Review of Operation Crossbow

Michael Anderson fails to get a grip on this movie from the start and as a result it rolls towards the edge of the precipice of disaster gathering speed until dashes itself to pieces on the rocks below.There is simply much too much going on,too many famous faces to watch,too many locations far too much noise and no central performance to hold it together. In an era of WW2 blockbusters "Operation Crossbow" fails to stand out. 30 minutes could be trimmed off it with beneficial results,but I suspect it needed the long running time to qualify for one of those early "Single Feature" programmes.The story concerns Germany's development of "TerrorWeapons" - fortunately for us and unfortunately for them a little late in the day to have any significant military influence,although the affect on the civilian population was worrying for Churchill's government. Although the V1 couldn't hit a barn door with a banjo metaphorically speaking it was a successful psychological weapon,I remember as a very young child seeing one flying overhead on it's way to London,a threatening dark cruciform shape in the Surrey skies. The destruction of the manufacturing plants at Peenemunde was given top priority,the attrition rate amongst the slave labour work force an unfortunate by-product. If you are interested in the basic factual retelling of this event try to find "The Battle of the V1" a low,low budget production that gives you the facts without the big names and the big bangs in glorious black and white and in about half the time.And remember to spend the time you save doing something positive!