Carl Foreman cashed in his Guns of Navarone chips to turn director with this strikingly cynical look at war. It's epic in scope - two and a half hours - with a strong cast of semi names: George Hamilton, George Peppard.
It's not highly regarded - I think its ambition annoyed people. And some of it is annoying to watch today - Foreman doesn't show battle sequences and a lot of the action is the Americans schtupping European women and hanging out on leave. Vince Edwards has a woman in Italy, Eli Wallach scores Jeanne Moreau, George Hamilton scores Romy Schneider and Elke Sommer, George Peppard scores Melinda Mercouri.
Foreman tries to downplay the predatory sexual nature by softening the encounters - Moreau is scared of bombing and Wallach comforts her, Schneider is actually a whore working for sleazy Michael Callan, Sommer's sister Santa Berger is money hungry and banging a Russian, Mercouri is a black marketeer who encourages Peppard to defect. Apparently in the original cut there was a sequence where an 11 year old French boy tries to sleep with Peppard and Hamilton for food.
But the non sex stuff is remarkable - the troops witness the execution of an Americans soldier, Peter Fonda adopts a dog who is shot by his fellow troops, white Americans beat up black Americans, the liberation of the camps, Eli Wallach is in hospital with his face blown off, Hamilton dies in a pointless knife fight with Albert Finbney.
The acting is strong - Peppard and Hamilton are excellent. Edwards' role is distractingly small - a few links/references to what happened to people like him would not go astray.
A film that has many irritating bits but also scenes of great power.
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