Claudio Carvalho During the World War II, Major Reisman (Lee Marvin) is a tough and efficient military with problems with his superiors. He is assigned by General Worden (Ernest Borgnine) for an almost impossible top secret suicide mission: to kill as much senior German officers as possible in a retreat on the eve of the D-Day. He must train twelve undisciplined convicted soldiers, most of them sentenced to death, to accomplish the mission. He joins the twelve men under the positive leadership of Joseph Wladislaw (Charles Bronson) and the negative leadership of the insubordinate Victor Franko (John Cassavetes) and tries to form a team. He makes General Worden to promise to release them all if they are well succeeded. Meanwhile his enemy Colonel Everett Dasher Breed (Robert Ryan) tries to make his life more difficult but Reisman and his twelve men prove that they are efficient. Will they succeed in their mission? "The Dirty Dozen" is one of the best movies about war, with the perfect combination of action and comedy. Despite the 2h 30 min running time, this film is never boring; indeed it is highly entertaining. Director Robert Aldrich makes another masterpiece and the performances of the magnificent cast are top-notch. The conclusion is quite moralist and predictable with most of the soldiers dying but it is part of the American culture in the 60's, since it would be unjustified killers convicted to death by hanging be proclaimed national heroes and stay alive. My vote is ten.Title (Brazil): "Os Doze Condenados" ("The Twelve Convicted")

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.

bpladybug Over forty years and this movie continues to thrill and entertain. I have seen it several times. If you like the war film genre or just exciting action with ironic humor then you MUST make time to see the original Dirty Dozen.wow, I need ten linesCharles Bronson, Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Jim Brown, Telly SavalisIf you are a young person then you might want to watch these actors - greats in their time. The movie does lack a significant female lead but that was typical for the times.

Uriah43 The Dirty Dozen (1967) [8] Lee Marvin stars as "Major Reisman" who has displeased his superiors so much that he is put in charge of a secret mission to parachute behind enemy lines to kill German officers vacationing at a château in France. If that wasn't bad enough, all of his soldiers are hardened criminals of the worst sort who are coerced by the chance that they may be given a parole. Now as implausible as this movie really is I must admit that it offers plenty of entertainment value due in large part to an all-star cast which includes Charles Bronson (as "Joseph Wladislaw"), Clint Walker ("Samson Posey"), Jim Brown ("Robert Jefferson"), Donald Sutherland ("Vernon Pinkley"), Ernest Borgnine ("General Worden"), George Kennedy ("Major Max Armbruster") along with the aforementioned Lee Marvin. Yet with all of these mentioned I thought Telly Savalas deserved special recognition for his performance as the psychotic pervert "Archer Maggott" which really stood out. In any case, this was a big movie back in the 60's and those who might be interested in this type of film should definitely check it out. I rate it as definitely above average.