Kirk Douglass portrays the efficient Colonel "Jiggs" Casey, who is Scott's subordinent and reluctant hero of the film. The man, it seems, would make an ideal president-and that just might happen on the seventh day in May. Burt Lancaster plays General James Mattoon Scott, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and universally idolized military hero. The film is otherwise fairly faithful to the book. The script by Rod Serling improves on the novel by creating a sharper climax as the president overcomes the brewing plot by panicking high-ranking military officers to overthrow the Executive Branch of the US government. The novel, by contrast, writes of a two-term Kennedy administration. Some of the dark tones in the film are inspired by the mood of the nation since the assassination of President Kennedy. The film, made in 1964, is more of period piece, shot in black and white by Ellsworth Fredericks. Bailey II was first published in 1962 and takes place in the early 1970s. The novel by Fletcher Knebel and Charles W. I can't imagine Alfred Hitchcock doing a better job. John Frankenheimer's direction is first rate. A splendid ensemble cast brought together in a fun, tight political thriller.
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