QB VII

My first discovery of astonishing acting by Anthony Hopkins, still memorable after 25+ years. Riveting plot with twists and turns and dogged detective work by the Ben Gazzara character. Not sure where you can find it these days, but if you run across it, you won't be disappointed.

A saintly doctor, Kelno (Anthony Hopkins) is accused of being a collobroator with the nazis by a Jewish writer, Cady (Ben Gazzara), and the two 'duel' in a courtroom, Queens Bench VII (hence the title). Kelno stoutly defends his character but the past catches up to him. I wish the movie could have explored how Dr Kelno--clearly a morally admirable doctor, helping the poor and defying the powerful--changed; or was he always a saint...except when dealing with the Jews? The opposing counsels, played by John Gielgud and Anthony Quayle, are the show. Frankly, I fast forwarded through the first half to watch the courtroom part, which is superb, very British, elegant and fascinating, especially as the Anthony Quayle barrister finally pins down the frantic Kelno, while Kelno's lawyer watches helplessly ("My Lord...!") Highly recommended. A terrific slap at communists early ('You spoke well of Dr --.' 'That was before he defected. Now I say he is guilty'. 'Guilty of what?' 'Of whatever you are charging him with.')

This was a fascinating mini-series based on the Leon Uris novel of the same name, and it helped to launch the mini-series genre. It is VERY fortunate that the producers were able to get such gifted stars as Ben Gazzara and Anthony Hopkins for the leads. Writing, acting, music and exotic locales make this a must-see.

The plot is based on a real-life lawsuit against Uris following the publication of his novel EXODUS. Dr. Adam Kelno is a very well-respected medical doctor who was knighted for his humanitarian work. However, the writer Abe Cady writes a novel that names Kelno, among others, as having committed was crimes while working for the Nazis many years earlier. The central questions of the series are DID Kelno work for the Nazis and IF he did, was he the benevolent man he claims to have been or a monster who was NOT forced to commit atrocities.

One of the earliest of TV mini-series casts Anthony Hopkins and Ben Gazzara who are the plaintiff and defendant in a libel suit. The case is being settled in the courtroom number seven of the Queen's Bench in London, QB VII. What Gazzara is accusing Hopkins of is monstrous indeed, the participation of experiments on Jews in the concentration camp of forced sterilization which involved chemical and physical castration.

Not an easy thing to prove because since World War II, Hopkins, an anti-Communist Polish refugee has been knighted by the Queen for his humanitarian work among the Arab desert tribes. That's probably no accident he chose to settle there with his wife Leslie Caron and son who grows up to be Anthony Andrews. The shifting sands of the Cold War has made such charges tinged with political overtones.

Gazzara is author Leon Uris inserted into the novel and Uris himself doesn't paint a flattering portrait. He's one of Jewish heritage who is not terribly religious. Gazzara married a British girl, Juliet Mills, who was a nurse seeing to his recovery and they have a son who grows up to be Kristoffer Tabori. Gazzara becomes a hack Hollywood screenwriter and gets rich and bored. But he then writes an epic Jewish novel the way Leon Uris wrote Exodus of deeply researched historical fiction and he names Hopkins and what he allegedly did.

This is by no means a strange phenomenon. From the Fifties through the Nineties we heard stories of former Nazis turning up in all kinds of places and in plain sight, not hiding in the deep recesses of Argentina or Paraguay which seemed to be favored by Nazis of higher rank and profile like Dr. Mengele. The President of Austria in the Eighties, Kurt Waldheim had his Nazi past uncomfortably exposed once he was in office. And Ivan Demjanjuk at the ripe old age of 95 after years as an automobile worker in the USA just got sentenced for his war crimes. I doubt we'll be seeing too many more though.

QB VII got a flock of Emmy Awards and nominations including in the Supporting Acting category for Juliet Mills and Anthony Quayle who plays the barrister representing Gazzara. His cross examination scene with Hopkins is devastating. And of course Gazzara and Hopkins are at their usual sterling best.

QB VII marked the farewell performance of Jack Hawkins who had for several years performed without a voice box due to throat cancer which finally claimed him. In QB VII a voice similar to his was used which was not always the case. In a sense this film is his because Hawkins plays the judge presiding over the court in QB VII.

This mini-series holds up very well today and I recommend it highly for viewers who are interested in Holocaust justice and the unfortunate politics that sometimes accompanies it.

Strong acting and a blistering courtroom drama unfold in this six hour mini-series.

Ben Gazzara and Anthony Hopkins are fantastic and the make-up job on Anthony Hopkins is phenomenal as the artist has him look the way he does now and the show is 25 years old.

Very good entertainment that moves along at a rapid pace.