ada the leading man is my tpye

Incannerax What a waste of my time!!!

2hotFeature one of my absolute favorites!

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

thejcowboy22 What surprised me the most about this movie is that my Liberal, forthright politically correct Mother loved this film. Then I realized the Lee Marvin Character's name in the story is Major John Reisman. That's my Mom's maiden name. Britain 1944 a few months before the D-Day Invasion, A.S.C.D.Advance Section Communication Zone a branch of the U.S. Army under the direction of Major General Sam Borden (Ernest Borgnine)who has special orders for Major Reisman. General Worden assigns Major Reisman a very unusual mission, Codename, "Amnesty", involving the Dregs of the military in a suicide mission somewhere in France. Reisman Has to train some of the worst convicts ever assembled selected especially for him. After Reisman Witnesses a hanging in a British prison he meets with the 12 convicts some have lengthy sentences with (hard labor) others by hanging. Reisman has the Dozen construct their own barracks and training facilities. Each man had a special characteristic as Franco John Casavetes was the loudest of the bunch complaining about lack of water during training as the group would be called the "Dirty" Dozen. Telly Savalas plays a twisted mentally unstable rapist named Maggott,The semi-cowardly Posey (Clint Walker), A tower of a man who killed a man with his bear hands is reluctant to fight Reisman in a training exercise but gets knocked down despite his size. Jefferson (Jim Brown) shows his athleticism as he displays his speed setting off hand grenades. Charles Bronson plays Wladislaw who ends up pairing with Reisman as German Officers during a the attempted raid on the Castle. The Training went on as Reisman whipped those malcontents into shape as they proved they could handle any mission thrown their way from War Games to actual war time the Dirty Dozen was prepped and ready for action. I loved the symbolism as the boys have their meal before their final mission which looks like the portrait of Jesus with all his apostles around. The catchy rhyme the 12 recite so things go right on that ominous night.HEY, THAT RHYMES!!One of the few times in American films you witness American soldiers committing war crimes against the German's. Just a macho movie for the guys to enjoy.

gwnightscream Lee Marvin stars in this 1967 war film based on the novel. This takes place in 1944 during WWII where we meet Army Major, John Reisman who has a slight problem with authority. Soon, he's sent to train 12 army criminals to raid a German Château. Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, Donald Sutherland are among many that co-star. This is a great anti-hero/war film that influenced others like "Escape from New York" in which Borgnine is also featured. Marvin is terrific in this and the rest of the cast is great as well. I recommend this.

Leofwine_draca This classic war caper starts off as a human drama - laced with comedy - before moving into action territory, where a surprising amount of pathos creeps in as the initially unstoppable dozen are picked off one by one by the Nazi enemy. The all-star cast, involved direction from Robert Aldrich and the high budget make this one to watch, as long as you forget about those insipid television movie sequels which followed in the '80s.Just about every actor on screen impresses, the following in particular: Charles Bronson, his usual stony-faced self as the dozen's most courageous and heroic member; John Cassavetes as an edgy, dangerous prisoner who comes through in the end; Telly Savalas as an uncontrollable rapist and murderer who can't contain himself; Donald Sutherland as a young recruit who has no idea what he's in for; and Clint Walker as a strong man with a heart. Plus, Lee Marvin is superb in the lead role as the gruff but caring major, Ernest Borgnine enjoys himself in a cameo as the major general, cult fans will enjoy the presence of George Kennedy in a minor role, while Richard Jaeckal and Robert Ryan have strong supporting roles. It's unusual for nobody to put a foot wrong with the quantity of actors here.Although it lasts for a long time - nearly two and a half hours, to be exact - THE DIRTY DOZEN (so called because of their refusal to wash or shave) never becomes boring. The training scenes which take up the first hour and a half are inspired, unpredictable and very entertaining, with the ensemble cast acting their socks off and trading great dialogue with one enough. There is enough comedy to make this work for even non-action fans. The final hour, which sees the dreaded mission - an assault on a German château - begin, is gripping stuff, with plenty of explosions and shooting to keep action fans happy, plus a fair smattering of thrills and suspense for those looking for something deeper. THE DIRTY DOZEN is an unpredictable, brilliant movie which simply HAS to be see by all war film fans.

TankGuy In the months leading up to the allied invasion of Europe, the U.S army gives Major Reisman a top secret assignment. He must transform twelve condemned men into a crack commando unit for a clandestine mission behind enemy lines. The tough Major is able to match the rebelliousness of the convicts and over time they come to respect him as their superior officer. After completing vigorous training, the Major will lead the "dirty dozen" in a daring attack on a French château which is being used as a German base. They must kill as many Nazi officers as possible so the third Reich will be plunged into chaos on the eve of the D-day landings. However, Reisman is at odds with his superiors, General Worden and Colonel Breed, a factor that threatens to place the mission in jeopardy...Robert Aldrich does it again with this spectacular action epic. A real classic with a somewhat contemporary feel, The Dirty Dozen is everything today's actioners should be. As noted by another reviewer it is very comic book-esque, a statement echoed by myself. It has fine characters, each embodied by masterful acting talent and the narrative itself comprises of several engaging scenarios which build to a huge action sequence. Granite edged Lee Marvin excels in the lead as the cynical Major Reisman. This character has more in common with the rough and ready dozen than he does with the clean cut bureaucrats who assign him to the mission. Whilst not half as critical of the military as Aldrich's previous war movie Attack!, the aforementioned plot device is cleverly exploited so as to take subtle shots at the establishment. The Dirty Dozen also contains a restrained anti-war message, which may or may not go over the head of you as the viewer. Anyway as I was saying about performances, Ernest Borgnine also acquitted himself well as General Worden, as did Robert Ryan as Colonel Breed. A group of better actors couldn't have been selected to make up the dozen. We have the brilliant John Cassavetes, the always reliable Charles Bronson and everybody's favourite Greek, Telly Savalas. Jim Brown brings his energetic skill as a professional footballer to the role of Jefferson and George Kennedy and Richard Jaeckel were equally impressive as regular soldiers. There is a fine chemistry between the characters and the script contains some great and indeed very quotable dialogue. Apart from the climax, the movie has two highlights, the inspection of Colonel Breed's troops and the dozen proving their worth by capturing Colonel Breed and his staff during a war games exercise.The explosive assault on the château is preceded by a gripping infiltration sequence which adds a tense air to the final half hour of the film. Epic in style, the climatic battle is just as taut as it is exhilarating. The entire sequence is constructed in a truly professional manor which removes the corniness present in the action scenes of so many other war movies. Aldrich gets plenty of mileage from the thunderous special effects, the château seems to be built to scale which makes for chilling realism when it is blown up. The machine guns discharge their bullets at such an extreme rate and there are some fantastic stunts too! Blazing a new trail in it's genre, The Dirty Dozen redefines the war movie whilst alluding to the angst of 60s America. It would also be responsible for the birth of an amazing slice of cinema, the combat flick. 10/10