Rarely has there been a WWII thriller as twisted and mind-warping as 36 Hours. Based on a Roald Dahl story, it stars James Garner as an Allied major kidnapped by the Germans on the eve of D-Day. To extract the landing’s location, the Germans drug him and place him under the elaborate charade that the war’s been over for years, and that he’s lost all memory of the intervening years due to amnesia. At least, that’s what his Major psychiatrist (Rod Taylor) and nurse/apparent wife (Eva Marie Saint) tell him upon waking. A prime masquerade thriller and high-wire espionage act, this under-seen gem was a huge influence for Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds.
View a collection of lobby cards & promotional stills for 36 Hours on the New Beverly blog.
Ariel Schudson discusses 36 Hours on the New Beverly blog.
