While "The Hill" is not among Sean Connery's most famous films, it certainly is among his best. However, it's a film that requires patience, as it starts off very slowly and builds to a very strong finale. Director Sidney Lumet did a great job with this picture.

The film is set in a British prison camp in North Africa. However, it's NOT for Axis soldiers but for Brits...soldiers who have been convicted of various infractions such as theft, insubordination or, as in the case of Sgt. Major Roberts (Connery),striking his superior officer. The film is called 'The Hill' because a major part of the punishment consists of having the prisoners march up and down a sand hill with packs.

In this prison is a new corrections officer, Williams (Ian Hendry). Williams is a sadist and treats the prisoners far worse than others and eventually his mistreatment results in the death of one of his charges. However, his superior, Sgt. Major Wilson (Harry Andrews) will do nothing about this, as his overriding concern is that if one of his men is charged with a crime, it will reflect badly on him. So repeatedly, Wilson looks the other way. The only people that might stand up to this appear too weak to act...though by the end of the film everything's come to a head.

It's not at all surprising that Sidney Lumet also directed "12 Angry Men" as many of the same themes run through this film. And, the tension builds much like this great film and culminates with a tense and rousing finale. This really is a fine film and like "12 Angry Men" has a heck of a lot to say about human nature and authority...as well as those brave enough to stand up for what is right.

By the way, if you are a super politically correct person, don't watch the film. Racist language is used....and I think this makes the film stronger--especially in how they deal with this racism.

It's a British Army prison in WWII North Africa. Insubordinate British soldiers are sent there to be drilled ruthlessly. One of the tasks is to run up and down a man made hill. Joe Roberts (Sean Connery) is one of five new prisoners. He had punched his commanding officer for ordering a suicidal attack.

There are some great performances. The most powerful coming from Harry Andrews. Everybody is delivering top level stuff. It's a contained movie in that it's contained by the base. In that way, it's more like a play. Sidney Lumet allows his actors to chew up the screen. It's great.

One of Sean Connery's personal favorites among his movies is The Hill. He had high hopes for its success and that it would break him out of the James Bond mold. Unfortunately the movie going public wanted more James Bond and less Sean Connery at this point.

The Hill is close to a perfect masterpiece of characterization and cinematography. Director Sidney Lumet opted for black and white in making The Hill and I think it enhances the stark surroundings of the British military stockade in North Africa. These are really the forgotten people of World War II.

If Sean Connery could have gotten a chance for a Dirty Dozen type mission from the British army he would have taken it. His character is very similar to Charles Bronson's from that film. Bronson was an officer, Connery a sergeant major, Bronson shot, Connery struck a superior with extremely good cause, but their respective armies didn't see it that way.

So now Sean is in a cell with four other prisoners all of varying character, Roy Kinnear, Ossie Davis, Jack Watson, and Alfred Lynch. Norman Bird is the commandant, but the camp is really run as in all armies by the Sergeant-Major Harry Andrews. Andrews has a special punishment for the prisoners, called The Hill; a specially constructed mound of sand about 200 feet high where they have to run up and down it with field pack in the desert heat.

Andrews has the assistance of Staff Sergeant Ian Hendry who has his own sadistic bent quite apart from military punishment. When one of Connery's cell-mates dies from punishment, all hell threatens to break loose.

One of the things that attracted Sean Connery to this film according to the Citadel Film series book on his work was the fact that it was unlike James Bond, no glamorous locations, no fancy wardrobe and absolutely no romance. This would give him the chance to show he could be something other than James Bond.

Connery got rave reviews for playing former Sergeant Major Joe Roberts in The Hill and the rest of the cast Sidney Lumet assembled did likewise. Unfortunately the film failed at the box office. Connery remarked that without his name on it, this would have been an art house special limited release type of work. But the public only wanted to see James Bond and it wasn't until The Anderson Tapes that Sean Connery finally got great reviews in a film that did well at the box office as well as the critics.

Over 40 years after it was released The Hill now is considered a cinema masterpiece. Besides Connery my favorite performances are from Michael Redgrave as the medical officer who's not a strong man, but steps to the plate when his duty is clear and from Ossie Davis as a cynical black soldier who finally grows tired of the institutional racism he finds and 'leaves' the army. You won't forget them, Connery or The Hill once you see it.