Heroes of Telemark [VHS] [1965]

Based on a true story. Norwegian resistance fighters sabotage the Nazi German effort to produce heavy water for German atomic research during World War Two. Breathtaking snowy Norwegian locations serve as a beautiful backdrop for the plot. Kirk Douglas superbly plays the role of a Norwegian physics professor who, though originally content to wait out the war, is soon pulled heart and soul into the struggle. Though somewhat toned down from the book of the same name (The Germans were much nastier in the printed version), the spirit of the conflict is accurately portrayed without the superhuman fiction that is found in other war movies of the 1960's. As a bit of trivia, Kirk Douglas accepted a starring role in this movie as a favor to Director Anthony Mann. Anthony Mann was the original director for SPARTACUS before he was replaced by Stanley Kubrick.

"Heroes of Telemark" is an enjoyable sixties Hollywood war movie. But view it for entertainment (and Kirk Douglas), not as a history lesson. For that - and indeed for a filmatically better movie! - try instead "La bataille de l'eau lourde" (Jean Dreville / Titus Vibe-Müller, 1947). It's more accurate, more dramatic, has better photography - and even have some of the original saboteurs playing themselves.

"The Heroes of Telemark" was based on three different accounts of what the Norwegian Underground had undertaken to sabotage the Nazi machine operating in occupied Norway during World War II. The heavy water plant operated by Norsk Hydro in Vemork just west of the town of Rjukan was taken over by the Nazis in hope that they would develop a hydrogen bomb. There had been an earlier film I've seen on VHS released in Norway called "Kampen om Tungtvannet" (the Struggle for the Heavy Water) (1947) with nearly all of the surviving saboteurs from both the "Swallow" and "Gunnerside" groups playing themselves. In reality, all of the saboteurs survived this particular operation. One or two had been killed in later campaigns, which also appeared in "The Heroes of Telemark". There was a scene where the Nazis were shipping the heavy water in railroad cars to be taken to Berlin and a portion of the trip would be transporting it aboard a passenger ferry across one of Norway's deepest lakes. Three of the saboteurs slipped unnoticed onto the ferryboat to set charges to blow it up once it reached the deepest part. In reality none of them remained aboard the ferry to play a game with children "race to the lifeboats" in order to save lives. These heroic men, though they had hoped to save lives of innocent men, women and children, were under orders from London that nothing could be done to save them and the plan had to be carried out even if it meant the loss of innocent lives. The saboteurs were long gone in the mountains before the ferry was sunk after the charges went off.

The movie was exciting to watch with stars like Kirk Douglas and Richard Harris playing the saboteurs, even if some of the portions were fictional mixed in with the real events that occurred. The actual operation to set the charges inside the heavy water plant took exactly four minutes with two of the men slipping inside the building and holding an elderly Norwegian guard at gunpoint until the charges were set. A third man came in through a window he broke and assisted with the charges. After the charges were set, the three men ran out of the room and ordered the guard to flee immediately. the saboteurs were long gone before the alarm was sounded after the charges went off. The Nazis were a little slow to react, especially monitoring the radio waves. They did locate the exact position of the small cabin where "Swallow" and "Gunnerside" transmitted messages to London. None of the Norwegians were present when the Nazis reached the abandoned cabin they later set ablaze.

The scene with the one captured saboteur who makes a daring escape from the bus was in fact based on one of the members of "Swallow", Claus Helberg, who was arrested by the Nazis and was being transported to the concentration camp "Grini" when he made his escape. He was shot at, but managed to escape from his captors unscathed.

Great movie, but based on three different accounts.