Irregardless of who wins the war, there are casualties, and that is not something to celebrate. This late 60's anti-war drama focuses on a small group of American and Canadian soldiers trapped behind enemy lines, ultimately involved in the battle at Anzio. Robert mitchum headlines the cast as an American correspondent tagging along who winds up biting off more than he can chew as he becomes involved in aiding the other men. They include the sarcastic Peter Falk, Earl Holliman and Mark Damon, and each of their stories are given moments that are quite gripping.
This is far from a classic but it is very enjoyable, starting off with a huge party sequence that indicates that correspondent Mitchum already knows many of the soldiers. Over the credits is a very strange choice of a theme song, sounding more 60's then early 1940s, and certainly no "I'll Be Seeing You" or "As Time Goes By". However, an old standard, "Bye Bye Blackbird", does feature in the story, first sung by Falk and a group of prostitutes as a part of their duty, and later reprise by the men to two innocent young Italian women and their mother who aide them in hiding from the Nazis.
More notable for its action sequences then it's performances, this is very cinematic in scope, and does provide the questionable reasons for war, queried ironically by mitchum who had starred in many films about the war including his star-making role in "The Story of GI Joe". Mitchum goes from simply tagging along to truly being involved, and his character is quietly intriguing. Falk has the showiest role, a mixture of comic bravado and soul revealing heroism, and his is the most memorable. Veteran actors Arthur Kennedy and Robert Ryan have smaller roles with Kennedy having a few good scenes. This isn't anything that hadn't been done before, but the fact that it Flo's by easily in two hours makes it worth seeking out.
This is far from a classic but it is very enjoyable, starting off with a huge party sequence that indicates that correspondent Mitchum already knows many of the soldiers. Over the credits is a very strange choice of a theme song, sounding more 60's then early 1940s, and certainly no "I'll Be Seeing You" or "As Time Goes By". However, an old standard, "Bye Bye Blackbird", does feature in the story, first sung by Falk and a group of prostitutes as a part of their duty, and later reprise by the men to two innocent young Italian women and their mother who aide them in hiding from the Nazis.
More notable for its action sequences then it's performances, this is very cinematic in scope, and does provide the questionable reasons for war, queried ironically by mitchum who had starred in many films about the war including his star-making role in "The Story of GI Joe". Mitchum goes from simply tagging along to truly being involved, and his character is quietly intriguing. Falk has the showiest role, a mixture of comic bravado and soul revealing heroism, and his is the most memorable. Veteran actors Arthur Kennedy and Robert Ryan have smaller roles with Kennedy having a few good scenes. This isn't anything that hadn't been done before, but the fact that it Flo's by easily in two hours makes it worth seeking out.