Customer Reviews

Rogue Male

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

...but at $3.95, you can't miss.

OK, at times the sound is muffled, the color washes out, there's a bit of streakiness, the picture seems to shake, and it has the appearance of the usual low budget film. BUT, the movie is absolutely riveting and the flaws are minor distractions. I watched it then had to watch it again.

Not the typical commando-trained man on the run flick, as in The Bourne Identity, but a slower paced, perhaps more thoughtful type of story. Sir Robert (O'Toole)goes to ground while being pursued after failing to assassinate Hitler and being tortured then escaping. We see his determination and ingenuity (again, not the usual Hollywood sort of stunts), but also the man he is.

I did not catch on to the reason why he went after Hitler until later in the movie, so disagree with an earlier viewer. However, I've not read the book before seeing the movie. There are hints about what happened and when I realized what had occured, it increased the tension, rather than ruining the end for me.

John Standing is terrific as the pursuer, Harold Pinter has a nice scene, Alistair Sim plays the doddering uncle well, but it is Peter O'Toole who makes the movie.

O'Toole is excellent at dry humor and getting across a page of dialog with just a look. There's a wealth of both in Rogue Male.

It's a shame this movie is not better visually and does not get much notice among O'Toole's works. It is, however, a movie that will keep you guessing about what will happen and is well worth a look. In a recent interview, O'Toole said Rogue Male was his favorite movie and it is easy to see why.


For parents: Since I have kids and do not trust the ratings system (and Rogue Male is unrated), I appreciate reviews that note what might be objectionable for kids.

Rogue Male is intense at times and shows Sir Robert being tortured- blood on his face and facial expressions during 2 incidents. There's a couple other violent moments- nothing very graphic or worse than what they've seen on TV. Teens might find it a bit slow, but interesting. Not for kids under 13.

I saw this movie 6 years ago and wondered how I'd missed it for so long. O'toole gives an awesome performance as he fumbles and then haphazardly (with the greatest of luck) eludes his pursuers. This movie puts a great spin on the statement "what if" some one had killed Hitler, though it is in no way a documentary. It's the "CAT & MOUSE" standard in my book!!

ENJOY.

The novel, by Geoffrey Household, is well-paced and builds to a satisfying climax based on profound revelations. The movie pushes those revelations to the beginning, which robs the main character of his motivation to swing into action at the end. I enjoyed the movie to a point, but this is one of those cases where the film makers would have done better to stay more consistent with the book.

This movie is near the top of the list of the best movies I've ever seen. After attempting to assasinate Hitler when England was still trying to make nice with the Fuehrer, O'Toole is on his own, persona non grata with the British establishment. The Germans come after him in England itself, and O'Toole is forced to take cover in his own land. O'Toole is the epitome of British nobility, resourceful, sarcastic, cool as ice. The film ending is a bit sanctimonious and slightly disappointing, with O'Toole pictured as being ready to sacrifice himself because he is so torn by the loss of his beloved. Overall, a terrific movie.

The DVD has no closed captions or subtitles, and they're needed due to the poor quality of the sound track. Actually, the DVD appears to have been manufactured reasonable well, and its poor quality is due to its source material. The original film was obviously not a master and shows wear from use and poor storage.

Still, the quality is acceptable enough for me to keep it rather than return it for a refund.

Being a great fan of Peter O'Toole, I was delighted when I discovered that one of his films I've wanted to see for a very long time had finally been released on dvd. Yesterday said dvd arrived at my place, and although I've had so far no time to watch the whole movie, I nevertheless checked the dvd with regard to quality. The result: The quality is just abonimable. The transfer seems to have been directly taken from a second or third generation (bootleg?) video cassette; the overall miserable quality not only of the picture (I've seen mpeg files that were better) but also of the sound even lets me suspect that what we hear and see on this dvd released by the "Passion" label is a recording of a VHS video playback (all I'm missing is someone's head suddenly appearing in front of the monitor and/or the sound of someone coughing). What this boils down to: All but the O'Toole fans most sturdy of heart - beware!

I had seen this movie on TV once. It is a good movie, very interesting and holds your interest. My only complaint is the quality of the VHS tape I received. Color and sound were of poor quality and small portion of tape was unviewable. I know this was a TV movie, but I would think there would be a better quality transfer to VHS tape.

I first saw this magnificent film years ago. The acting story and plot simply blew me away it was that good. I sat and watched it throughout with no distractions nor breaks. Peter O'Toole is magnificent as the Upper Class hero who seeks revenge for his fiancée's cruel death due to the Nazis. His revenge? To assassinate Hitler. As we all know he didn't succeed and here the story sets off on a cracking pace. Tortured by the Nazis (I won't give details!) He escapes and thanks to a WW1 German ex POW who respected the British he gets back to England. But here the plot twist even further, Britain is not at war with the Germans you see the Aristo's have more German cousins that Queen Victoria. So he is on his own! Soon framed he goes on the run. The Nazis seek to kill our hero so he goes to ground in England. Now imagine hiding yourself in rural England so no one knows you are there? A top English Lord/ Nazi agent is set to find him and does so. Here I won't spoil the plot but I was in tears at one incident!! And cheered at another. This is the only film that I have seen that is better than the Geoffrey Household book. O'Toole is simply magnificent and I believe this to be better than his Lawrence portrayal (some praise indeed). The ending on the film comes with regret that such a great film could go on for longer rather than some of today's offerings where the finish is a relief. I guarantee you will enjoy this film and it will stay with you a long time. Worth a chance? Yes.

I first saw this magnificent film years ago. The acting story and plot simply blew me away it was that good. I sat and watched it throughout with no distractions nor breaks. Peter O'Toole is magnificent as the Upper Class hero who seeks revenge for his fiancée's cruel death due to the Nazis. His revenge? To assassinate Hitler. As we all know he didn't succeed and here the story sets off on a cracking pace. Tortured by the Nazis (I won't give details!) He escapes and thanks to a WW1 German ex POW who respected the British he gets back to England. But here the plot twist even further, Britain is not at war with the Germans you see the Aristo's have more German cousins that Queen Victoria. So he is on his own! Soon framed he goes on the run. The Nazis seek to kill our hero so he goes to ground in England. Now imagine hiding yourself in rural England so no one knows you are there? A top English Lord/ Nazi agent is set to find him and does so. Here I won't spoil the plot but I was in tears at one incident!! And cheered at another. This is the only film that I have seen that is better than the Geoffrey Household book. O'Toole is simply magnificent and I believe this to be better than his Lawrence portrayal (some praise indeed). The ending on the film comes with regret that such a great film could go on for longer rather than some of today's offerings where the finish is a relief. I guarantee you will enjoy this film and it will stay with you a long time. Worth a chance? Yes.

I loved this movie when it originally came out and was so excited to see that it was available....I've looked around for it here and there for years. It's a good, classic, suspense with a lot of energy. Peter O'Toole is awesome in this.Kind of "The Fugitive" meets "The Boys From Brazil".