"London can take it!" was the rallying cry in 1940, and a decade later the same, stoic answer to the Blitz might have summed up this tense speculation about the efforts taken to defuse an impending atomic holocaust. The film reflected many real fears of the embryonic nuclear age, but managed to embrace both ends of its argument, with the rogue scientist threatening to explode a bomb in downtown London (unless the government disarms its atomic arsenal) acting as both a voice of conscience and an agent of madness: the message is sane; his method is not. Meeting the crisis with clear heads and stiff upper lips are the real heroes of the film: the civilian and military forces who organize a heroic evacuation not unlike the victorious retreat from Dunkirk. The script benefits from some near-documentary realism and a swift, clockwork plot, earning co-writers Frank Harvey and Frank Boulting (who also co-directed the film with his brother John) an Oscar for their efforts.
Review of Seven Days to Noon
