One of the worst movies I've ever seen

Better than most people think

Beautiful, moving film.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

A vengeful terrorist calling himself Juggernaut (slyly played by Freddie Jones) plants seven explosive devices on the ocean liner HMS Britannic and demands a huge ransom in exchange for the information needed to dismantle said bombs. It's up to grouchy demolitions expert Fallon (Richard Harris in superior surly form) to save the day before time runs out.Director Richard Lester keeps the gripping story moving at a brisk pace, builds plenty of nerve-wracking suspense, makes excellent use of the creaky and sprawling ship, and tops everything off with a wickedly funny sense of fiercely mocking and subversive sardonic humor. The crafty script by Richard Alan Simmons refreshingly eschews cheap thrills and broad macho heroics in favor of a more starkly realistic approach in which even the protagonists are allowed to be flawed and fallible human beings who are decidedly less than noble and prone to error (for example, Fallon does his job more out of a feeling of scruffy obstinate pride than because it's the so-called "right thing to do").The bang-up acting by the ace cast keeps this film humming: Omar Sharif as the dissolute and ineffectual Captain Alan Brunel, David Hemmings as Fallon's easygoing partner Charlie Braddock, Anthony Hopkins as determined copper John McLeod, Ian Holm as worried executive Nicholas Porter, Shirley Knight as Brunel's pesky mistress Barbara Bannister, Clifton James as huffy politician Corrigan, and Jack Watson as hard-nosed Chief Engineer Mallicent. Roy Kinnear provides hilarious comic relief as jolly, but bumbling social director Curtain, who tries desperately to uphold morale among the passengers in the absolute worst of circumstances. A real solid and satisfying left of field entry in the 70's disaster cycle.

Juggernaut is a well done action / disaster thriller which combines some good performances with great direction and scripting. An extortionist calling himself Juggernaut has planted several bombs aboard the ocean liner Britannic and is threatening to sink the liner in heavy seas if he is not paid off. The film follows an official from the cruise company, a naval bomb defuser, and London police officials as they attempt to prevent a catastrophe.What sets Juggernaut apart from a thousand other 'mad bomber' films is that to a large extent it approaches the threat from an official, even technical perspective. Rather than a maverick cop chasing the psychopath around the ship, we get highly suspenseful scenes of professionals trying to defuse bombs. The film plays up the difficulty of defusing a booby-trapped bomb, taking it beyond the film cliché of simply cutting the right wire. The heroes have to get through a variety of hidden snares within the devices before they even get to the wires. Indeed, the sub-plot involving the cruise official serves to remind us that this is not just a 'technical exercise,' that there really are lives at stake.Furthermore, the film does not succumb to the temptation to overplay its villain or make him a flamboyant maniac. Despite his code name serving as the title of the film, Juggernaut does not figure that prominently in the plot. When he does turn up, the performance is quite understated, particularly when compared to the head of the bomb squad. (Only Richard Harris would think that downing a bottle of scotch is good preparation for defusing a bomb.) Indeed, one can argue that the bombs themselves serve as the primary antagonist of the film with their fiendish designs.The acting in the film is quite good overall, even if the characters aren't always that well fleshed out. Richard Harris does a good job as the film's overall protagonist, lending him a sense of mordant humor that keeps him from becoming a stale action hero. Omar Sharif also does a good job as the ship's captain, even though his character is largely one note.Juggernaut does have some weak points. At times, the investigation back in London is given short shrift, so that it is difficult to follow. Furthermore, there are one or two scenes contrived for dramatic effect that take away from the film's realism. In particular, one scene where a young child gets access to a restricted area of the ship strains credibility. Still, the film definitely stands as a minor classic in its genre.

This movie is somewhat different than its cousin THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE. This one doesn't have any over the top acting or action. It isn't overblown in any campy way. It does have a fantastic all-star cast (Richard Harris, Anthony Hopkins, Shirley Knight, Omar Shariff and Ian Holm to name a few), loads of good dialogue, suspense and honest human emotion. . What happens is a mysterious bomber threatens to detonate a series of bombs aboard a huge luxury liner, the Britannic, unless his demands are met. What follows is tense human drama, as time slowly ticks away while the bomber and his bombs are sought before he can destroy the ship. This is directed by Richard Lester and is one of his best, and ironically, one of his more lesser known films.

Released at the height of the disaster movie craze of the 1970's, this is more a suspense film than an all-star catastrophe epic. Sharif plays the stoic captain of an outdated cruise liner who is informed of seven bombs placed throughout the lower levels of the ship, which will explode in 24 hours unless a ransom is paid. While the police, the British government, the British navy and the management of the line scramble in London to find a solution and locate the extortionist, Harris (a demolitions expert) and his team are parachuted in to try to disarm the explosive devices. Meanwhile, seasick passengers battle fear and ennui as activities director Kinnear struggles to keep the mood cheerful. A truly staggering cast, made up of mostly British character actors, delivers interesting performances under the surprisingly taut and trim direction of Lester (who also infuses the film with his customary brand of subversive humor and perverse sense of the absurd.) Sharif has very little of note to do in his role other than act as a masthead and allow others to bounce off of him, but he looks nice in his Captain's gear. Harris has a very nice part and plays it well. Hemmings, as Harris' sidekick develops a likable persona. Hopkins effectively plays a police detective who has the added pressure of knowing his wife Mortimer and their two children are on board the threatened vessel! Holm is excellent as the harried manager of the cruise line. Knight has a dour, thankless role as a bored, restless, married passenger, but manages to inject some wryness into her line delivery. James scores a few points as a cut-the-bull passenger and Jones is a memorable blackmailing suspect. Cusack and Hordern appear without billing in small, but effective, roles. Visible briefly on deck is MacCorkindale as a helmsman. Lester placed the cast and extras upon a real life, down-on-its-luck cruise ship and sought out the worst possible weather, giving the film a sense of dreary verisimilitude that works in its favor. This is no slick Hollywood (or Irwin Allen-esquire) product but a cold, sometimes tense film with only some scattered humor to break the stress. Several sequences provide proper action and suspense, though the committed cast keeps everything pretty well grounded. Lester, who made quite a few comedic films is actually quite at home here, though the original author was unhappy enough with some of the changes Lester made to the script to have his name changed to an alias. He doesn't go for the sentimental (for example, there are no scenes of Hopkins and Mortimer crying on the phone together) nor does he dwell on the disaster elements. An explosion rocking a ballroom and setting off a sprinkler system is barely shown at all! He focuses instead on the mystery elements of the bomber and on the quest to disarm the bombs before the ship is destroyed. It's an unusual but mostly captivating piece of movie-making.