Post by drystyx on Jan 15, 2020 19:07:25 GMT
I used to think this was a pretty weak war movie, but not bad. It mixes a bit of comedy with drama. The weakness, to me, was the invulnerability of the Americans as they wipe out Germans. It is even more ridiculous than the dirty dozen, if that is possible. But German soldiers have always been the whipping post of Hollywood. Way more so than the American Indians of cavalry movies, who were allowed to kill a few cavalry men with spears and arrows while being shot by repeating rifles, and always treated with some dignity and appearance of strength. German soldiers have always been depicted as the ultimate wimps, incapable of every being able to even wound an American soldier.
But that makes this movie just one of the thousands of such movies.
It's grown on me a bit, as I raise my rating from 4/10 to 7/10.
I raise it due to its "watchability" more than anything. It is well directed and moves along at a good pace.
The general is particularly humorous. O'Conner is the best part of the show.
A few Americans are killed on the trek for Gold during World War II in this movie, but the kill count is well over 100 German soldiers killed for each American in fire fights. And one of those Americans is killed by a sneaky land mine.
The combination of a touch of pathos with comedy with a plot to steal Gold, makes this a unique movie, at least. That is one reason I rate it higher, because it does pretty well with a unique idea.
The strength of the movie in characters is the one played by Savalas. He is actually the most level headed of the leading three. Eastwood speaks in calmer tones, but is more reckless than either Savalas or Sutherland.
When one looks at macho relationships, the model relationship is the "Beatle factor". When two men get together, one is John and one is Paul. When three get together, the third is George. That would be the spiritually conscious tank crew leader played by Sutherland. The Ringo factor is a combination of the other enlisted men in the squad of American soldiers, mostly by McLeod and Stanton. Although, when Sutherland and McLeod are together, Sutherland's character is more casual like Ringo, while McLeod is the more mechanical (George being a thorough mechanical musician with the guitar).
While "John Lennon" characters are usually loud and boisterous, his most identifiable traits are recklessness, rebelliousness, smugness, snobbery, risk taking, rudeness, and similar characteristics. The "Paul McCartney" traits are those of willingness to get along with others, to help others, to protect others.
Thus, Eastwood is a more quiet John, and Savalas is a more vocal Paul. As Kelly, Eastwood is more likely to get you hurt or killed, but he isn't psychopathic. He's more mercantile. Those of us who grew up in the hood know that "psychopathy" is a myth that psychiatrists want to believe in order to rationalize their comfort zones. The term is used to justify their dealings with people who are either sadistic or mercantile. No human listens to human beings screaming in pain and doesn't believe there is no pain. Some are sadistic demon possessed monsters, and some are mercantile. More often it is the first, as anyone who ever lived in the hood can avouch for.
"Kelly" is the mercantile person. He doesn't want unnecessary suffering. He is out for a real goal first. Sadists who are falsely identified as psychopaths, want to cause suffering, then decide on a goal that can make the suffering occur.
The "McCartney" character of Joe (Savalas) is the stronger part of the movie. An unusual role for Savalas, playing the moderate character, but he gets to do it here.
The "George" character (Oddball) played by Donald Sutherland, is tempered by Gavin McLeod of the Mary Tyler Moore show fame, whom Oddball continues to call "negative", simply because McLeod points out that bullets kill people, and bridges that are destroyed, don't automatically reappear. It's a "false" tag given to McLeod, whose character probably saved Oddball's butt in the past. Oddball has some very sane characteristics, though, much more than Kelly does. Even though Joe and Oddball are louder than Kelly, Kelly is not nearly as level headed, sane, open minded, or strategic as either of them. If one has ever seen the TV series "Coach" there's a bit of similarity, in which Coach appears to be more rational than his two assistants, but when all is said and done, even his two wacky assistants are less red neck, less mercantile, more progressive, and more open minded than the coach.
This then becomes a pretty good "relationship" movie. So why not rate it higher than 7/10?
There is more than one weakness. Not just the dehumanization of German men, but also because the minor characters aren't treated with much dignity. Most of the unit, including a stereotype played by Don Rickles, are caricatures. The best movies are good because of supporting characters. After the top stars, we get little of that here.
But it is a pretty good movie, I dare say, due it being very watchable, and the "Beatle" relationship of the lead characters.
But that makes this movie just one of the thousands of such movies.
It's grown on me a bit, as I raise my rating from 4/10 to 7/10.
I raise it due to its "watchability" more than anything. It is well directed and moves along at a good pace.
The general is particularly humorous. O'Conner is the best part of the show.
A few Americans are killed on the trek for Gold during World War II in this movie, but the kill count is well over 100 German soldiers killed for each American in fire fights. And one of those Americans is killed by a sneaky land mine.
The combination of a touch of pathos with comedy with a plot to steal Gold, makes this a unique movie, at least. That is one reason I rate it higher, because it does pretty well with a unique idea.
The strength of the movie in characters is the one played by Savalas. He is actually the most level headed of the leading three. Eastwood speaks in calmer tones, but is more reckless than either Savalas or Sutherland.
When one looks at macho relationships, the model relationship is the "Beatle factor". When two men get together, one is John and one is Paul. When three get together, the third is George. That would be the spiritually conscious tank crew leader played by Sutherland. The Ringo factor is a combination of the other enlisted men in the squad of American soldiers, mostly by McLeod and Stanton. Although, when Sutherland and McLeod are together, Sutherland's character is more casual like Ringo, while McLeod is the more mechanical (George being a thorough mechanical musician with the guitar).
While "John Lennon" characters are usually loud and boisterous, his most identifiable traits are recklessness, rebelliousness, smugness, snobbery, risk taking, rudeness, and similar characteristics. The "Paul McCartney" traits are those of willingness to get along with others, to help others, to protect others.
Thus, Eastwood is a more quiet John, and Savalas is a more vocal Paul. As Kelly, Eastwood is more likely to get you hurt or killed, but he isn't psychopathic. He's more mercantile. Those of us who grew up in the hood know that "psychopathy" is a myth that psychiatrists want to believe in order to rationalize their comfort zones. The term is used to justify their dealings with people who are either sadistic or mercantile. No human listens to human beings screaming in pain and doesn't believe there is no pain. Some are sadistic demon possessed monsters, and some are mercantile. More often it is the first, as anyone who ever lived in the hood can avouch for.
"Kelly" is the mercantile person. He doesn't want unnecessary suffering. He is out for a real goal first. Sadists who are falsely identified as psychopaths, want to cause suffering, then decide on a goal that can make the suffering occur.
The "McCartney" character of Joe (Savalas) is the stronger part of the movie. An unusual role for Savalas, playing the moderate character, but he gets to do it here.
The "George" character (Oddball) played by Donald Sutherland, is tempered by Gavin McLeod of the Mary Tyler Moore show fame, whom Oddball continues to call "negative", simply because McLeod points out that bullets kill people, and bridges that are destroyed, don't automatically reappear. It's a "false" tag given to McLeod, whose character probably saved Oddball's butt in the past. Oddball has some very sane characteristics, though, much more than Kelly does. Even though Joe and Oddball are louder than Kelly, Kelly is not nearly as level headed, sane, open minded, or strategic as either of them. If one has ever seen the TV series "Coach" there's a bit of similarity, in which Coach appears to be more rational than his two assistants, but when all is said and done, even his two wacky assistants are less red neck, less mercantile, more progressive, and more open minded than the coach.
This then becomes a pretty good "relationship" movie. So why not rate it higher than 7/10?
There is more than one weakness. Not just the dehumanization of German men, but also because the minor characters aren't treated with much dignity. Most of the unit, including a stereotype played by Don Rickles, are caricatures. The best movies are good because of supporting characters. After the top stars, we get little of that here.
But it is a pretty good movie, I dare say, due it being very watchable, and the "Beatle" relationship of the lead characters.