions...well so my dad told me who was in the airforce during the war.

harryfielder

Fond memories...

MURPHY’S WAR… Peter O’Toole…Director Peter Yates…
Central Casting sent Jerry Floyd, Nick (the bubble) and myself down to Portsmouth or Southampton (cant remember which) to play German U Boat crew. We’d be there for a couple of days and stay in a local B/B over night.
When we get called onto the set we go below decks on a British submarine that is decked out like a second world war German U Boat.
Now it seems in the film the U Boat has run aground on a sand bank on an inlet river in South America and is waiting for the tide to turn so it can refloat.
Meanwhile Peter O’Toole is trying to chop a very large tree down and put it across our Sub. (Thus, causing us some discomfort.)
(Got the plot so far, he’s dropping trees, and I’m in the basement..)
A cute make up girl asks me to strip to the waist (and I think, from the shoes up, what no flowers? We’ve only just met) but she has to put make up on my face and body to make me look tanned as if I was in South America.
Bert Batt the 1st A.D. took us all to see the Director Peter Yates (of Bullitt fame) and I was chosen to be the blue eyed German working the controls of the Sub..
After a few different angles the make up girl applies sweat to my hair and face.
The camera is stuck an inch from my nose. (Now we are talking about close ups here. My face plastered sixty foot by eighty foot at the Odeon Marble Arch.
She could have saved on the sweat, I was sweating for England.)
Peter was guiding me through the shots. ‘’Imagine you can hear a noise above you.
Now imagine there’s a noise to your left, now to your right. Don’t move your head
Back too far, we’re close on your eyes.’’ Then it was ‘’CUT, see you in the morning
Eight O clock.. Thanks Harry that was good’’.
Well that was good for me too. It took me hours to come down.
Me, Jerry and Nick went out on the town and got very pissed. (Well it makes a change)?
The next day I’m back at the controls of the Sub and I’m thinking is it to be another starring role. Peter tells us today’s the day the Sub gets hit and there could be a drop of water splashing around.
First scene control room…I’m standing at the controls and Peter talks me through it.
‘’Now concentrate on the controls Harry and keep looking about. It seems the tide is coming in and you’re going to be all right. Now give a huge sigh of relief. It’s very quiet now but suddenly, !!!!! CRASH !!!!.
That’s the cue for the Prop men to sling big buckets of freezing cold water over me.
‘’You’re panicking now Harry (He’s got good eyesight) More water on him and CUT.
He never told us about petrol bombs.....
I spent most of the rest of the day sitting on the Sub deck enjoying the warm sun while the Stuntmen got their share of the water.
We shot some other stuff in one of the cabins drinking beers then it was time to head off back to London. Thanks Mr. Yates.
(You must remember in the film game that all the shots don’t make it to the big screen, a lot end up on the cutting room floor)
Aitch,

http://www.turnipnet.com/aitch/aitch/gallery.htm

lordtednfs

Thanks for the laugh Aitch, very funny. Looking forward to seeing the movie again even more so now.

________________
Hooked off the line

Lora

i must get round to seeing this film. Many of my friends have said what an amazing watch it is, but i just never seem to have the time! I will make sure i make time for this one now, thanks guys!

tomly007

To my delight my son (25 years old) is now getting into British films in a big way, probably brainwashed by mam and dad.
I put Murphy's War on for him a couple of weeks ago and he loved it.
As has been said it is rarely screened on TV and is very (unfairly underrated).
When Peter O'Toole is willing the old seaplane into the air it is such a good performance you almost find yourself shouting along with him.
At the end my son said something that is both sad and true.
He said 'Dad how come they never show any of these great films on TV, you and mam were lucky to have grown up in a time when everything, music, TV and cimena was great.
When you hear that you know two things are unavoidably true
a: you're getting old and b: you were very lucky when you were young.
All the best
Tom

It's my cat, I'll call it what I want to!