Simply A Masterpiece

A Masterpiece!

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

A motley assortment of blind folks are forced to fend for themselves in the hostile wilderness after they are the sole survivors of a plane crash. Director Michael Caffey keeps the gripping story moving along at a brisk pace, takes some time to develop the characters, maintains a tough serious tone throughout, and generates a good deal of tension. John W. Bloch's tight script not only offers a touching message about the resiliency of disabled people and the need for our protagonists to set aside their differences in order to work together as a team so they can all survive, but also sets up assorted forms of cruel peril that include the bitter cold, a pack of vicious wolves, and a rickety old wooden bridge. The sound acting from the able cast rates as another substantial asset: Milton Berle as sour grouch Sam Fuller, Sean Garrison as troubled Vietnam veteran Mark Larson, Dina Merrill as the sweet Emily Garth, Barry Nelson as the selfish and deceitful Alex Swain, Lesley Ann Warren as the fragile Deborah Cabot, Alejandro Rey as the concerned Ramon Rahos, Tippy Walker as Ramon's pregnant wife Christine, and Arthur O'Connell as the amiable Larry Wise. Howard Schwartz's sharp cinematography provides lots of nice shots of the beautiful sylvan scenery. Mark Bucci's robust score hits the stirring spot. A nifty little nail-biter.

Seven in Darkness (1969) *** (out of 4) A plane full of blind people are being taken to Seattle during a very bad storm when it crashes into the wilderness. Naturally, everyone on the plane who could see are now dead and it's up to seven people, including a pregnant woman, to try and make it out of the woods even though they can't see.This here was the first ABC Movie of the Week and it's pretty funny to see how much all future TV movies can pretty much be seen here. You've got a very interesting story to grab your attention. You've got famous faces like Milton Berle, Barry Nelson, Leslie Ann Warren and Arthur O'Connell. You've got a short running time that goes by very quickly. And you've got the cliffhanger moments that build into a commercial. SEVEN IN DARKNESS has several flaws but there's no question that it holds your attention from the opening moments until the closing credits and it's certainly worth viewing.If you're into disaster movies then you're going to enjoy this as the idea because it is quite good. How would seven blind people make it down off a mountain? With a running time of just 73 minutes nothing is given to us in great detail. In fact, I would have liked to have seen the "how" a tad bit more because it seems their journey was just a tad bit too easy for the most part. Still, there are some tense scenes including one where a couple members are attacked by wolves and another where they must try to find a way to cross a river. The performances for the most part are good and on the whole SEVEN IN DARKNESS is a good little film.

An interesting little film. The plot is a bit far fetched and corny at times, but not incredible. A chartered plane carrying mostly blind passengers to a convention, crashes in the wilderness and only the blind survive. It is quite interesting to see how they try to extricate themselves and make it back to civilization. Those who see this movie will never again take their eyesight for granted. This film used to be rerun quite often, but, as far as I know, it hasn't been released on video and has not been broadcast for many years. I can't figure out why. It's an interesting and unique addition to the "disaster film" genre with "brand name" actors; including Milton Berle in a dramatic role; and should do well if re-released.

It's the story of a plane crash in a remote area, where the surviving passengers attempt to make their way to civilization and life. Here, though, they happen to be blind. Milton Berle is superb as Sam, an embittered, angry man caught up in his past disappointments and who is now in the struggle of his life.