Counterpoint

COUNTERPOINT IS AN OFFBEAT, INTRIGUING WWII DRAMA IN WHICH USO MAESTRO CHARLTON HESTON FINDS HIMSELF AND TROUPE CAPTURED BY THE NAZIS AT A CRITICAL TURNING POINT IN WWII... NAZI COMMANDER MAXIMILIAN SCHELL AND AIDE CURT LOWENS, BOTH DEVOTEES OF HESTON'S WORK, DEMAND A CONCERT FROM THE MAESTRO. THE TROUPE, ALL TOO AWARE THAT THEY WILL BE LIQUIDATED UPON THE COMPLETION OF THE PERFORMANCE, MANIFEST DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT REACTIONS TO THE BASIC SITUATION. INCOMPARABLY BEAUTIFUL MUSICIAN KATHRYN HAYS, ONCE ROMANTICALLY INVOLVED WITH HESTON, IS MARRIED TO MUSICIAN LESLIE NIELSEN, AND IS A ROMANTIC POINT OF CONFLICT IN THE STORY. DRAMATIC DEVELOPMENTS WITH MUSICIAN GREGORY MORTON AND NEVA PATTERSON, PARTISAN DAN FRAZER (WHO ALSO SERVED AS DIALOGUE COACH), FANATICAL OFFICER ANTON DIFFRING (WHO IS EXCELLENT IN THIS TYPE OF ROLE), AND SOLDIERS LINDEN CHILES AND PETE MASTERSON, WHO ENGAGE IN SOME SUBTERFUGE TO ALLY WITH HESTON ON A MEMORABLE YET DRAMATIC ESCAPE. DIRECTOR RALPH NELSON, WHO COMMANDS THE FILM WITH THE MASTER TOUCH, APPEARS AS A BELGIAN OFFICER. COUNTERPOINT IS, DEFINITELY, NOT THE TYPICAL WW II DRAMA, AND WILL APPEAL TO AFFICIONADOS OF THE GENRE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR SOMETHING DIFFERENT AND PROVOCATIVE. THE CLASSIC EUROPEAN PIECES OF THE PERIOD WERE PROVIDED BY THE L.A. PHILAHARMOMNIC ORCHESTRA, AN EFFECTIVE TOUCH. HESTON IS QUITE CONVINCING IN HIS ROLE, ONE OF HIS MOST UNDERRATED, COMING BEFORE PLANET OF THE APES IN 1968, AS IS SCHELL AS THE NAZI COMMANDER WITH UNDENIABLE POWER WITH THE FILM BEING A STUDY OF CONFLICT BETWEEN THEM. HAYS, NIELSEN, LOWENS, DIFFRING, MASTERSON, MORTON, CHILES AND ENTIRE CAST FAR EXCEED THE EXPECTED DEMANDS OF THE SCREENPLAY, BASED ON ALAN SILLITOE'S ' THE GENERAL'..