The Guns of Navarone (1961)

Squadron Leader Howard Barnsby RAAF: First, you've got that bloody old fortress on top of that bloody cliff. Then you've got the bloody cliff overhang. You can't even see the bloody cave, let alone the bloody guns. And anyway, we haven't got a bloody bomb big enough to smash that bloody rock. And that's the bloody truth, sir.

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Cohn: Do you think they've got any chance at all, sir?
Commodore Jensen: Frankly, no. Not a chance in the world. I should be very surprised if they get even halfway to Navarone. Just a waste of six good men. However, I suppose that doesn't matter, considering how many have been wasted already. I'm glad it's not my decision; I'm only the middleman... Still, they may get there, and they may pull it off. Anything can happen in a war. Slap in the middle of absolute insanity people pull out the most extraordinary resources: ingenuity, courage, self-sacrifice. Pity we can't meet the problems of peace in the same way, isn't it? It would be so much cheaper for everybody.
Cohn: I never thought of it in just that way, sir. You're a philosopher, sir.
Commodore Jensen: No. I'm just the man who has to send people out on jobs like this one.

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Sessler: [indicating the wounded Franklin] Where are the explosives? I want an answer now, otherwise I shall personally rearrange this officer's splints.

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J. Lee Thompson's handling of intimate drama on Tiger Bay and of large scale action setpieces on North West Frontier landed him the director gig.
"Yialo Yialo" ("Seashore, Seashore"), heard sung at a wedding celebration, is a Greek folk song about love and the sea. As with many provincial folk songs, verses are often improvised as it's sung. The first verse heard in the film (asking the sea not to wake the singer's beloved) is standard, while the second verse, sung by actor/singer James Darren, is ostensibly improvised. The verse asks the mountains to bow down so that he can see his dearest love, "Anoula", and far-away home, "Rahoula". This improvisation came about as follows. Carl Foreman's production coordinator with the Greek government, Daniel Bourla, who also functioned as the producer of two shorts made on the filming of Guns of Navarone - one directed by 'John Schlesinger' and one by Bourla - tried to obtain an affidavit from the Greek government certifying that Yalo Yalo was in public domain. The certification was issued but it erroneously listed Bourla as its author. Whereupon, Bourla issued a release himself for the use of this song and added a needed additional verse to the song using the name Anoula (Anna being his girlfriend at the time).
There had been some concern that the cast would not get along, particularly since Anthony Quinn had a reputation for being difficult to work with. However, in the event things went smoothly, although according to Quinn Stanley Baker did not get along with the others. Some of the cast believed that Baker felt he should have been playing Mallory.
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