User reviews

This is an efficient B movie thriller with location shooting in Lebanon. Former Tarzan, Lex Barker is an airline pilot whose passenger plane bound for Athens is diverted to Beirut because of a mechanical problem and they have 24 hours to kill as the mechanics repair the plane.

Mickey Rooney a member of the flight crew starts to act suspicious for a reason as he is being pursued for past misdeed and it is up to the rest of the flight crew to protect him or come to his rescue.

Diminutive actors Michael Medwin and Mickey Rooney steal the show, the former clearly enjoys the action scenes while Rooney plays a deceitful and conniving rogue which is the reason why he is pursued by the criminal underworld of Beirut.

Aside from the location shooting there is little in the production that is above average.

The reason to watch this film is for the exotic location as it was back then in the 1960s - hip, jet-set Beirut that benefited from an influx of wealth at the time. There is no sympathy for the major character who is it trouble. Hardly spoiling anything to say that you know from the outset that things aren't as he says - there's little suspense and also little sympathy. Actually Rooney is excellent at playing an annoying little creep - it was apparently his true character.

Great shots, interesting for the cars, the geography, but terrible acting largely and plastic characters.

Don't get me wrong - I'd still watch it, but don't expect much more.

"Twenty four hours to kill" is set in 1965 Beirut at a time when that city perhaps deserved its soubriquet 'The Playground of the Middle East'. Needless to say, today's Beirut has a quite a different international reputation. It is interesting to see the Beirut of nearly 50 years ago in this movie when the French influence on the city was still evident. Other than that, there is little in this film that will hold the interest of the viewer. Lex Barker is somewhat impressive in the lead role and delivers his lines well, but Mickey Rooney adds nothing to this film. Austria-born Walter Slezak plays the villain, but it is not clear whether he is a Fez-cap wearing Turk living in Beirut, or an Arab who was bestowed with a Fez cap by the film's director who thought that every Arab wore one. Of course, in the 1960s, westerners thought Turks and Arabs to be equally exotic and interchangeable. Despite its Middle Eastern setting, local Lebanese are not much in evidence, in this flick. Instead, we have transplanted Westerners dealing with Walter's Slezak's Malouf. Yet, that is not enough to hold the viewer's interest.

Despite the exotic location, tried-and-tested leading actor and bevy of beautiful European actresses, 24 HOURS TO KILL is a real chore to sit through. It's a spy thriller produced on the cheap by Harry Alan Towers, shot in Beirut when it was still considered an exotic holiday destination (although that perception was to change, somewhat considerably, in the 1980s!).

The main actor is former Tarzan Lex Barker, who appears as a pilot whose holiday is cut short when he becomes involved in a conspiracy storyline involving fellow crew member Mickey Rooney. What follows is a slightly Bond-style with lots of location photography, glamorous women appearing in bikinis, and a handful of fist fights to keep things rolling along. Unfortunately it's all rather stately, slow, and uninvolving, with little to recommend it other than the scenery. It's one of those films you end up forgetting about just five minutes after watching.

"24 Hours to Kill" is a rather illogical thriller. It could have been a lot better but the script lets you down instead of providing thrills.

A plane has engine trouble and is rerouted to the nearest airport which is in Beirut. However, one member of the crew, Norman Jones (Mickey Rooney) is NOT happy about the plane going to Lebanon. Why? Well, he tells his fellow crew members that some guys in town are out to get him because they are mad at a friend of his...though this is clearly a lie. It turns out Norman was a gold smuggler...though the last time he did it for these 'friends', he absconded with the gold! Now they want him...and even after finding out the story, the plane's captain (Lex Barker) STILL wants to risk his life and the lives of other crew members to protect the guy!

Aside from being able to see the lovely city before it was destroyed in the civil war of the early 1980s, I can't think of much reason to see this movie. It's not just that it's illogical but it's also very slow and talky when it should have had a lot more action and suspense.

I guess the prospect of doing a film in Beirut was enough inducement to get Mickey Rooney to go to the Middle East. Over the past score of years the various factions fighting for control of Beirut and the country of Lebanon would make it highly unlikely that 24 Hours To Kill would ever be done there today. If anyone wanted to bother.

Lex Barker is a TWA pilot and while on a flight to Athens his plane develops engine trouble and has to make an emergency landing in Beirut. Mickey Rooney is rather nervous about Beirut it seems as though he was doing a little smuggling on the side, taking advantage of his position with the airlines. He's stolen about $40,000.00 from some people in Beirut and they want their money or his hide.

Mickey Rooney gives an interesting portrayal of a man who essentially is a rat. He has no loyalties and doesn't care how he's put his fellow crew members in jeopardy. Walter Slezak playing his usual avuncular villain and he's always good, but he's done all this before.

The rest simply walk through the film looking like they were hoping their paychecks would clear. Nothing hear for anyone to remember or care about.

An international co-production from the ubiquitous Harry Alan Towers, 24 HOURS TO KILL stars Lex Barker as an airline pilot whose plane, bound for Athens, has engine trouble and is forced to land in Beirut. The mechanics tell him they can have the plane repaired and ready to fly in 24 hours--the 24 hours "to kill" of the title. Mickey Rooney plays a member of the flight crew who, upon landing, is watched and followed by a number of people...and who acts quite suspiciously himself. The question of why Rooney is being followed and what he has done in the past to explain his being followed provides the suspense in the film. The script does not give the always-excellent Barker much particularity of character--he basically has to look handsome and act authoritative. His attitude toward the Rooney character changes throughout the film, and he is entangled in a relationship with a female member of the crew, so there are a few elements in the script that give the character some depth, but not enough. Mickey Rooney is given a far meatier role. Rooney is perfect as "Jonesy", affable on the surface, but complex underneath and with a BIG chip on his shoulder. There's not a lot of action in the film, and the few fight scenes are--as usual for Harry Alan Towers productions--unconvincingly staged. Although made in English, the film has the feel of any number of continental co-productions and an international cast. The ending can be viewed as either ironic or unsatisfying, but it certainly wasn't what I expected! There are a few interesting middle-eastern-looking shots that could either be location shooting or sleight-of-hand involving stock footage, but in any event the film does have a distinct middle-eastern flavor that keeps it from being generic or run of the mill. Overall, this is an entertaining b-movie worth watching for fans of Lex Barker (one of his last English-language starring roles) and for a colorful character role by Mickey Rooney (see PULP with Michael Caine sometime for another fine Rooney performance). If you have two free hours and want a standard-issue dose of b-movie international intrigue, it's worthwhile, but nothing worth seeking out.

Very much a film of its time. Mid-60s, exotic location, imported American stars, glamorous European women and unconvincing fight scenes. I thought I might last ten minutes watching this whilst putting up the Xmas decorations but I ended up watching the whole thing. The reason for that was the excellent direction by Peter Bezencenet and a great turn by the always watchable Michael Medwin. Considering how well directed this film is, I'm surprised to find that Bezencenet only directed four films, and only one after this film.

At two hours (including commercials) it did feel a little on the long side. But the locations, the dresses, the sharp suits, hairstyles and the oblique plot makes for worthwhile viewing.

Another lot of schlock from Harry Towers.Actors from different countries to satisfy the demands of distributors.Walter Slezak is probably the best of the cast.Though he used the line about man despises from one of his thriller roles from 20 years earlier.They fight near the end must be one of the most poorly staged in any film.

When a passenger plane makes an emergency landing in Beirut, the pilot, Jamie Faulkner (Lex Barker) and his crew become caught up in criminal activity. Faulkner quickly discovers that his co-pilot (Mickey Rooney) is involved, and that his fellow crooks have reason to be extremely angry with him.

24 HOURS TO KILL is a rather slow-paced "thriller". There are several points where it seems as though something intriguing or exciting is about to happen, only to result in the opposite.

Barker does his best with the tepid material, while Rooney spends his time looking pensive and suspicious by turns. Modern action film-lovers will find few enthralling moments here. It's not terrible, just don't expect a James Bond movie...