slightlymad22 Continuing my plan watch every Sean Connery movie in order, I come to 1979 yeah he released three movies, The first of which was The First Great Train Robbery. Connery's last good movie of the 1970's, and last great performance of the decade. Possibly a bit ahead of its time The First Great Train Robbery is an enjoyable period heist movie. Since robbers did not crack safes in those days. Because dynamite and combination locks had not yet been invented, they could only open the saw with keys. The stealing of the four keys to the two safes without their owners knowing it was great fun.Connery was a suave, gentleman criminal, Donald Sutherland was his partner whilst Lesley Ann Down was his mistress and the annoying Wayne Sleep had a small role.The First Great Yrain Robbery has witty innuendo and some great lines. I always enjoyed this oneJudge: "Why did you commit this scandalous and dastardly crime?" Man In Dock: "I wanted the money."It is superbly delivered.It's also worth noting that Connery clearly did all of his own stunts. Including running across the top of a moving train, going at 55 mph, ducking the bridges as he went. The First Great Train Robbery grossed a disappointing $13 million at the domestic box office. His next two movies this in 1979 didn't fare any better.

Scott LeBrun Director Michael Crichtons' adaptation of his own novel (inspired by a real life incident) is a smashing success, making the most of superlative performances, a neat premise, real filmmaking skill, great Irish scenery, and very fine period recreation. It takes place in 1855 England, when a dapper gentleman, Pierce (a typically charismatic Sean Connery) plots to rob a large shipment of gold from a moving train! His co-conspirators are Miriam (lovely Lesley- Anne Down) and Agar (Donald Sutherland), and among other things, they will have to locate four different keys and make wax impressions of them."The First Great Train Robbery" (shortened to "The Great Train Robbery" for North American release) is great fun, placing a delicious and ingenious caper in a period piece. It's fascinating to watch our principals concoct various schemes, and go to such great lengths to learn what they need to do. What is always part of the entertainment in any caper or heist film is watching it play out like a procedural of sorts. Crichton is also adept at crafting tension, particularly in one sequence that relies on that familiar, and oft visited (for good reason) story trope of characters having to "beat a clock". The action scenes (directed by Dick Ziker) are likewise first rate, especially towards the end when Pierce must manoeuvre aboard the top of this speeding train. He has a myriad of overhanging bridges to duck under!Crichton and company (including the talented cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth, to whom the film is dedicated) create a vivid world in which there may not be a lot of primary colors, but there are lots of striking visuals. Crichton doesn't miss opportunities for humor: there are some absolutely hilarious sexual double entendres, and poor Sutherland has to submit to a highly disgusting method of being smuggled aboard the train. It's all enhanced by the music of the extremely talented Jerry Goldsmith.Connery, Sutherland, and Down make a wonderful team, and there are no slouches in the supporting cast, either. Alan Webb, Malcolm Terris, Robert Lang, Michael Elphick, Wayne Sleep, Pamela Salem (who later played Moneypenny in Connery's James Bond comeback vehicle "Never Say Never Again"), and Gabrielle Lloyd co-star, with James Cossins, Janine Duvitski, Andre Morell, Brian Glover, and Patrick Barr in smaller roles.I recommend this one very highly.Nine out of 10.

GusF Based on the 1975 novel "The Great Train Robbery" by Michael Crichton who adapted it for the screen and directed the film, this is an enormously enjoyable caper film. The original was inspired by the Great Gold Robbery of 1855 in which William Pierce and his accomplices stole £12,000 worth of gold bullion (being used to finance the Crimean War) from a train on the London to Folkestone line. However, both the novel and the film were apparently highly fictionalised and owe little to the real event beyond the basics of the scheme. The film has an extremely clever and engaging script with a great undercurrent of wit, particularly in the first half. It is a beautiful looking film which Crichton directs with a real sense of style, flair and panache. It was filmed on location in Ireland and features several places that I recognised such as Heuston Station (where I was only yesterday), Bank of Ireland in College Green and Trinity College, which is featured in the wonderful final scene. The hugely impressive climactic train sequence was shot on the now closed Mullingar to Athlone line. Mullingar is only 25 miles from where I grew up and I went to secondary school in Athlone.The film stars Sean Connery in an excellent performance as Edward Pierce, who presents himself as being a "sharp businessman" and respectable, upstanding member of society but is really a gentleman master thief of the old mould. He plotted to get his hands on the £25,000 in gold for one plain and simple reason: he wanted the money. I like that as there really doesn't need to be anything more to it than that for the film to be entertaining. Crichton knew better than to bog the script down with uninteresting subplots about people trying to do the right thing or escape a life of crime. Pierce is a very interesting, world weary and cynical character but I sometimes got the feeling that we never really got to see the real him, even when he was in the company of his co-conspirators. After some hesitation, he tells his mistress Miriam, played very well by Lesley-Anne Down, that he intends for them to go to Paris with their share of the gold after the robbery but I'm not entirely convinced that he was telling the truth. Pierce plays his cards close to his chest and it is often hard to tell exactly what he is thinking, which is certainly a useful character trait for someone in his line of work. However, I think that having Pierce arrange for Clean Willy to be murdered after he ratted to the police was a mistake as, while certainly realistic, it does not really fit in the film's rather light-hearted tone and the fact that Pierce is basically a lovable rogue.Donald Sutherland gives a great performance as Robert Agar, an expert pickpocket and safe-cracker (otherwise known as a "screwsman"). I have always thought that Sutherland is one of the best actors of his generation and, while he does not have the same opportunity to show that as in his more serious films like "Ordinary People" (for which he should have received an Oscar nomination incidentally), he is never less than completely entertaining on this occasion. I just love watching him and listening to that distinctive voice of his. Speaking of which, I don't know what nationality the real Agar was or the fictionalised one is supposed to be, more to the point, but there are small traces of an Irish accent here and there. Considering that his full blown Irish accent in "The Eagle Has Landed" was not great, it was probably for the best that he decided to reign it in here. Connery and Sutherland had fantastic chemistry and it is such a shame that this was their only film together as they made for a very entertaining duo.The film has a comparatively small but strong supporting cast. Alan Webb is very good as Edgar Trent, who holds one of the four vital keys used to unlock the safes storing the gold. In some respects, he is similar to Pierce as he is less reputable than he appears to the outside world, given his involvement in rat-baiting. Pamela Salem, later the Miss Moneypenny to Connery's James Bond in "Never Say Never Again", has a very entertaining cameo as Trent's considerably younger second wife Emily. One of my favourite scenes is Pierce and Emily's innuendo-laden conversation about a waterwheel and construction in general as the dialogue is razor sharp. It also features nice performances from Michael Elphick, Robert Lang and James Cossins with Malcolm Terris in the fairly prominent supporting role as Henry Fowler being the weakest link. This was the final film of two fantastic actors, André Morell and Peter Butterworth, both of whom sadly died shortly before it was released.Overall, this is enormous fun from start to finish. They don't make 'em like this anymore!

edwagreen A caper should be interesting, fast moving and a joy to watch. This 1978 film is anything but. In fact, we would have been better off had author Michael Crichton told about the Crimean War.The film takes place in 1855 England with the latter and France at war with Russia over the Crimea. British soldiers were paid in gold that was shipped by train.When a robber is thrown off the train and killed, this gives Sean Connery, aided by Donald Sutherland, the idea of pulling off such a heist.The film is mostly devoted to making the necessary sets of keys so they can rob the train while it's in motion.It is interesting how they pursue this, but you want the film to move ahead until you get to the actual robbery scene.It finally happens, but by then one is annoyed with the whole film.