Delta Force Commando

As a big fan of bad movies I have derived much enjoyment from those glorious films that fall under the category of the 'so bad it's good' variety. Directors who consistently produce such joyfully inept works include the infamous Godfrey Ho and Bruno Mattei, both of whom have a vast filmography to their names on account of churning out craptaculars on the cheap and whose films I have a very special fondness for.

Let's get one thing straight though, although the principle is indeed subjective, I feel the 'so bad it's good' term is far too frequently and inappropriately used, especially by many reviewers on this site.

A classic case in point is the film in question here. Make no mistake, this film is entirely and spectacularly crap.....but not in any 'positive' way whatsoever. Interminably boring throughout and not helped any by risible acting and hopelessly executed 'action' scenes, this is a pretty much unwatchable affair. So bad was this in fact that I couldn't even watch it in its entirety in a single sitting.

I can think of only two good things to say about this to be quite honest; One is the always welcome face and larger than life presence of Fred Williamson and the other is that none other than Mark Gregory plays the villainous lead. Sadly both actors are wasted in their respective roles though but it is at least a speck of light in an otherwise murky void.

For true connoisseurs of bad movies (enjoyable ones that is) skip this rancid ordure and instead revel in the works of the previously mentioned directors who really know how to make good quality crap.

A couple of members of an elite military team travel without permission to Latin America to sort out a gang of terrorists who have stolen a nuclear bomb.

Delta Force Commando is an Italian action movie that takes its influence from the Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Commando (1985). Consequently, it involves lots and lots of bad guys pitching up as cannon fodder for our heroes to mow down with machine guns and grenades. It's essentially action all the way with this one, with little concern for any other aspects whatsoever. It stars the American Fred Williamson in a role as a hijacked pilot and he does get ample opportunity to act cool on several occasions, the lead guy is someone called Brett Baxter Clark who walks around the entire movie with a face like fizz and he does make Williamson appear like Laurence Olivier by direct comparison; still he suited this film to a certain extent as all he has to do here is go around shooting and blowing people up. The only other guy I recognised was the chief baddie who was played by Mark Gregory. I know this guy from the 'Bronx Warriors' films but unfortunately he doesn't sport the spectacular poodle perm haircut in this film that adorned his head in those earlier flicks. A shame that, as a lead villain who looked like he was a member of an L.A. hair metal band would have resulted in Delta Force Commando receiving a further point in its score from me. But then we can't have everything can we?

I myself am a fan of the low budget movies that came out of Rome and the rest of the old world, but sometimes I have to draw the line. I get a kick out of bad acting and way out scripts, but there has to be something real about it. This movie almost reminds me of the Saturday morning cartoons of the 70's. I get a kick out of war movies when machine guns NEVER-EVER run out of ammo and one man gets shot at a hundred times by two hundred men and manages to kill them all and then gets his revenge on the murder of his wife. Fred Williamson and Bo Svenson either needed the money or thought it would be fun and had nothing else better to do. This cheese fest is a little ripe. But, I recommend to check it out and have an open mind.

It's almost unbelievable that I actually have seen this movie. Movies with "Delta Force" in the title usually mean lots of OK action, like the "Delta Force"-movies with and without Chuck Norris (great movies except for the third one), the "Operation Delta Force"-movies (some of them good, some really terrible) and "Delta Force One" with Gary Daniels (bad).

Therefore, I decided to give this one a go. BIG mistake.

OK, there IS action in the movie, but it's all bad (like people shooting at each other with machine guns for five minutes straight without reloading and no one ever hits anything). The quality of the actual film stinks (looks like it's filmed with a hand-held camera from the 80's. Maybe it was, actually), and makes this a terrible experience to sit through. And then there's the story. Not to be too negative here, but it's no exaggeration saying that I've written school essays over 2 hours that have been better.

Don't forget the acting, either. It's way beyond terrible. In fact, the acting in cartoons is better than in this movie.

The only reason why I gave this a 2, and not a 1, is because of Fred Williamson and his sometimes cool attitude in this movie. This meant some semi-enjoyable moments, just have in mind that it was a very long time between each of them.

This is 80s war movies at its finest. It is the ballad of Tony Turner (Brett Clark), perhaps the deadliest character ever to be portrayed in fiction. A bunch of South American terrorists attack a army base, steal a nuke and while doing so they kill Lt Turners pregnant wife - BIG MISTAKE! Turner steals a bag of different weapons and hijack a jet fighter of some kind, flown by no other than Captain Samuel Beck (Fred Williamson) and head of towards Nicaragua to deliver some serious payback. The rest of the movie is an orgy of awesomeness. This movie also features Bo Svenson as no-nonsense Colonel Keitel, a reliable stamp of quality.

If you like good movies, check somewhere else. If you like amazing movies, this is your movie! Brett Clarks rendition of a revengeful Delta Force soldier is nothing short of greatness and Williamson delivers the finest acting job of a grand career.