The Hostage Tower

The Hostage Tower is a 1980 American spy and thriller telemovie starring Peter Fonda and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., and directed by Claudio Guzmán, well known for his work in sitcoms. It is based on a book of the same name by John Denis, based on an idea by Alistair MacLean. The book was written deliberately for television adaptation. It is the first in the series of UNACO books.

Plot
Criminal mastermind Mr Smith (Keir Dullea) is being pursued by Malcolm Philpott (Douglas Fairbanks Jr.), the head of an international peace organisation. When Mr Smith captures the Eiffel Tower and kidnaps the mother of the President of the United States (Celia Johnson), Philpott must enlist the help of spies to take him down.

Mr Smith demands a ransom of $30 million without which he will blow up the tower and the President's mother. He has protected the tower from infiltration by stealing four high-power lasers which will shoot anyone entering who is not equipped with a protective device.

Cast
Peter Fonda ...  Mike Graham
Douglas Fairbanks Jr. ... Malcolm Philpott
Maud Adams ... Sabrina Carver
Billy Dee Williams ... Clarence Whitlock
Keir Dullea ... Mr Smith
Britt Ekland ... Leah
Rachel Roberts ... Sonya Kolchinski
Celia Johnson ... Mrs Wheeler

Production
In the early 1970s, a series of films based on MacLean novels had not performed well at the American box office, including When Eight Bells Toll, Puppet on a Chain and Fear Is the Key. MacLean decided to focus on American television. He wrote a 120 page novella called Air Force One is Down about top executives of various oil companies travelling in Air Force One when it is hijacked. The idea was turned down by NBC. MacLean then pitched a number of new ideas to networks, each with a 25-30 page treatment. The Hostage Tower was approved by CBS. The network did request the Eiffel Tower be changed to the Statue of Liberty but MacLean refused, feeling the tower was essential. Filming took six weeks starting in October 1979.

Trivia
 The roles of Mike Graham and Sabrina Carver are later reprised by Pierce Brosnan and Alexandra Paul in TV adaptations of Death Train and Night Watch, both UNACO novels written for the screen. Death Train also featured Clarke Peters taking over as C. W. Whitlock and Patrick Stewart as Malcolm Philpott.
 Britt Ekland and Maud Adams were previously seen together as Bond girls in The Man with the Golden Gun.
 The Hostage Tower was one of Douglas Fairbanks Jr.'s final films.
 The movie was filmed entirely in Paris, France.
 The film was released on VHS and Laserdisc but is currently out of print.

References

External links

Category:English-language television programs
Category:1980 television films
Category:American television films
Category:Television shows set in Paris
Category:Terrorism in television
Category:CBS network films
Category:1980 films
Category:1980s crime thriller films
Category:American heist films
Category:American spy films
Category:American films
Category:Films scored by John Scott (composer)
Category:Films based on works by Alistair MacLean
Category:Films based on British novels
Category:Films set in Paris
Category:Films about hostage takings