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This five-hour miniseries, which was hailed as both a critical triumph and a milestone "television event" when it originally aired in 1974, is based on the Leon Uris novel, which itself was based on a libel trial that arose after Uris published his novel Exodus. The fictionalized drama is essentially the story of two men, Dr. Adam Kelno, a Polish doctor who was imprisoned by the Nazis in a concentration camp, and Abe Cady, a successful Hollywood writer who publishes a serious book on the Holocaust that exposes Kelno's past.Playing Dr. Kelno, Anthony Hopkins steals the show, and the nuances he brings to the character keep the audience guessing whether he is in fact a dedicated healer or a diabolical villain intent on papering over a fiendish past. Ben Gazzara is credible as the tough-talking Cady, but when Hopkins leaves the action for a time the film sags and begins to resemble an ordinary TV movie. Eventually the two men's lives come into conflict when Kelno sues for libel. The trial, which takes place in a London courtroom (the "Queen's Bench VII" of the title), seeks to sort out the truth about the past of Dr. Kelno. His precise activities during the war, and how the world deals with his past, receive intelligent and dramatic treatment. --Robert J. McNamara ... Read more

Reviews (5)

worth 5 hours of your time
The '70s was the golden era of TV mini-series, and this is one of the better ones that came along, dealing with moral and ethical themes in an intelligent fashion. The performances are generally quite good, especially Anthony Hopkins as a doctor accused of (...) atrocities and writer Ben Gazzara as his accuser, though his character is a little too abrasive and sarcastic to be totally likeable.

On the negative side, there are some shots, especially at the beginning, that are so shaky they look like outtakes from EARTHQUAKE, the Arab characters are played by Caucasians in dark make-up (conjuring up unpleasant memories of Al Jolson in blackface (some aspects of Arabic culture might not be totally authentic, either)), and there is little sense of the writer's effort in creating an epic novel or of the knowledge he uncovered implicating the doctor in (...) experiments (a few minutes of him pounding away at the typewriter in the middle of the night or pouring through piles of documents would have gone a long way toward establishing credibility here). Nevertheless, there are some moments of great power, particularly those involving the doctor achieving recognition for his selfless post-war work, and the writer's painful return to his Jewish faith after the death of his father. Not classic TV, but well worth a few nights of your time.

Great adaptation of a great book
Movie versions of great books typically fall short of expectations, simply because there is no room in two hours to convey the whole message. In this case, however, the version lasts more than 5 hours, so there was time to adapt this wonderful story faithfully. This is done very well and with good attention to detail. Bear in mind, though, that because it was originally a mini series (and therefore meant to be watched in chapters over the course of several nights), the editing is done in "chapters", and it does not play like a normal movie. It really doesn't matter, because we get an opportunity to take breaks along the way without interrupting the flow. And breaks you need, because of the 5+-hour length. All in all, this is a faithful adaptation, and an excellent video.

The Holocaust as Soap Opera
This ham-handed melodrama is notable primarily for Anthony Hopkins' breakthrough performance as a tormented concentration camp surgeon. Amateurishly structured (why couldn't the director have cut back and forth between the two protagonist's lives?) and didactic, QB VII does pick up steam during the actual trial.

Hopkins is excellent throughout as a man attempting to expiate a horrifying guilt through his work as a doctor to nomadic Arabs and poor Londoners. Unfortunately, one can't say the same about Ben Gazzara, who delivers a snide and often bullying performance dripping with excess testosterone. Leslie Caron is hamstrung by a cliched role as a dutiful wife; Lee Remick is simply wasted. Nice acting by opposing counsels Anthony Quayle and Robert Stephens (who, oddly, later played a sadistic SS commandant in "War and Remembrance").

QB VII admittedly labors under the restrictions of early Seventies television -- it's repeated use of the word "testicle" was likely quite daring at the time -- and that may well reduce the power of the story. But certainly the pedestrian script and direction don't help.

Powerful!! Hopkins as doctor accused of being Nazi Dr. Death
This is a fascinating, first rate, astoundingly well acted TV mini-series bringing together two powerful characters -- Ben Gazzara as the Nazi hunter on a mission, and the mesmerizing Anthony Hopkins as the decorated doctor accused of being a Dr. Mengele-type experimenter on human beings in concentration camps during World War II. It is hard to overstate how brilliantly well acted this film is. The story is riveting and hard to step away from even for a moment. If this were a book, it would be a page-turner.

Gazzara has never been better or classier and this is one of Anthony Hopkins' best performances ever. This award-winning movie compares favorably with any other drama on a similar subject, including Marathon Man, Judgment at Nuremberg -- what have you. The movie is bold, disturbing, engrossing -- and pulls no punches regarding the nature of the experiments run in the camps. Not for the squeamish.

I can't recommend this highly enough -- it was riveting television on first run, worthy of being a feature film, but it is richer for being a long-form TV mini-series. Very serious subject matter, and very moving at times -- the wives of the two men are well played, agonizing over their husbands' struggle in court, with Hopkins' wife standing by her husband to the end, and Lee Remick as Gazzara's wife is great as well. The climax is stunning. Treat yourself to a wonderful piece of television and use it to educate a new generation of young people as well!

Great Film!!
QBVII was a TV mini series in 1974 starring Ben Gazzara, Lee Remick and Anthony Hopkins. It is a intriging courtroom drama where Hopkins is being charged with Nazi war crimes.

This is a riveting thriller that has been long overdue on DVD. The only problem I have with the film is overlength. It will keep you watching and guessing till the end. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Never A Flower So Lovely
From a rented apartment overlooking an enchanting botanical garden young Giovanni (Kristoffer Tabori) observes a beautiful girl (Kathleen Beller) walking alone talking to the flowers. There is a reason why she is alone but by the time he learns the dark secret for her isolation he has fallen in love.

This 57 minute PBS Presentation was quite a pleasant surprise. Some may find it a little slow, but I found it absolutely hypnotic. Like a prolonged dream sequence, you are drawn against your will towards the enigmatic Beatrice. I've been an admirer of Kathleen Beller for quite sometime and I must say they couldn't have found a more beautiful woman for this role. She has never looked lovelier than she does here.

Amazing Hawthorne
I saw this on PBS and discovered that Hawthorne was much more than the guy who wrote 'The Scarlet Letter'. That book, my high school sensibilities found too heavy but this story had just the right touch of horror and pathos. Also a story about manipulating nature, before Shelley wrote Frankenstein, amazing. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

This is a film for theatre people!!!
In the same way that Waiting for Guffman is truly appreciated by theatre people by the simple fact that we've known and worked with people in our lives like the characters in the movie.

This film also exemplifies how the love that is spurned from creating art with people is strong enough to withstand life's trials. A truly inspiring film. This film is also very similar to "Peter's Friends" starring a cast of amazing British acotrs including Kenneth Branaugh (sp?) and Emma Thompson.

This is a movie for theatre people!!!
I understand that most people wouldn't understand or like this movie becuase you have to be a true theatre person to be able to relate to this dysfuntional family dynamic. The love that is spurned from creating art together is something that can cause a lot of the dysfuntion explored in this film, but that love is also strong enough to withstand the hardships. I think theatre people relate to this movie the same way they relate and understand Waiting for Guffman.

but it is a great movie!
I rarely take the time to sit and write movie or book reviews, but having seen all these negative reviews for "Last Summer in the Hamptons" I feel compelled to speak my piece.

What is so powerful here is not the dysfunctionality of the family portrayed within, but what is at the core of this dysfunctionality: it is the inability of its members to walk away from its greatness, its fame within the highest circles of the artistic world. This movie is, in a way, a modern "Buddenbrooks", but it delves much more deeply into the reasons for the family's implosion. From the teenager who is pathologically rebellious because, as she explains to her cousins, it is the only way she can find to establish her independence from this great theatrical institution which is her family; to the brilliant director who, in order to create, has renounced, monk-like fashion, all sexual contact; to the most deeply studied pair of characters: the brother and sister pair who are so caught up in the web of their family, that their own sexual passions are trapped within the family, self-directed in an incestuous relationship.

This is the saga of a family which is admired, coveted, and idolized from outside, yet whose members are suffocating under the weight and tremendous magnet of its fame. It is a family which is the embodiment of Blake's sick rose.

This is a great movie, or a great play; it is a very powerful piece which will stay with you for a long time.

This movie is just plain bad.
Thinking it was an updated Big Chill-type flick with a spectacular cast, I looked hi and low for this movie so my wife & I could enjoy it. All I can say is what a complete waste of time and money - and nothing like the Big Chill! If this movie was one of the year's 10 best (LA Times), a recipient of 4 stars (NY Post, LA Times), brilliant, enchanting & exquisite (60 Second Preview), & finally Two Thumbs Up, than I must have no idea what a good movie is. This was one of most ridiculous films we've ever seen.

I don't live in a big market city and I do realize that some think I lead a sheltered life, but give me a break! What kind of characters are in this flop? Well, there was a gay guy that somehow was able to seduce a guy who wasn't gay. If fact, this confused guy had just slept with the gay guy's sister and she revealed how jealous she was of him because he always winds up taking her boyfriends. HUH? Then come to find out the sister of the gay guy had sexual feelings for him and even acted on those feelings.

There was an actress that had to 'act' as a baby seal at one point and a perform as a leopard to 'deal' with issues in her life.

The only thing the reviewers and I could agree upon is this sentence: 'Perhaps the world's most dysfunctional family.' And how.

If Henry Jaglom is 'the definitive Hollywood filmmaker,' and this film was 'his best yet,' I think we'll heed that advice and never watch another of his films. I'd rather be locked in a room and be subjected to 'Dumb & Dumber' for 108 straight hours than watch this 108 minutes again.

Blah!
I like to read movie reviews in the newspaper, in magazines, and on the internet to find out about movies that I otherwise might never find out about. Over the years, this has led to many wonderful films that I otherwise never would have known about. So, when this movie was releaed, I read several reviews from critics, and I noticed that this movie had gotten quite a few very positive reviews. So I went to the theater and I saw it. Boy was I ever disappointed! This movie is nothing more than a bunch of people siting around talking. Now, if the characters and their conversations are interesting, then that can make for a fine movie. For example, I loved the movie "Smoke" with Harvey Keitel. That movie had lots of interesting characters with plenty of interesting things to say. But "Last Summer in the Hamptons" lacks those good things. The characters in this movie are boring, their conversations are boring, and their lives are boring. And what makes it even worse is that the characters are not aware of the fact that they are boring. Instead, they all think that they are just oh so important. Simply put, this movie is the very definiton of the phrase "artsy fartsy." I think that there must be some kind of a clause in movie critics' employment contracts that requires them to give this movie a positive review and a high rating. Or, perhaps the critics are just trying to pretend that they can see something that the ordinary "common man" cannot see. Well, whatever the reason, the critics are wrong about this one. This movie is boring and dull and the characters are pretentious and boring and dull. And the movie is bad and I didn't like it. ... Read more

Description

Dramatizing a compacted group of memories passing over several years, Arthur Miller's vivid comedy-drama portrays the nature of life during America's Great Depression. The emphasis is on mood and characterization as Miller draws on his own personal experience to evoke what the 1930s were like for workers to whom a job--any job--was everything. "...a beautiful play superbly performed." --The New York Daily News. With Jack Warden, Harvey Keitel, Dick Van Patten, Estelle Parsons, and Jerry Stiller. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

EXCELLENT!!
This is WOW...Good Job Alan Alda!! I recommend this to anyone wanting to have an understanding of prison...and yes this is realistic!!

Uncompromising, Brutal Film is Powerful and Shocking
Man, after 30 years, this film still retains the power to shock and unsettle viewers. It's amazing to think that this was even televised back in the early 1970's, when most of t.v. was variety shows and comedy. This is a powerful film, telling the story of a college professor (Alan Alda) who is sent to a maximum security prison for accidentally killing a man in self defense. The horrors that await Alda are numbing, from gang attacks, rapes and stabbings, to indifferent guards and physcotic inmates. This is one of the fineset performances Alda has ever given, and the gritty, on-location shots and use of real prisoners gives it an all-too real atmosphere. If you enjoy terrific character studies, coupled with grim reality and a shocking, unpredictable story, this is the film for you.

'Glass House' is also probably one of the best 'prison' movies ever made, and certainly an intelligent indictment on the human condition. I saw this on it's original 1970's airing when I was a kid. Maybe it 'scared me straight' and help me stay on the straight and narrow. If so, I commend it's power. And after all these years, it still entertains and is as good as any contemporary drama.

Disturbing and depressing!
This movie is by far the one of the most disturbing movies that I have ever seen. The protagonist, Jonathan Paige (masterfully played by Alan Alda) suffers both mental and physical pain to save the least. He is innocent and yet he pays dearly for his bad timing and luck. Vic Morrow also does an excellent job as the evil Hugo Slucum. The rape and suicide scenes are among the most realistic and disturbing ever filmed. I would give this movie 5 stars for its sheer realism, but that would assume then that I would recommend it, which I don't. It is too disturbing. I did not help that I first saw it when I was 11.

no captions!
If you like or need or want subtitles or closed captions, do NOT get this DVD! No subtitles. No closed captions for the deaf. Too bad the producers of the DVD did not see fit to add the captions.

One of Alan Alda's best!
A must for any Alan Alda fan! This all-star cast depicts prison life as it is, unglamorous and violent. Great acting by Alan Alda who plays his ever-present role as a nice, softspoken, chronic do-gooder who is much too fragile for the tough, testosterone rich environment in which he is wrongly made to live. Alda faces threats to his physical as well as his mental health as he tries to addapt to his new and intimidating surroundings. (Destiny steps in to cast Billy Dee Williams as the inmate/pharmacist he was born to play) I love this movie for it's brutal honesty and it's uncommon unpredictability. It's not the movie you'll walk away from with a warm and fuzzy little feeling in your heart, but it'll definately grab your attention and force you to completely enjoy every minute of it. Alda is unquestionably the greatest actor who has ever lived! ... Read more