Comando Sullivan

"Commandos" was released in 1968 and has been in circulation on public domain home video (and now DVD) in the United States and abroad since the early 1980s. A great widescreen print has now surfaced on DVD, one from the Platinum Disc Corporation and another from St. Clair Vision. This is one of the easiest to find Italian war films, and it's really not too shabby, either…

On the eve of the American landings in North Africa, a band of Italian-American soldiers are recruited for a special mission behind the enemy lines. They will capture and hold a vital oasis the day before the Allies land. Unfortunately, the garrison of Italian soldiers and a German Panzer unit will do anything to stop this takeover.

Director Crispino is all about style, and just about everything else is disregarded here. The main conflict is between Sergeant Sullivan (Lee Van Cleef, "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly") and Captain Valli (Jack Kelly, "To Hell and Back"). Sullivan is an experienced veteran, and Valli is a rear-echelon officer who really shouldn't be in charge. Sullivan questions Valli's authority every step of the way. Unfortunately, this conflict remains shallow throughout, and the characters do little besides yell at and threaten each other. As an individual, however, Sullivan is a fleshed-out, battle-scarred veteran who's haunted by images of a failed campaign in the Pacific. Sadly, Van Cleef overacts through every scene, chewing up the scenery so much that it's hard to take him seriously.

The kudos go to the supporting cast, who manage to put on a convincing show from start to finish. Joachim Fuchsburger is fabulous as Lt. Heitzel, a German professor who is now drafted as a Panzer officer. He hates the war, but does his duty for country. Heitzel's character draws sympathy from the audience is his character is naturally fleshed out over the course of a long dinner scene with Valli and Tomassini. It's very nice to see a late-1960s war film in which a German character has a sympathetic role, rather than a clichéd "evil Nazi" part which was so common in other action films produced during the era. On the other hand, Götz George is equally good as Lt. Rudi, a dedicated Hitler Youth-type. The Germans and Americans discuss culture and politics over dinner in one long scene, and this makes their face-to-face encounter during the final battle all the more moving. Finally, there's Marino Mase ("The Five Man Army") as Lt. Tomassini, who commands the Italian garrison and will stop at nothing to escape with the survivors and liberate what's rightfully his. Add to this long list some excellent small roles filled by Ivano Stacciolo, Pier Paolo Capponi, Heinz Reincke and Romano Puppo.

Crispino's focus is on the action, and makes the characters just believable enough to appreciate the big, explosive proceedings. The American takeover of the Italian garrison is excellently shot and finely edited, and the climactic tank battle in the oasis is purely awesome. It's filled with great shots of people getting shot, tanks exploding, bullets kicking up puffs of dirt – there are some shots with action going on in both the background and foreground, making for interesting composition.

The movie has a very realistic look and feel to it, as well. The Americans and Germans are appropriately armed and clad for the time period. The sweltering sun and dry desert are completely convincing. The oasis set is massive and Crispino makes use of every part of it. The interiors, particularly the big dining room, are well-captured with wide shots and pans. At night, the set is well-lit and the action is completely clear.

"Commandos" is a well-written, well-shot and action-packed war drama with a fine supporting cast and some nail-biting combat sequences, which put it a notch above many other Italian war productions in the same vein.

7/10

Decent Italian/German co-production with enough action and dramatic events to make it worth looking in on . It concerns about the usual commando operation against Rommel 's forces in North Africa , October 1942 , about the Operation Torch . It deals with the inexperienced but stalwart Lieutenant Valli (Jack Kelly) who puts together a group of Italian-Americans (Giampiero Albertini , Pier Paolo Capponi , Ivano Staccioli) led by a tough sergeant (Lee Van Cleef) . They have to take an oasis where there is an indispensable water depot and subsequently they must secure this desert base in advance of Allied landings .All the while these Italian- Americans pretend to be Italian soldiers , disguising as Axis soldiers . After the soldiers have knifed the Italians in their beds , they take the strategic location and meet a beautiful prostitute (Marilu Tolo) living at the base. Sullivan's commandos are to hold this camp and its weaponry until an American battalion arrives . But there is a hidden man (Helmut Smith) on the fort , and problems emerge and things go awry.

It follows the commando-sub-genre with familiar plot and cliché-filled, as an expert group of soldiers into disguise as Italian soldiers in order to infiltrate a North African camp held by the Italians and often hosting the enemy , but things go terribly wrong after that .It displays thrills, noisy action, extreme violence, fatalism and impressive final battle . Violence is extended throughout , as commando members kill in cold blood , point blank , while enemy sleeping and back . Moving and stirring screenplay plenty of twists and turns , written by 6 screen-writers , including the famous Dario Argento and Menahem Golam . Nice acting by Lee Van Cleef as unsettling sergeant who has a war trauma and constantly argues with his superior and fine performance from Jack Kelly as a green by-the-book officer . Support cast is frankly excellent , full of secondaries usual in co- productions (Spaghetti , Eurospy , Peplum) such as Giampiero Albertini , Marino Masé , Götz George , Pier Paolo Capponi , Duilio Del Prete, Ivano Staccioli , Marilù Tolo , and Joachim Fuchsberger from Edward Wallace series , among others .Evocative and atmospheric cinematography in Cromoscope, being shot during July , August 1968 in Cerdeña.Enjoyable and adequate musical score by Mario Nascinbene.

The motion picture was well directed by Armando Crispino . Armando was a good craftsman who written/directed all kinds of genres as Spaghetti , Wartime , Nunexploitation , Thriller and Gialli such as ¨John Il Bastardo¨, Requiescant¨, ¨Rififi in Asterdam¨, "The Castro's Abbess" , ¨Dead or alive¨ ,"auptopsia" and several others

See This Movie!!! As for all the nay sayers on this site, it doesn't sound like they actually saw the movie or watched it all the way through.

If you love WWII films or action films, make this a must see. The action is so intense it's difficult to believe this was made way back in 1968. The production quality is very high.

How intense is the action? Well, I've seen this movie twice and I've yet to find a rifle on screen! (no kidding) Every character is armed with a submachine gun. Just as 'Die Hard' tought us, SMGs make for the best action scenes no matter how unrealistic it would be to actually hit a target at 100 feet. (or 50 feet) The plot: October 1942, North Africa. Lee Van Cleef leads a band of New York Italian American paratroopers whom must raid and hold an Axis water supply depot. Most importantly they must be about to pass for Italian solders in order to fool their German comrades.

The oasis depot proves to be a very elaborate but well fortified Axis hotel. There's even a bar and grill and a prostitute.

The GIs do their best to fool the Germans but inevitably the situation cannot hold. Their Italian prisoners escape, more and more German squads keep visiting and worse yet Van Cleef himself is a deranged and unstable veteran of Bataan who hates all superior officers as glory hounds carelessly putting his men at risk.

The final scene is a really great one. I've never seen anything like it in any war movie! It's the perfect conclusion.

For those of you not familiar with the "Spaghetti WWII" film 'Commandos' is a great place to start.

No, "Spaghetti WWII" is not part of the "Nazisploitation" films made in Italy during the 70s and 80s. (remember 'Salon Kitty' 'Last Orgy of the Third Reich' or the Elsa films?) "Spaghetti WWII" films are an overlooked genre that embodied much of what we love about American WWII films. The brotherhood of solders, the hell of war, and the glory of combat. These films were told from either the Axis or Allied side and just like traditional WWII films the Nazis always lose. Even if they are the main characters.

Unlike neutered German WWII films like 'Stalingrad.' The Italians got it right. No drama or romance, just guts and glory.

'Desert Commandos' is a perfect companion piece to this film.

I didn't know this movie existed until I accidentally ran across it at a retail store. Intense not so covert war action with good drama between characters and a few twists in the plot. The movie highlights the individual heroic efforts in battle, the insanity and randomness of events during conflict (and the responses by the players), and the disconnect between the battlefield and the strategic planners (both blind to each other).

Sergeant Sullivan (Lee Van Cleef) shows scares from previous conflicts, illustrating the personal side that never is far away from the professional. His past torments him throughout the film. The personal conflict and struggle between Sergeant Sullivan and Captain Valli (Jack Kelly) is constantly simmering and sometimes boiling over. Captain Valli, untested in battle, struggles to lead his newly appointed team on a very dangerous and unpredictable mission. At one point, he displays a dilemma in leadership, having to choose between his hard earned gains in the battle with his new team vs. new direction from above. The result of that decision has enormous consequences.

A very cool movie.

I too picked up Commandos in the budget bin. The movie itself was decent...acting a bit over the top from some of the players, the plot very predictable, and the ending a bit smarmy, intent on teaching us a nice lesson about the horrors of war.

The worst part of the film were the technical details. The US Army dropping paratrooper commandos behind enemy lines prior to Operation Torch (factual error... US Airborne troops were no where near ready for a raid prior to Torch). The obvious use of the 1944 M3 Grease Gun as the weapon of choice for the commandos, a weapon which didn't even see North Africa, let alone North Africa in 1942, the year before it made it to Army usage.

One can forgive the use of US Chaffee and Walker Bulldog tanks repainted in German Afrika Tan (after all, Patton did too), but too many errors upon errors crept into the movie to make it truly enjoyable. For 99 cents and a Saturday afternoon, it will serve. As a great movie, it falls far short.