A British patrol in Burma sows the seeds of its own destruction in this tougher-than-tough war film when it takes a lone Japanese soldier prisoner. There are finely tuned performances from Richard Todd as the troop commander barely in command, Richard Harris as his contemptuous second in command and Laurence Harvey as the private who is the only one to show any compassion towards their captive. The script, by Wolf Mankowitz from Willis Hall's play, burns through the screen like vitriol. Although the film is obviously studio-bound, this proves something of an advantage, giving the story a similar tense and claustrophobic edge the original stage production had. Barry Norman's dad Leslie directed and kept the tension bowstring-tight throughout.

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