Steineded How sad is this?

Moustroll Good movie but grossly overrated

Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

MusicChat It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

steevetoday This film had so much promise.To be honest,I had never even heard of it but the story line was so promising. The element of person or persons trapped underground has been told in many films but The Blockhouse(1973),although starting off well enough just halted to a crawl.Peter Sellers is great but this film was so slow and painful to watch.I rated it 1 out of 10 because there wasn't a 0 out of ten rating.Shame,because I normally like films of this kind.

merklekranz The DVD box for "The Blockhouse" says "A true story of perseverance and survival". The same could be said for the audience. The constant darkness, illuminated only by candles, cannot shed enough light on this story of seven men, trapped underground for six years. As entertainment the film is a failure for three reasons. 1. The claustrophobic darkness is depressing. 2. The lack of any background or character development means a "so what" as far as differentiating who we like or dislike. 3. The abominable audio quality of the DVD makes understanding what is being said impossible. What you are left with is a dark, depressing, boring, and unintelligible movie. Not recommended. - MERK

LCShackley All the actors in this film do a fine job. But honestly, I can't see why other reviewers are going ape over Peter Sellers - are they just surprised that he could be serious? The man was a good actor, not just a clown. But in this film, we don't really know his character - he's just one of seven sorry souls trapped underground in a large storeroom after an Allied raid on the camp where they were held prisoner.The film has an interesting premise, but trying to cram six years of action into 90 minutes is beyond the ability of the director and writers. It becomes very episodic, starting with a decent amount of set-up, followed by what more or less amounts to a series of death scenes. The story is certainly tragic, but it feels like Cliff's Notes on celluloid. I'm going to try to find the book.This was probably Stanley Myers's easiest film to score, since it only called for an opening and closing bit with only a couple of instruments. The lack of music throughout underscores the claustrophobic atmosphere of the "dungeon." The sound and picture quality of the DVD available from Netflix (in 2010) leave much to be desired. If you enjoy dark, depressing, hopeless stories, this should be in your top ten.

imdb-3550 Having been fascinated with the life or Peter Sellers since the late seventies I had been on the look out for this film appearing on TV without luck.Recently I have been lucky enough to obtain a copy of the 1984 USA release video which whilst rather old held out long enough to appreciate that this is one very underrated film. The cast is full of familiar faces but Sellers performance is nothing short of brilliance and you really begin to feel the depth of dispair that the characters (and the actors apparently) must have felt in this true life story.Imagine spending the last six years of your life underground - Now consider spending four years of those years in total, complete darkness.Had this film been released now in the 21st Century it would have surely have received the appreciation it truly deserved.