John Moore

Fantastic film. Director John Frankenheimer should have won an Oscar. Acting and script are top notch. You can practically smell the grease and steam from the trains. So glad they chose to use black and white. Adds grit and realism. Amazing and clever staging of subterfuge by the French resistance and the engineers and train crews. Burt Lancaster was the perfect choice. Tough, sensitive, rugged and with his patented piercing gaze they could not have done better. Being the former acrobat, he did an amazing job of stunt work. Supporting cast all deserve kudos. I am also glad that they resisted creating a physical love scene between Burt Lancaster And the female lead actress, Jeanne Moreau. There are no seductions from either of them, just the simple understanding that the future of their well-being and countless others depends on their actions. Seen this movie several times including in the theater when it came out in 1965 and I was not yet 10.