The Devil's Brigade

Amazon.com

Dismissed in 1968 as a plodding rip-off of The Dirty Dozen--without that 1967 film's sardonic, antiestablishment satire--The Devil's Brigade now plays like a nostalgic last gasp of the sentimental World War II action genre. Celebrating the 1st Special Service Force (a commando-like unit formed to fight in Norway but ultimately deployed in Italy), this typically broad Andrew V. McLaglen production recounts the teaming of some miscreant GIs with "the handpicked best of the best-trained army in the world"--the Canadians--under a U.S. officer (William Holden) who had never commanded men in combat. The first hour, heavy on machismo and low comedy, depicts the unit's training at an abandoned base in Montana, with nonstop international rivalry until Yanks and Canadians bond in a lusty saloon brawl. After that, the Germans are easy meat. Holden is solid, as usual, and so is the widescreen work of veteran cameraman William H. Clothier, impeccably rendered on the DVD. --Richard T. Jameson

Description

They were misfits, rebels and heroes. Oscar(r) winners* William Holden and Cliff Robertsontopline this riveting World War II saga based on the true story of the First Special Service Force.Capturing the drama of combat with "outstanding" cinematography and an "exceptionally strong cast" (The Hollywood Reporter), The Devil's Brigade is a thrilling tribute to this renowned fighting unit. Lt. Col. Robert T. Frederick (Holden) takes on the daunting task of melding a renegade group of American and Canadian recruits into a crack team of commando warriors. Frederick's superiors doubt the rookies until Frederick volunteers them for a perilous attack on a Nazi stronghold in the mountains. His men will be outnumbered and outgunned, but that's a fair fight to "the devil's brigade."

Customer Reviews:

A few fun facts about the film.......2007-09-10

I thought that this film was knock off of the Dirty Dozen myself within the first half hour or so of the movie, but in all honesty I thought that it was a much better movie. And I have always liked the anti-hero image of William Holden. Or I should say the reluctant hero.
Ok, now for the fun facts, that are sports related. If any of you are Green Bay Packer fans, you will notice that one of the lumberjacks in the bar fight scene was played by none other than the Golden Boy, Paul Hornung! I do not think that Paul received any academy awards for his short role!
Also, Richard Jaekel was also in the Dirty Dozen, which the film has been compared to, and unfairly at that! Richard's son was also a top flight pro golfer and played on the PGA tour for many years!

Entertaining WWII movie about Special Unit.......2007-09-02

If you like vintage WWII action movies like The Dirty Dozen you will enjoy the Devil's Brigade. It tells the story of a commando type unit that fights in Italy. The story is pretty simple - a unit comprised of American misfits with Canadian hardcore soliders prepares for combat in Norway. William Holden is well cast as the unit's commander, and he does a solid job of keeping the story moving along.

The action scenes are well done, and the last assault on the German stronghold is pretty gripping. Although The Devil's Brigade does not have as many memorable lines as The Dirty Dozen, or as many stars as The Longest Day, it is still worth viewing if you enjoy vintage WWII movies.

Die Teufelsbrigade.......2007-06-08

It is the height of the Second World War. Someone decided it was time to have a Joint Readiness Brigade. Many did not want to see it succeed so it was t consist of the bottom of the barrel US troops and crack Canadian troops. Naturedly to head this up was Lt. Col. Robert T. Frederick (William Holden), Maj. Alan Crown (Cliff Robertson), and Maj. Cliff Bricker (Vince Edwards).

The film is formula (a "Dirty Dozen" knockoff) where they must give a rag tag motley crew the incentive to become a cohesive fighting machine will a will to win in unorthodox ways. In the process they will become Die Teufelsbrigade or The Devil's Brigade.

I have to admit that this is fun to watch over again as we see the slow metamorphoses and ask what would I do in their shoes.

The Trurth about the Devil's Brigade .......2007-02-28

I've seen this movie several times over the years and consider it a very good film with solid acting. For the most part it is historically accurate, but much of the real story has been omitted. One former "Forceman" I met did not like the film because of the way it portrayed the characters as brawling misfits and lovers. Several of the characters in it were real people, including COL (later LT GEN) Frederick, SGT MAJOR O'Neill, and GEN Mark Clark. To learn more about the history of this unit I recommend you read the book of the same title. You will discover much more to the story than a movie has time to capture, such as an "odd" Englishman named Pike who conceived the idea, and the chaos of their first operational mission conducted against what was thought to be a Japanese held island. If you are ever in Montana, I also strongly encourage you to visit the Montana Military History Museum in Helena. Among other things, the museum has articles on display from the First Special Service Force. When I visited it two years ago I was privileged to meet one of the original members who helped establish the unit and lead a company of "Forcemen" through all their campaigns. His personal adventure alone would make for a long movie. Note, this was the only Army unit in WWII history to earn battle streamers for service against the Japanese (Aleutian campaign), Italians, and Germans (Italy and France). It also was the only unit at that time simultaneously trained for airborne, mountain, and amphibious operations.

The Devil's Brigade.......2007-01-12

I watched this movie while i was in the military and before i got into military. It is a very good movie about a person in the service that helps form a bunch of wrong doer's and makes them into a very fine fighting outfit that never gave up one inch of land that they fought for and for the person that lead them into battle.

Average customer rating:

Twentieth Century warfare as seen through the eyes of filmmakers

Ultimate War DVD Giftpack

Manufacturer: MGM/United Artists
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

Classics | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

Action & Combat | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

Drama | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video

Action & Adventure | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Drama | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Military & War | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000NQQ0AU
Release Date: 2007-05-08

Amazon.com

This giftset includes 10 favorite classic war films including: The Great Escape, Flyboys, 633 Squadron, The Battle of Britain, The Devil's Brigade, Exodus, Paths of Glory, Platoon, Run Silent, Run Deep and Zulu.

Customer Reviews:

Twentieth Century warfare as seen through the eyes of filmmakers.......2007-05-31

ULTIMATE WAR GIFTPACK consists of ten movies on ten DVDs. The majority of these are big-budget spectaculars that include large casts of famous actors. Subject matter covers many of the 20th Century's major conflicts: the Boer War, WWI, WWII and Vietnam. This top-quality box set is certain to please the most discriminating war film collectors.

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The following alphabetized program list provides viewer poll ratings for each title (based on a 1 to 10 scale), plus country of origin (if other than USA), years of release and best-known actors.

(6.8) The Battle of Britain (UK-1969) - Harry Andrews/Michael Caine/Trevor Howard/Curd Jürgens/Ian McShane/Laurence Olivier/Christopher Plummer/Michael Redgrave/Ralph Richardson/Robert Shaw/Susannah York

(6.5) The Devil's Brigade (1968) - William Holden/Cliff Robertson/Vince Edwards/Andrew Prine/Claude Akins/Richard Jaeckel/Richard Dawson/Harry Carey Jr./Michael Rennie/Carroll O'Connor/Dana Andrews/Patric Knowles

(6.8) Exodus (1960) - Paul Newman/Eva Marie Saint/Ralph Richardson/Peter Lawford/Lee J. Cobb/Sal Mineo/John Derek/Hugh Griffith/Jill Haworth/Paul Stevens/George Maharis

(6.6) Flyboys (France/USA-2006) - James Franco/Scott Hazell/Mac McDonald/Philip Winchester

(8.4) The Great Escape (1963) - Steve McQueen/James Garner/Richard Attenborough/Charles Bronson/Donald Pleasance/James Coburn/David McCallum

(8.5) Paths of Glory (1957) - Kirk Douglas/Ralph Meeker/Adolphe Menjou/George Macready/Wayne Morris

(8.1) Platoon (1986) - Tom Berenger/Willem Dafoe/Charlie Sheen/Forest Whitaker/John C. McGinley/Kevin Dillon/Johnny Depp/Oliver Stone (cameo)

(7.3) Run Silent, Run Deep (1958) - Clark Gable/Burt Lancaster/Jack Warden/Don Rickles

(6.2) 633 Squadron (1964) - Cliff Robertson/George Chakiris

(7.9) Zulu (UK-1964) - Stanley Baker/Jack Hawkins/Michael Caine/Nigel Green/Patric Magee

Average customer rating:

A few fun facts about the film
Entertaining WWII movie about Special Unit
Die Teufelsbrigade
The Trurth about the Devil's Brigade
The Devil's Brigade

The Devil's Brigade [Region 2]
Starring: William Holden , Cliff Robertson , Vince Edwards , Andrew Prine , and Jeremy Slate
Director: Andrew V. McLaglen
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

( D ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

ASIN: B0001EYT3Y

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

A few fun facts about the film.......2007-09-10

Entertaining WWII movie about Special Unit.......2007-09-02

Die Teufelsbrigade.......2007-06-08

The Trurth about the Devil's Brigade .......2007-02-28

The Devil's Brigade.......2007-01-12

DVD:

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