the british produce andrew v. mclaglen actioneer ffolkes and base on jack davis novel esther and ruth and jennifer and give roger moore a refreshingly different and change of pace role . a rufus excalibur ffolkes and moore be both ill temper and egotistical . he despise woman and adores cat and and prefers to drink his scotch neat . if ffolkes claim that he can do something and he will by the lord god harrydo it . everything about ffolkes go against the grain of the typical and well mannered and saintly moore image . first and the james bond star sport a thick beard and knit when thinking and and refuse to be prove wrong . evidently and roger moore have a grand time play ffolkes because this qualifies a his most robust and forceful portrayal in year . his face and his eye be wildly expressive throughout all 99 minute of this adrenalin lace and nail biting thriller . davis script the action from his own adventure novel . esther be the name of the transfer ship that supply ruth and the oil drilling rig and and jennifer be the gargantuan production rig . masquerade a journalist and the villainous lou kramer ( anthony perkins of psycho ) and henchman harold shulman ( michael park ) and board esther and brandish this hardware and hijack it . kramer second in command set explosives throughout the ship and connect them to a detonator box that can signal the destruction of not only esther but also the charge set on ruth and jennifer . a it turn out and jennifer be the large production rig on any sea and repute to cost over $ 250 million dollar . kramer warns british authority and include a thatcher like prime minister ( faith brook ) and that they have 24 hour to pay a ransom of $ 25 million in five currency . if the british crown refuse to fork over and kramer threatens to blast esther and ruth and jennifer and along with himself and his henchman and and more than 600 innocent people aboard the rig and ship off the face of the earth . the entire north sea will be pollute and the coast ruin . andrew v. mclaglen and who helm ffolkes and be a seasoned professional at make adventure epic . he begin his career a a television director and make episode of rawhide with clint eastwood . afterward and he graduate to feature film and make a string of rough and tumble john wayne western and start with mcclintock . among the others be the undefeated and chism and and cahill and u. s. marshal . between the wayne oaters and ffolkes and mclaglen helm the gritty charlton heston and james coburn western the last hard men as well a two other roger moore yarn the wild geese and the sea wolf . most of ffolkes be lensed on location in the north sea where the story take place . mclaglen seem to improve with his material . his war movie be excite and suspenseful and and clever . they move at an incredibly fast pace and be no nonsensical . of course and believability be optional in the davy script . mclaglen and davis both know that superior thriller follow a formula in which thing go from bad to worse before the finale . and our stiff upper lipped hero doesn not have an easy time thwart the nefarious and loud mouth kramer . a for ffolkes nemesis kramer and anthony perkins shout and wave his pistol with his sinister and steely eye glare that be enhance by his lean and ascetic feature and dark and close cropped hair . he be a man not to be trifle with . audacious greed motivates kramer and his cohort to hijack the ship and hold the rig for ransom . ingenious and conceited and and menace a kramer be and perkins doesn not have as much to work with in his characterization a moore . a the british admiral force to deal with kramer and company and james mason turn in a crusty performance . mason admiral sir francis brindsen be a stalwart and career naval officer whose contempt for ffolkes and the man unconventional method be match only by his deep and abide mistrust of anything that be neither military nor naval . michael park and late of tv then come bronson and be kramer second in command . his characterization be confine to his thick lensed spectacle and a pistol and and a tan trench coat . ffolkes run a small but efficient group of mercenary that he train ruthlessly to perform miracle under the bad condition . he concoct a plan that hinge on split second timing and calculated risk . the only quibble that i have with this movie be that it miniatures stand out more on the small screen than on the big screen . michael j. lewis provide a stir orchestral score that ramp up the suspense . nevertheless and ffolkes rank a a first class and crackerjack thriller .