The Cavern

First of all I'm the biggest John Saxon fan in the whole world. I can't think of a time when this guy showed up and didn't do his job-wasn'' convincing in a role? Never!

Big budget!! US Givt war footage, which these guys could never afford, mixed in with like a cheap shot of bricks falling from a truck. (The cars they use are so old and decrepit, it's funny)

But I'm pretty sure the whole purpose of this movie is for someone to see as much nakediditty as Rosanna Schiaffino / censors will allow.

I walked away from the movie for a couple minutes, you know multitasking, this is the first movie I can think of that sounds like it's dubbed...and it's not.

Really wretched. Really wretched.

The Cavern is a wartime drama featuring an unlikely group of seven people who find themselves trapped in a cave in the Italian mountains. Those trapped include: a British general, an American officer and an American private, an Italian soldier, a German sergeant, a Canadian pilot, and a woman from a local village. Fortunately, the cave has been most recently used as an Italian supply dump. But can these people put their differences behind them and find a way to survive?

The Cavern isn't a great movie, but I found it a worthwhile watch. Most of the entertainment I got out of it came from the characters, their relationships, and their interactions. The cast is as eclectic as the characters they play, including genre fav John Saxon, Peter Marshall (it was more than a little weird seeing the long serving host of The Hollywood Squares in a WWII drama), the insanely beautiful Rosanna Schiaffino, Oscar nominee Brian Aherne, and Larry Hagman (yes, JR from Dallas is in The Cavern). The acting is about as good as you could hope for from a low-budget film American/Italian/German/Yugoslav(?) co-production like this. All do a reasonable job with what they're given to work with. For his last film, veteran director Edgar G. Ulmer created a claustrophobic, hopeless atmosphere. And, there are a few real gut-wrenching moments. The best has to be (and I won't spoil it) when one of the characters finally finds a way out of the giant cave system only to be met with the most ironic tragedy I think I could imagine. It's a very good, but heartbreaking moment.

But, as I said, it's not a perfect film. While I've credited Ulmer with creating atmosphere, there are far too many moments where the characters seem way more relaxed than they should given their circumstances. They play cards, they sing songs, they make jokes, they carry on like they don't have a care in the world. Even though they have food and water, I would expect more panic. It takes far too long for any of the characters to fully snap and have any sort of mental breakdown.

5/10

The Cavern is a poignant movie which is much more about character development and human interactions than it is about action/adventure. The setting is a diverse group being trapped in a cave along with a huge supply of food, munitions, and other supplies. I do not want to reveal any spoilers, but several of the scenes in this movie stayed with me for over forty years. A excellent movie. Hard to find it on any streaming services, which is a shame. I think it might be in the public domain, but I am not sure of that. If you can find it, or see it is playing, record it and make sure to give it a watch. Well worth the time.

I was going to give this movie a 5 and say, "This is a solid 5!" Then I decided that if it's such a solid 5, why don't I give it a 6?

Why?, you may ask.

I watched it on FX cable last night, having missed the first 10 minutes or so. They were already trapped in the cavern. In a few minutes I was hooked. I happened across it again a few hours later just after the credits and caught the first few minutes until I was up with where I came in. Then I almost sat to watch it again. That alone says something.

Let's get some things out of the way about this film. This is in the public domain. It was shot in 1.85:1, but was broadcast in 4:3. It was broadcast on an HD channel, but still looked as if I was watching it through a silk screen. It may have been a 16mm transfer or a multigenerational copy.

Do not judge a book by its cover.

Many of the comments here about weakness in the script, character motivations and low budget production values are reasonable, but with a caveat. Many of those bad character decisions or odd motivations take place after being trapped in the cavern for weeks and months. When that is taken into account, some of the irrationality might be excused, or at least rationalized.

The cast is actually quite good, though half are likely unknown to most viewers.

The early exterior shots are not encouraging. The opening few minutes which set up the story look low budget. One German soldier stopped his motorcycle to give a report to an officer. After the report, he couldn't restart it, but they kept the "take".

Once the main characters are trapped in the cavern, however, the low budget matters less than the story.

Not everyone survives, and heroes and not-so-much heroes may not be who you expect. But that's a large part of what makes the film engaging.

It won't be the best ~80 minutes of your life, but it won't be a waste.

PS: One of these actors went on to a long-term gig as host of "Hollywood Squares". See if you can spot him. Another went on to be an iconic character on the TV series "Dallas". And this will be one of Brian Aherne's last roles, and not bad though certainly not his best.

A motley group of friends and foes during World War 2 are trapped in The Cavern during the Italian campaign. Junior officers and enlisted men, a woman Rosanna Schiaffino and a British general Brian Aherne. General Aherne tries to enforce some discipline, but is more concerned with making sure they all know rank has its privileges.

Some Axis folks buried a large quantity of ammunition in the place also and apparently forgot it. And I would think that if a general goes MIA the British would be making a 'no stone left unturned' search for him.

Not to mention the presence of one attractive woman amongst a few soldiers with some needs.

This was one mediocre war film.