Sutherland! Savalas! Marvin! Cassavetes! Brown! Bronson! Borgnine! the only issue there is that there are so many great names that the film has little time to let each of them truly shine. You could carry a whole film upon Donald Sutherland's two minute impersonation of a General.
Despite it's many imitators The Dirty Dozen is perhaps the finest ensemble mission movie ever made. The mission itself seems relatively straightforward in comparison to more modern examples (presumably these things have escalated) but the task itself is really just Nazi flavoured icing on an especially moist cake. The well risen sponge and delicious cream filling of the overall film is in the training of the twelve men, sentenced to death or long terms of imprisonment to take on a suicide mission well behind enemy lines.
It's an enormous amount of fun as bucking military authority becomes the means by which Marvin molds the bunch of bastards into a cohesive unit, and while almost everything it does has become cliche I believe the key to making this movie stand head and shoulders above similar fare lies back in those oh so grand credits: There is so much sheer charisma on offer that the characters can't help but work and while each of the actors may have done finer work individually, but I can't name a single movie where the cast felt more like a group, that through humour and adversity really sold the idea that each contributes to a whole. It's so vital to it's appeal as an ensemble piece and theirs as a military unit.
I read on IMDB that Donald Sutherland's impersonation of the general got him his role in M*A*S*H* which made him an international superstar. I also read that someone else was meant to do that general scene, but didn't feel comfortable doing it.
ReplyDeleteOther films with a boatload of famous people in them - Ocean's Herp Derp, The Usual Suspects, Pulp Fiction.
I think the lineup scene in TUS deserves a special mention, what with it being fucking awesomesauce. Plus it looks like the cast had a belter time working together.
I spent a good hour on IMDB trying to find better casts. Totally agree suspects is solid, but I'd call only a couple of them pure legends of cinema in the same way half of "The Dozen" are.
ReplyDeleteFunnily enough, I meant to mention how much fun the cast of this film seem to be having. I think that's a big part of it's appeal, both here and there, you're essentially enjoying it with them.