Character Relationship Map: Avalanche Express

Characters

• Harry Wargrave (played by Lee Marvin) — protagonist

  A CIA agent who leads the team extracting General Markenkov from Milan. After apparently being killed during the operation, Wargrave secretly reappears among the train crew. He uses Markenkov as bait...

• General Markenkov (played by Robert Shaw) — protagonist

  A Soviet general who decides to defect to the West despite being responsible for Operation Winter Harvest, a plan to poison Western crops. He meets Harry Wargrave's extraction team at La Scala, boards...

• Else Lang (played by Linda Evans) — supporting
• Colonel Nikolai Bunin (played by Maximilian Schell) — supporting

  A KGB spy-catcher who leads the Soviet agents attempting to stop General Markenkov's defection. He directs efforts to intercept the Atlantic Express, including triggering an avalanche and supporting a...

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Harry Wargrave → Else Lang (Social Strained Personal History) — Their reunion is marked by a strained past; they listen together to Angelo's recorded warning.

  Harry meets Else Lang at the Moscow railway station, and the account describes their personal history as strained.

• Harry Wargrave → Colonel Nikolai Bunin (Conflict Opposing Operatives) — Harry seeks to protect Markenkov and expose the pursuing Soviet forces led by Bunin, whose actions threaten the train journey.

  Harry's group uses Markenkov as bait to draw out the forces pursuing him, while Bunin is identified as the leader behind the threat and the pursuit.

• Colonel Nikolai Bunin → General Markenkov (Conflict Pursuer And Target) — Bunin's role in the dangerous plan makes Markenkov's defection a direct threat to him, and Markenkov expects Bunin to pursue him.

  The account identifies Bunin as the officer behind the reactivated Winter Harvest plan and says Markenkov believes Bunin will expose himself by trying...

• Harry Wargrave → General Markenkov (Alliance Protector And Bait) — Harry protects Markenkov during the train journey while using the general's presence to draw out the forces pursuing him.

  Harry and his team agree to escort Markenkov aboard the Atlantic Express. Markenkov proposes using himself as bait, and Harry stays with him while the...

Story Analysis

Harry escorts defecting General Markenkov by train while attempting to expose the forces pursuing him and survive escalating attacks.

Plot Progression

1. Warnings from Moscow — Harry keeps watch at the Moscow station and reconnects with Else. Angelo's recording warns of hard-line influence and the reactivation of Winter Harvest under Bunin.
2. Defection and the Decoy — Markenkov defects, prompting orders to locate him and alert clandestine units. He proposes using himself as bait, and Harry's team agrees to escort him aboard the Atlantic Express.
3. The Avalanche Attack — As the train crosses the Alps, worsening weather and a suspected attack raise the stakes. Skiers trigger an avalanche, forcing Harry to move passengers forward and prepare to sacrifice rear cars.
4. An Unsettled Arrival — The surviving passengers continue onward after the train loses three cars and reach Holland. Scholten reports a Russian freighter offshore, while Bunin remains unspotted and the pursuit is unresolved.