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In
1943, an Allied force becomes trapped on the island of Kheros in the Aegean
Sea. The only possible way to evacuate the men is through a small
channel dominated by two huge German guns buried deep in the solid rocks of
Navarone. Because the guns are impregnable against air or sea attack,
a sabotage team of six is sent to Navarone in a desperate attempt to destroy
the massive weapons. Security officer Major Franklin leads the
commandos, who include: Captain Mallory, a world-famous mountaineer;
Corporal Miller, an explosives expert; Col. Andrea Stavros, a Greek
resistance fighter; Pvt. Spyros Pappadimos, a New York-educated delinquent
who was born on Navarone; and C. P. O. Brown, a veteran knife fighter.
After sinking a German patrol boat, the little
group loses its own vessel in a violent storm. The men reach shore
with their gear, however, and succeed in scaling a sheer cliff face, the
only unguarded approach to Navarone. In the ascent Franklin breaks his
leg, and Mallory assumes command. The saboteurs then make contact with
two resistance fighters (Spyros' sister, Maria, and a former schoolteacher,
Anna, who has been shocked into dumbness by Nazi torture).
Despite the aid of the two women, the commandos
are captured by the Germans. Andrea tricks the Nazi guards, and the
saboteurs escape in their captors' uniforms. As they approach the
guns, they learn that Anna is a traitor, feigning muteness while supplying
the Germans with the group's positions. Realizing she must be killed,
Mallory draws his pistol, but it is Maria who fires the fatal bullet.
Mallory and Miller then sneak into the fortress
and set their explosives, while the others divert the attention of the
Germans. Brown and Spyros are killed in the fighting, but the
remainder of the group escape to the sea. At midnight British
destroyers move into the channel and head for Kheros. As the giant
weapons swing into action, a tremendous explosion shatters the entire cliff
and the guns of Navarone crash into the sea. |
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