Like Roger Vadim, John Derek's reputation as a filmmaker is eclipsed by his fame as a man who managed to constantly attract hot women, but his debut effort isn't that bad. It's a decent story, a strong cast and some interesting touches - a few flashy montages, use of freeze frames during battle scenes and so on. (I remember another war film shot by a former actor around this time, Beach Red, was also quite groovy in its presentation.)
It's set immediately after Pearl Harbour, with a team of US soldiers trying to flee for safety. Their lieutenant (Derek himself) takes along his fiancee (Andress). In a shock, Derek dies half way through - an accidental grenade going off which feels real - and Andress is left with the others: Rod Lauren, Ron Ely (Tarzan) and Richard Jaeckel.
It's interesting to watch the Derek-Andress relationship on screen - he basically treats her like a baby and she responds in kind, wanting to go and get her puppies, and not wanting to be alone, and suggesting he get a hair cut.
Sometimes you forget there's a war on - it's more an amble - when more tension would've been ideal. The locations aren't that pretty. (I say that a lot about films in the Philippines).
But it's bold and full on. Jaeckel acts up a storm as a shaven headed war lover. Lauren and Ely are fine. The plot where Andress sleeps with Lauren works for me and wasn't as exploitive as I'd been lead to believe. Andress was never shot more beautifully - Derek really knew how to frame her face - and her acting is fine. This film surprised me in a pleasant way.
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