The Dirty Dozen
Directed by Robert Aldrich
- action
- adventure
- war
The story
12 American military prisoners in World War II are ordered to infiltrate a well-guarded enemy château and kill the Nazi officers vacationing there. The soldiers, most of whom are facing death sentences for a variety of violent crimes, agree to the mission and the possible commuting of their sentences.
What it’s like
Gritty, grainy WWII widescreen in muddy greens, mud-brown fatigues and overcast English skies, with the camera often low and sweeping across barracks, training grounds and a sprawling French château whose stone walls and tall windows hold a cold, formal menace. Sound is brassy and percussive: a march-like score that swells over training montages, then gives way to sudden gunfire, grenade blasts and hard, bruising fistfights that land with real weight. Its vibe is rowdy, sardonic and tense, a gang-movie swagger with a bleak undertow, best suited to a Saturday afternoon with friends or a late-night watch when you want something loud and propulsive. The pacing is brisk and episodic, building toward a long, chaotic final act. The men are a band of brutal misfits slowly forming unlikely loyalty, with plenty of bitter banter and rough humour. Violence is frequent and graphic for its era: shootings, stabbings, a flamethrower-style inferno and a bloody climax, with some crude language and sexual innuendo, but no gore-heavy horror. It suits people who like ensemble war films, hard-edged camaraderie and old-school bruising action.
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