I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

This Movie Can Only Be Described With One Word.

A Brilliant Conflict

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

The Red Tent gives a fictionalized account of the ordeal faced by the crew of airship Italia, which in 1928 crashed on the North Pole; among survivors are general Nobile (Peter Finch), second-in-command Zappi (Luigi Vannucchi), radio operator Biagi (Mario Adorf) and scientist Malmgren (Eduard Martsevich). Nobody knows their position and ice starts to break. Meanwhile, explorer Amundsen (Sean Connery), Nobile's friendly rival, and Malmgren's fiancée (Claudia Cardinale) react to the tragedy.Structure is unusual. The story is told in flashbacks as a conflicted Nobile confronts the ghosts of his past in a dreamlike trial. It's peculiar and a little kitsch but effective, culminating in a memorable moment where Nobile, pressed by Amundsen, recalls his main motivation behind a key choice.The most interesting characters are Nobile, portrayed by Finch as a man haunted by his decisions, and Connery's Amundsen, who has a relatively small but crucial role. Cinematography is solid; Morricone's haunting soundtrack - one his best works, and that's no small feat - conveys the epic, bittersweet mood of the movie.8/10

Showing how out of touch some people can be in the 1970s, myself included, I was assigned to see that "Russian Blimp" film and tell the guys who made the Warner flick "Zeppelin" producers Ownen Krump et al exactly what our "compeition" was up to. I was at a loss to begin. Sean Connery vs. Michael York? Elke Sommer vs. Claudia Cardinale? Model ships vs. Russian Atomic Icebreakers using burning tires to simulate coal streaked sky trails. A twenty two foot fiber model vs. an actual flying reduced scale one? The Irish AirForce stunt pilots vs Soviet test pilots? $1.5 million dollar flick vs $10 million Most importantly, ..a boorish Hollywood product vs. the philosophical Slavic outlook on life...Naturally, I exaggerated the unhappy conclusion to the Russian EPIC... and.... broke down and admitted that the Red Tent was possibly one of the most beautiful film I had ever seen.... Owen, Arthur and the rest looked at me as if I had sung "The Internationale".Owen was still smarting over the disastrous "Darling Lili" that tossed him off the Paramount Lot... Ron looked so strange - was daddy (J. Paul)Getty right about the biz and his abilities? Arthur glared so intently - as if I was blowing his only shot (and it practically was) in the feature film world.But I still loved the Red Tent....

I reckon I must have seen this as a young boy, probably around the age of 11, in the late 70'es. I saw it on TV at that time. The images of this movie to this day are very vivid in my memory, the ice, and the desperation it depicts. Although I don't recall much of the plot, and perhaps didn't even grasp it completely at the time, a few scenes are simply as etched in my brain: The scene where they struggle to repair the radio with graphite from a pencil. And of course Nobile's talks with the ghosts. I also seem to recall that Amundsen as portrayed by Connery came across as a rather self-righteous and arrogant person.A movie that can make such a lasting impression must possess some significant qualities.

The Red Tent grows on you. The story line intrigues me so that I have watched the movie time after time. The footage is beautiful. My only complaint is that the movie is not available in DVD to watch in wide-screen.This is not a high action movie. Much line the explorers, the movie is a slow treck. You meet the characters and you learn how play into the story. Most importantly, you learn about the disaster and the quilt and shame associated with it by the ships captain. At the end, you feel resolution, but as he does.Worth watching. Certainly, not one of Sean Connery's most commanding roles.However, the "star" is the air-ship and the beautiful back-ground scenery.