The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

A merely OK war film based on the true story of the Germans and the Allies fighting for control of a strategically vital bridge over the Rhine. 

It’s interestingly shot, and the firepower all looks real enough. The problem is an average script. Also, the characters aren’t especially well-drawn. Without a focal point, it’s harder to identify with anyone. Poor storytelling means that you’re unsure how you’re meant to feel about the characters and their situation. 

Robert Vaughn plays a German general who seems troubled by his role with the Nazis. Unfortunately the actor doesn’t really bother with an accent. George Segal plays his American counterpart while Ben Gazzara is Sergeant Angelo (a.k.a. “Angel”), his likeable friend. 

There’s a stronger, grittier film buried deep inside this one, but director John Guillermin is unable to draw it out.

Sweet Charity (1969)

Musical directed by Bob Fosse and written by Neil Simon, adapted from the stage musical. 

Shirley MacLaine plays Charity, a dancer who dreams of falling in love. She’s unlucky with a thief and a film star, but then she gets trapped in a lift with the nervous Oscar Lindquist (John McMartin), who she eventually comes to believe really loves her. 

It’s extremely unusual. It's big on colour, with the bright pinks and purples of the Batman TV series. There's a bizarre, bolted-on psychedelic interlude featuring Sammy Davis Jr. And there's an intriguing use of stills amid the action. 

I was disappointed with the ending, and it was interesting to find an alternative – and superior – conclusion as one of the DVD extras.

Hello, Dolly! (1969)

Romantic comedy musical starring Barbra Streisand, Walter Matthau and Michael Crawford.   

A widowed matchmaker seeks a husband in (and around) New York in 1895, employing a number of outlandish schemes to secure his affections. 

On the down side, with the exception of the annoying title song, none of the music is memorable and the plot is thin indeed. Also, Matthau is so unappealingly grumpy as the millionaire Horace Vandergelder that you can’t imagine why Dolly (or anyone else) would ever want to marry him – however rich he was. Some of the big, lavish set pieces drag on, despite being “technically” impressive. 

On the plus side, it improves a little after a slow start. Barbra oozes star quality, as always, and is very funny in her own way. Michael Crawford is exceedingly watchable, too. He demonstrates his “Frank Spencer” physical comedy, but with a silly American accent. Marianne McAndrew is likeable as his love interest, Irene Molloy, and you wonder why she didn’t have a more successful career.

Kes (1969)

This drama directed by Ken Loach (adapted from Barry Hines’ novel A Kestrel for a Knave) is the saddest film I’ve ever seen. 

Billy is growing up in Barnsley, Yorkshire, where he lives with his unkind brother and distant mother. His school is a seemingly barbaric, uncaring place, and he appears to have little future beyond a job in the local coal mine. His life changes when he finds a kestrel. He starts to feed and train the bird, which gives his life purpose and meaning and soon becomes the focal point of his existence. His love of Kes offers him a form of freedom and hope, but this hope is tragically short-lived. 

David Bradley is absolutely remarkable in the lead role as Billy. He has you absolutely rooting for him from the very beginning. He’s gentle but tough. And his wise, sad, hugely expressive face is heartbreaking to watch. Amazingly, he had never acted before. 

The soundtrack by John Cameron is beautiful – a sort of pastoral English folk music. 

The ending is absolutely devastating. But before this, there are moments of humour and shrewd social observation. 

A masterpiece.

On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)

After five films of Sean Connery as James Bond, George Lazenby steps in as 007 – smugly confident but not especially sparkly – for one time only.

The story gets off to a slow start with a fair bit of pottering around before the action kicks off. What is great in this film, however, is the girl Bond ends up falling for and even marrying. Unlike most of the females cast in these films, Diana Rigg is given a properly written role and a developed personality.

There are ludicrous moments, as always. The most absurd of these must be Bond walking around Blofeld’s secret base wearing a kilt and carrying a book on heraldry.

Telly Savalas is excellent as the villain: creepy but also oddly likeable. He brainwashes a bunch of young women wearing psychedelic clothes. And the action scenes – ski chase with machine guns, bobsleigh  chase, car chase in stock car race track – are exciting.

The tragic ending is so un-Bond-like that it seemed genuinely shocking.

The Italian Job (1969)

This is rightly regarded as a classic, but I never knew what all the fuss was about until I finally watched it today. No one told me how hilarious it was, either. What an amazing film! Michael Caine is dazzling as Swinging Sixties playbook crook Charlie Croker (note all the costume changes at the start) set on an audacious scheme to steal £4 million in gold. The Italian scenery is stunning. The car chases are spectacular. The music by Quincy Jones is perfectly suited to the film. There’s a self-conscious Britishness, too, from the “red, white and blue” Minis to the way Mr. Bridger (Noël Coward) worships the Queen. And the “cliffhanger” ending is one of the best I’ve ever seen.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

The script is wonderful, as is the strangely suitable Burt Bacharach music. There’s no sentimentality, but there’s plenty of wit and emotion in their relationship. A masterpiece, pretty much. I love the long pursuit scene. Paul Newman and Robert Redford are almost supernaturally charming. I also love Katharine Ross.

The ending is so sad – they know they’re doomed (and we know they’re doomed, too), but they carry on through the pain, talking about starting again in Australia. Poignant indeed.