The Holcroft Covenant
The Holcroft Covenant
R | 20 September 1985 (USA)
The Holcroft Covenant Trailers

A man who was a confidant of Adolf Hitler dies and leaves a fortune to make amends for his Nazi past—but his son has to search the world to find it.

Reviews
Nonureva Really Surprised!
Breakinger A Brilliant Conflict
Freeman This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.
Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.
bkoganbing This one kind of lost me a bit. Still I like the way the ending came out. The giant conspiracy that 4 billion dollars was supposed to fuel does not come off in the end. I will say the conspirators aimed high.40 years ago in the last days of World War II three German generals managed to siphon off a lot of Third Reich loot and stash it in some Swiss banks. With the interest it's now 4 billion dollars. What to do with that kind of bread?That's what Michael Caine is wondering, he is one of the three sons of a German general. He and his mother Lilli Palmer fled Germany just before World War II started and he's been brought up American, though he's the most cockney sounding American I ever heard. When Michel Lonsdale Swiss banker brings him the news, it kind of hits him unexpectedly. What a lottery prize that even if we have to share it.Share it he does with Anthony Andrews, German born and British raised with his sister Victoria Tennant and Mario Adorf who is a famous symphony conductor.Someone's trying to kill Caine, but who and why? That is the complex possibly too complex puzzle of The Holcroft Covenant. The action is fast, but it seems at cross purposes with the story. It's a strain to figure out the who and why with the bullets flying fast and furious. In fact most of the cast dies.Too much needless strain.
timhayes-41155 This movie is bad. Really really bad. The Music is bad. The music sounds like a mellotron organ synthesizer. These type of organ synthesizers use audio tapes to create weird, other world sounds. The Beetles used them, however, the noise from this organ is definitely not the Beatles. The directing is bad. Logical segue between scenes is awkward. Sometimes it seems as if the actors are just waiting off screen to step on the set. The plot is bad. Naked German women. I enjoyed it, but why? The script is worse than bad. Michael Caine's character travels all over the world. He just shows up in a different city out of thin air. All of this comes together to make a once in a lifetime tour de force dud. However, there was one gratifying scene. Victoria Tennant's character shooting herself at the very end. The best part of the movie. I am sure that everyone involved in this movie would like to have their name removed from the credits, unfortunately, it's to late.
ozthegreatat42330 All of the elements for a great thriller are there. An outstanding director, John Frankenheimer, An excellent source author, Robert Ludlum and a great leading man for thrillers, Michael Caine. What went wrong? The biggest problem I had with this film was the cinematography. The film was grainy and the sub-titles were very hard to read when the actors were speaking German. There were plenty of the usual Ludlum plot twists and misdirections, but somehow the feel of this film was not up to the usual standards of Frankenheimer or Caine. A lot of it is just too kinky for most people, but an accurate portrayal of Berlin during the cold war years. It would have faired better had it been released ten years earlier rather than later. It does deserve an E for effort.
mfsor Sot it's not really for the movie its self that you are watching it. It's to see Michael Caine, and in this case Victoria Tennant, and even Anthony Andrews. by now it's almost like a period Drama. The setting in Germany is interesting as is Geneva, and London. The sex parade and a whole neighborhood lends a kind of a kinky interest to the story. Now of course not believable, the story, but that is fine. You still don't know what is going on or who's in charge or who's on first, but eventually you know that will be found out. That is all that is necessary. The dialogue is fairly good and his mother is a good actress and there's always interest in the rise of Nazis in modern times.