The Last Blitzkrieg

Skip it – This B-quality WWII movie stars Van Johnson as a German soldier recruited to spy on the Americans because of his fluent English. He begins the movie by infiltrating a POW camp and foiling an escape attempt. He is then dropped behind enemy lines during the Battle of the Bulge to disrupt the Allies and prepare the way for the German advance. The message of this film seemed to be that there were millions of Germans who were good and decent people who didn't want war either. Which is true, but this movie is mediocre at best. The acting is horrible and there is no combat until the last 30 minutes. And the ending is just plain unreasonable.

This slightly off-kilter Columbia programmer stars Van Johnson as a Nazi double agent who first wins the confidence of the American POWs he's housed with and is then sent on a secret mission to infiltrate U.S. forces during late 1944's Ardennes offensive (more commonly known as The Battle of the Bulge). Johnson does his best as a bad guy, though the film makes an unreasonable stretch to make him sympathetic towards the end, and Dick York is quite good as an army sergeant thrust into a command position by the iniquitous actions of the German infiltrators. As always with a Sam Katzman production, the film tries to mask its low budget with plenty of stock footage, but it also benefits from location footage in The Netherlands. It's no classic, but is a pleasant enough diversion that also features Kerwin Mathews in a rare performance as a really, really bad guy.

I just saw this picture screened in an old 35mm release print. I thought this would be a companion piece to that other WWII Van Johnson bore-fest, THE ENEMY GENERAL. However, this one was hysterical! Right from the get-go the acting, as well as the tone of the production was broad and inept (verging on HOGAN'S HEROES territory) all the while parading as a serious WWII yarn. Watch for Dick York and a scenery chewing Larry Storch (pre-"Bewitched" and "F-Troop" respectively.) And BTW, the stark black and white photography was excellent (when not resorting to stock footage of the actual war.) Definitely a "so bad it's good

Those with a keen interest in WWII and overall movie history can appreciate this effort. Although there are the "never would happen" situations, such as the officer's rank insignia's on their battlefield helmets being displayed in a nice bright white, the main storyline of German infiltrators into American lines is based in historical fact.

Something that the movie touches on is the fact that many Americans who fought in the war were of German decent and did so while having many relatives who still lived in Germany. It is my guess that this was mentioned in the film due to the fact that the director, Arthur Dreifuss, was born in Germany and moved to the U.S. before the war in 1928. First he worked in the entertainment industry as a dance instructor and then, beginning in 1939, in Hollywood where he made numerous B-level films including the "Boston Blackie" series.

Entertainment historians will appreciate seeing Dick York, who played the original Darren Stevens in the "Bewitched" television series, and Larry Storch, who played Corporal Agarne in the T.V. series "F Troop", in fairly prominent roles playing foot soldiers. Storch's southern accent is especially amusing and those familiar with Storch's Agarne character in F-Troop will see a tinge of it when, upon learning of the prospect of German infiltrators, he exclaims "Don't talk that way - it's disheartening!".

Perfect for a rainy weekend afternoon.

All-American Van Johnson plays against type as a German officer masquerading as a GI during the dying days of WWII in order to disrupt the advance of the allied forces. It's an unusual story rendered truly forgettable in the hands of Arthur Dreifuss, who doesn't have much of a clue when it comes to filming action scenes or building suspense.