Golden Rendezvous
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Allan Scott
Chris Bryant
John Gay
Stanley Price
Andre Pieterse
Robert Porter
| Golden Rendezvous | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover | |
| Directed by | Ashley Lazarus |
| Written by | Alistair MacLean (novel) Allan Scott Chris Bryant John Gay Stanley Price |
| Produced by | Murray Frank Andre Pieterse Robert Porter |
| Starring | Richard Harris Ann Turkel David Janssen Gordon Jackson Burgess Meredith Dorothy Malone John Vernon John Carradine Leigh Lawson Robert Flemyng Keith Baxter Robert Beatty |
| Cinematography | Kenneth Higgins |
| Edited by | Ralph Kemplen |
| Music by | Jeff Wayne |
| Distributed by | United Artists (USA) Rank Film Distributors (UK) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 109 minutes (theatrical release) |
| Language | English |
Golden Rendezvous is a 1977 South African action thriller film directed by Ashley Lazarus and starring Richard Harris, Ann Turkel and David Janssen.[1] It was based on the 1962 novel The Golden Rendezvous by Alistair MacLean.
The Caribbean Star, a combination cargo ship and floating casino is hijacked by terrorists led by Luis Carreras (John Vernon), who installs an atomic bomb, holding both the passengers and the bomb hostage, hoping to exchange them for the gold bullion on a U.S. Treasury ship. However, First Officer John Carter (Richard Harris), Susan Beresford (Ann Turkel), and Dr. Marston (Gordon Jackson) join forces to foil the plan.
Cast
- Richard Harris – John Carter
- Ann Turkel – Susan Beresford
- David Janssen – Charles Conway
- Burgess Meredith – Van Heurden
- Gordon Jackson – Dr. Marston
- John Vernon – Luis Carreras
- Dorothy Malone – Mrs. Skinner
- Leigh Lawson – Tony Cerdan
- John Carradine – Fairweather
- Robert Flemyng – Capt. Bullen
- Keith Baxter – Preston
- Robert Beatty – Dr. Taubman
- Chris Chittell – Rogers
- Michael Howard – Benson
- Ian Yule – McCloskey
- Larry Taylor – Attacker
Development
The novel was originally published in 1962. Film rights were bought almost immediately; Laurence Harvey announced he would star and produce along with Daniel Angel. "I think it's easily as exciting as Guns of Navarone", said Harvey.[2]
However the film was not made until 1977. It starred Richard Harris and Ann Turkel, who were then married, and who had just appeared in The Cassandra Crossing together. Harris praised Turkel for encouraging him to cut down on his drinking. "Now my creativity is flowing again", he said. "Now in the middle of the night I must suddenly get up and write. I'm not going to end up like [Dylan] Thomas, lonely and misunderstood."[3]
Differences from Novel
The basic film plot follows that of the book for almost the entire story with only a few differences; for example, in the book Captain Bullen is wounded by gunfire during the taking of the 'Campari'(Caribbean Star) whilst in the film, Bullen is shot dead. As the book character spent the remainder of the story incapacitated, the plot continued in much the same way without him. Similarly Dr. Taubman's character possessed a wife who was absent from the novel, as were David Janssen's character of Charles Conway, and Burgess Meredith's character Van Heurden. However a different ending was scripted for the film in order to increase plot tension and create something far more dramatic and spectacular. The final fifteen minutes of the screenplay led to a conclusion that bore little resemblance to the book plot.
Perhaps because of this deviation from the original story, and any resulting disagreements following its release, the film was later renamed 'Nuclear Terror.'
Production
The film was shot in South Africa. The film was started by Freddie Francis but completed by Ashley Lazarus.[4]
The film went $1.5 million over budget. This was blamed on Richard Harris who, it was alleged, held up production with his drinking and rewriting of the script. Producer Euan Lloyd later discovered this was not entirely true – however, it made it difficult for Lloyd to cast Harris in his next film, The Wild Geese.[5]
Harris admitted rewriting the script but says he was invited to do so. "I worked 20 hours a day, 7 days a week, helping to get them out of a hole. And at the end I got slammed for it. Worse – found myself uninsurable. Even after the film opened in Europe, I still didn't give up. I said 'Let me take 10 minutes out and put back some stuff and I promise you it'll work.' But they weren't interested. And so we're left with another Harris flop."[5]
Release
After the European release, a six-minute prologue was shot to make the plot more explicable.[5]
The movie performed poorly at the box office.[6]
The Guardian called the film "nothing but dross".[7]
The film was re-edited and distributed as a TV movie on U.S. networks with the title Nuclear Terror. To get the film's duration down to the required 95–100 minutes most of the pre-title sequence was cut.