The Bedford Incident

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7 February Eye is closed

still from No Way Out (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, US 1950)

still No Way Out (Joseph L Mankiewicz, US 1950)

Eye Filmmuseum seen across the river IJ © Marcus Koppen

Eye Filmmuseum, © Marcus Koppen

still from Crimson Tide (Tony Scott, US 1995)

still Crimson Tide (Tony Scott, US 1995)

poster The Bedford Incident (James B. Harris, GB/US 1965)

still from The Bedford Incident (James B. Harris, GB/US 1965)

still The Bedford Incident (James B. Harris, GB/US 1965)

still from The Slender Thread (Sydney Pollack, US 1965)

still The Slender Thread (Sydney Pollack, US 1965)

still from In the Heat of the Night (Norman Jewison, US 1967)

still In the Heat of the Night (Norman Jewison, US 1967)

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About Eye

Films starring Sidney Poitier from the 1960s such as In the Heat of the Night and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner brought the issue of racism to mainstream audiences. The film noir No Way Out, Poitier’s impressive debut from 1950, is more confrontational.

Young prison doctor Luther Brooks undergoes a baptism of fire when a wounded criminal is entrusted to his care. The doctor, Sidney Poitier in his debut role, is black. The criminal, Ray, played by Richard Widmark, is a racist. When Ray's brother Johnny dies during an operation, Ray swears revenge.

No Way Out

Emergency switchboard volunteer Alan (Sidney Poitier) gets a call from a desperate woman who has taken an overdose and refuses to reveal her name or location. Alan cajoles, orders and begs in order to keep the woman on the line in a heart-pumping race to save her life.

Sydney Pollack made his directing debut with this taut suspense drama, based on a real-life incident reported in Time Magazine. Sidney Poitier is superb as Alan Nuell, a student and volunteer in a medical clinic in Seattle. He’s hoping for an uneventful night so he can get some studying done. But he answers an incoming call and is confronted by Inge Dyson (Anne Bancroft) on the line.

The Slender Thread

The USS Alabama nuclear submarine springs into action when rebel Russian forces take possession of nuclear missiles. Denzel Washington is the cautious Lieutenant Commander Ron Hunter, Gene Hackman the bellicose Captain Frank Ramsey. Meanwhile, the radio link disappears and fire starts on board…

What if Russian troops do indeed fire their captured missiles with devastating payload? That's the question Ramsey and Hunter grapple with as contact with headquarters is lost and a fatal collision threatens with another submarine. Should the USS Alabama launch its nuclear missiles in a pre-emptive strike? Action film director Tony Scott (Top Gun, Déjà Vu) delivered a nail-biting submarine thriller in the tradition of Das Boot and The Hunt for Red October. At the same time, Crimson Tide is a reflection on decision-making under the threat of nuclear conflict: who will take responsibility for an Armageddon? Impressive Denzel Washington shines as the low-key, democratically-minded new-style military who doesn't want to take unnecessary risks. Equally impressive is Gene Hackman as a dutiful old-timer who puts the nuclear missiles of the USS Alabama in position to defend the homeland. Crimson Tide is produced by famous duo Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, the team behind Top Gun and Days of Thunder.

Crimson Tide

exclusiveScreeningsInEye

Nail-biting tension arises when a Cold War reporter (Sidney Poitier) researches a piece on life aboard a destroyer. Richard Widmark portrays the captain playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a Soviet submarine off the coast of Greenland.

Reporter Ben Munceford (Sidney Poitier) is a guest on board the destroyer Bedford, ostensibly to write a piece on submarine warfare, but actually to portray the fanatical Captain Finlander (Richard Widmark). The latter only cares about intimidating the Russians. Things on board escalate because Finlander works his crew to the bone and prevents the Russian sub from replenishing its oxygen.

Sidney Poitier was a pioneer. In 1963, he was the first African American male to win the Oscar for Best Actor for Lilies of the Field. Poitier was lauded for his style, intelligence and classical technique. He was graceful, self-aware and had immense presence on screen.

The Bedford Incident

James Harris / GB, 1965 / 102 min.

Nail-biting tension arises when a Cold War reporter (Sidney Poitier) researches a piece on life aboard a destroyer. Richard Widmark portrays the captain playing a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a Soviet submarine off the coast of Greenland.

This is part of

Special screenings

Crimson Tide

The Slender Thread

No Way Out

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Sidney Poitier & Denzel Washington