gwailo247 I knew this was a romantic movie upfront, but the WW2 stuff seemed interesting enough to take a look.I must say that I watched the whole thing through, and it kept my interest. Its pretty predictable, but the characters stay rather true to themselves, and although the ending is predictable, its not necessarily obvious.I will give credit for the locations/effects. The film never looks cheesy, and you can tell that effort was made to be authentic. It certainly is a war movie, there is blood and gore aplenty, not Saving Private Ryan gory, but enough to remind you this is war.The movie has 2 parts, the romantic story in England, and then the adventure part in France. This split makes the movie go by rather quickly, I was kinda surprised this was not one of those WW2 miniseries that were so popular at the time.I can't say that I would overwhelmingly recommend this movie, but if something about it strikes your interest, one of the actors perhaps, or in my case the setting of WW2, then I would check it out.

MRavenwood This film has many great elements, but the whole things fails primarily due to overwrought dialogue that is very soap operatic with words put in character's mouths that mostly teenage girls would think of. Without John Barry's romantic score, this film would be pathetic, leaning towards hilarious.In any film, when two characters meet and fall in love there is a certain amount of time and shared experiences that pass in the story before the love between them is credible. In this film, the love is instant, deeply romantic -- yet torrid, and lasting. Completely impossible! Having said all that, the film still provides some great military movie sequences. There are some funny bits with Halloran and his co-pilot Cimino mouthing off during their missions and briefings. And a whole military caper pulled off by Halloran (Ford) and Mr. Sallinger (Plummer) which is both exciting and easy to follow.After a while, one realizes that Margaret Sallinger, (Down) never speaks her lines, she whispers them in a plaintive, teary voice, always on the verge of boo-hoo. This becomes grating after a while. Further, it makes the audience wonder what Halloran sees in her.Well, the answer to what the attraction is never comes, but the noble dialogue at the end is a struggle to listen to and is a riff on the immortal Casablanca "Hill of beans/Here's lookin' at you" farewell between Rick and Ilsa. It is well that this Hanover Street high-road sign-off sequence comes last as it is the most indulgent in melodrama. Still, Ford and Plummer work so effectively to make this movie almost passable that you really have to give them credit for their commitment to their characters.

Jonathon Dabell Still relatively new to the scene, Harrison Ford takes the romantic leading role for this remarkably old-fashioned wartime soap opera. For much of the film Ford looks plainly ill at ease, not all all suited to the slushy love story in which he is participating. Similarly, the director (action specialist Peter Hyams) finds the romantic aspects that dominate the first half of his film difficult to deal with. Instead of creating a convincing on-screen love story, Hyams overdoes things almost to the point of self parody, asking grand gestures of his actors and an absurdly overbearing score of composer John Barry. At the hour mark, there won't be many viewers left with the willpower to remain tuned in. But just as the film threatens to collapse completely, Hyams (who also wrote the film) suddenly shifts his narrative to something that he, and Ford, are much better at. The second half of Hanover Street redeems the film, as it drops the mock-romantic weepie approach and becomes an engaging escape melodrama.American bomber pilot David Halloran (Harrison Ford) is stationed in England during World War 2. One day during an air raid he meets a beautiful nurse, Margaret Sellinger (Lesley Anne Down), and the pair of them are instantly attracted to each other. Margaret is already married but her relationship with husband Paul (Christopher Plummer) lacks passion and excitement. She is, therefore, swept hopelessly off her feet by her romantic encounter. Halloran's devil-may-care attitude towards his dangerous occupation begins to soften now that he has something to live for, but he is still chosen to fly a British spy over enemy lines as part of a dangerous parachute drop. By the most incredible chance, the spy turns out to be Paul, taking on an audacious raid behind enemy lines in a bold gesture to win back the respect of his wife. When the plane is hit by enemy fire, Halloran and Paul are forced to bail out together deep in enemy country. In an ironic twist of fate, the unwitting love rivals become survival buddies, both relying upon the other to get out of the perilous predicament they are in. They have many adventures as they attempt to steal a document from the Gestapo HQ in Lyon and make it back alive to the woman they love.This is the only wartime film Hyams has made, and in the later stages he demonstrates a proficiency for the genre that makes one rue his decision to make the film in the mould of a tearjerker. If he had just gone for a full-on wartime thriller - something along the lines of Where Eagles Dare - he might have made a rather good film. Alas, the soppy opening hour cannot be erased from the memory, nor can it be forgiven, and it really does cheapen the whole effect of the film. Down performs quite well under the circumstances, trying hard (and with moderate success) to make her love dilemma involving even though the script defeats her with overwroughtness. But she is the only one who seems to give a damn during the first half - Ford looks totally desperate throughout this section, and Hyams simply lacks the finesse to make it work. Even Plummer cannot do much during the opening hour, his role reduced to that of a boring cuckold with a handful of scenes in which to make his mark. One thing that does work nicely throughout the entire film is the photography (by David Watkin), which captures the desired period feel rather accurately. To summarise, Hanover Street is shamelessly old-fashioned tosh in which the action bits are handled with infinite more conviction than the romantic ones.

roghache While this movie is not the old fashioned wartime classic I had anticipated, it is certainly highly watchable. This is definitely more a romance than a war movie or suspense thriller. It's been awhile since I've seen it so forget all the plot intricacies, but enjoyed the film at the time for two reasons. First, the incredible cast and second, the World War II backdrop with all the drama of wartime and the hair, clothing, & automobile styles. For me, the movie is noteworthy for the dynamics between the sophisticated, steady husband and the virile, charismatic lover. Also its memorable ending, which I loved. The movie portrays the story of Margaret Sellinger, a British nurse, and David Halloran, an American pilot (stationed in England) who meet in London during an air raid and fall in love. David doesn't realize that Margaret is married until he is assigned to transport a British secret agent into France and learns that this agent is none other than Margaret's husband. Of course this situation may be something of a coincidence, but it does make for a good story. The three stars cast as the parties in this love triangle are all favourites of mine. The dashing and magnetic Harrison Ford plays the lover, David. That consummate gentleman, Christopher Plummer, is cast as the older, dependable, and consistent husband, Paul Sellinger. The lovely Leslie-Anne Down (of Upstairs, Downstairs fame) portrays Paul's wife, Margaret, the woman caught between these two very compelling men. Frankly, if I had to choose myself between Harrison Ford and Christopher Plummer, I'd be hard pressed to decide...though Plummer would have been quite captivating enough for me in the first place! The movie doesn't delve much into the marital problems, other than that the husband, Paul, doesn't feel he is exciting enough for his wife. The film therefore provides no reason why we shouldn't favour the husband and view him as the injured victim of the piece. Not a whole lot of sympathy on my part for the bored Margaret, wartime or not and despite Harrison Ford's obvious appeal. Unfortunately, not much detail is shown developing Margaret and David's relationship, other than some emotional bonding as a result of shared danger during a V2 rocket bombing. Then before you know it, they're having an affair. Perhaps this contributes to my lack of interest in their romance. Frankly, my heart does not bleed for Margaret, much as I adore the actress portraying her. It was very unfair of her not warning David straight away that she's a married lady with a daughter, thus I had more compassion for her misled lover.Later in the film the husband and lover are placed in a dangerous situation where they must cope with enemy action and rely upon each other. Naturally this makes for some 'interesting' scenes, quite touchingly done, as they must work together to survive. They're both fantastic here, the macho younger Ford and the seasoned older Plummer. Their scenes are infinitely more compelling than those between the lovers in a relationship not very well drawn. No spoilers as to which gentleman prevails in the end. Do both or either of the two even survive the perils involved? Suffice it to say, the ending was unforgettable for me personally.With these actors and this setting, it might have been a great movie if they'd only imparted a little more depth and vulnerability to Margaret, some relationship development and genuine chemistry to her affair with David, and a bit more understanding as to why she succumbed to temptation in the first place. However, in truth, I confess that I'm a real sucker for a wartime romance and would lap up just about any representative of the genre, especially one with this particular cast.