- Actors: Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas
- Directors: Robert Aldrich
- Writers: E.M. Nathanson, Lukas Heller, Nunnally Johnson
- Producers: Kenneth Hyman, Raymond Anzarut
- Language English, French, German
- Classification: 15
- Studio: Warner
- VHS Release Date: 4 Jun 2001
- Run Time: 150 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00004CIPW
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,331 in Video (See Top 100 in Video)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
A model for dozens of action films to follow, this box-office hit from 1967 refined a die-hard formula that has become overly familiar, but it's rarely been handled better than it was in this action-packed World War II thriller. Lee Marvin is perfectly cast as a down-but-not-out army major who is offered a shot at personal and professional redemption. If he can successfully train and discipline a squad of army rejects, misfits, killers, prisoners, and psychopaths into a first-rate unit of specialised soldiers, they'll earn a second chance to make up for their woeful misdeeds. Of course, there's a catch: to obtain their pardons, Marvin's band of badmen must agree to a suicide mission that will parachute them into the danger zone of Nazi-occupied France. It's a hazardous path to glory, but the men have no other choice than to accept and regain their lost honor. What makes The Dirty Dozen special is its phenomenal cast including Charles Bronson, Donald Sutherland, Telly Savalas, George Kennedy, Ernest Borgnine, John Cassavetes, Richard Jaeckel, Jim Brown, Clint Walker, Trini Lopez, Robert Ryan, and others. Cassavetes is the Oscar-nominated standout as one of Marvin's most rebellious yet heroic men, but it's the whole ensemble--combined with the hard-as-nails direction of Robert Aldrich--that makes this such a high-velocity crowd pleaser. The script by Nunnally Johnson and Lukas Heller (from the novel by E.M. Nathanson) is strong enough to support the all-star lineup with ample humour and military grit, so if you're in need of a mainline jolt of testosterone, The Dirty Dozen is the movie for you. --Jeff Shannon
Amazon.co.uk Review
A model for dozens of action films to follow, this box-office hit from 1967 refined a die-hard formula that has become overly familiar, but it's rarely been handled better than it was in this action-packed World War II thriller. Lee Marvin is perfectly cast as a down-but-not-out army major who is offered a shot at personal and professional redemption. If he can successfully train and discipline a squad of army rejects, misfits, killers, prisoners, and psychopaths into a first-rate unit of specialized soldiers, they'll earn a second chance to make up for their woeful misdeeds. Of course, there's a catch: to obtain their pardons, Marvin's band of badmen must agree to a suicide mission that will parachute them into the danger zone of Nazi-occupied France. It's a hazardous path to glory, but the men have no other choice than to accept and regain their lost honor. What makes The Dirty Dozen special is its phenomenal cast including Charles Bronson, Donald Sutherland, Telly Savalas, George Kennedy, Ernest Borgnine, John Cassavetes, Richard Jaeckel, Jim Brown, Clint Walker, Trini Lopez, Robert Ryan, and others. Cassavetes is the Oscar-nominated standout as one of Marvin's most rebellious yet heroic men, but it's the whole ensemble--combined with the hard-as-nails direction of Robert Aldrich--that makes this such a high-velocity crowd pleaser. The script by Nunnally Johnson and Lukas Heller (from the novel by E.M. Nathanson) is strong enough to support the all-star lineup with ample humor and military grit, so if you're in need of a mainline jolt of testosterone, The Dirty Dozen is the movie for you. --Jeff Shannon
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I don't know where to start praising what has to be the most exciting action adventure based on WWII. The story of 12 convicts chosen for what is best describes as a suicide mission is played out by one of the strongest cast every to be united on one film. The names Marvin, Bronson and Sutherland to name but three shows instant quality. To show this film doesn't age i am only in my early twenties so this shows quality isnt controlled by the special effects but by storyline and sheer excitement something sadly lacking in most modern films. I have been waiting patiently for this DVD release as in my opinion it is one of the most own titles for any self respecting action fan.
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Top Director Robert Aldrich's most commercially successful movie. Wartime action heroics from a motley bunch of hardcore death row convicts, led by a brilliantly cynical LEE MARVIN, a reluctant commanding officer for the gang. They're given a suicidal mission to destroy a key German command post in return for a chance of freedom after the war if they succeed. No brainer film fans!??
In a generally excellent ensemble cast of seasoned character actors (ERNEST BORGNINE, TELLY SAVALAS (KOJAK!!), JOHN CASSAVETES, CHARLES BRONSON et al), DONALD SUTHERLAND is a standout, quite superb in a smaller but crucial role.
Great action set-pieces and inspired, brutally appropriate direction from ALDRICH at his very best make this movie a fondly remembered 60s classic. Unmissable and unbeatable entertainment!
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
The Dirty Dozen holds up surprisingly well even if it is one of the few war movies where the basic training section is better than the mission itself - but that might have something to do with the fact that Robert Aldrich ensures that it's a pretty dirty and sordid business amid the more expected heroics. It's a strikingly good looking film, well photographed and designed, and while it lacks the go-for-broke cynicism of Aldrich's Too Late the Hero or Attack!, it's still a striking subversive antidote to the traditional Hollywood war movie. The recent 2-disc DVD is a great improvement on the previous release, not least because it's in the right ratio this time (the previous release was cropped to 2.35:1). The group audio commentary is intermittently interesting, but Dale Dye's self-important contributions are less welcome than the cast and crew, as he shows his ignorance of film history of the era while talking up himself at almost every turn: it's a shame the commentary isn't indexed so you can skip him and get back to people with a better idea of what they're talking about. Still, the vintage 60s featurette of the Dozen hanging out in London's 'happening' Kings Road is a hoot, and I never tire of hearing that story about how Trini Lopez found himself written out of the movie...
The first of the TV movie sequels, The Deadly Mission, is also included on the disc, and limp stuff it is too. Looking like it was shot on the cheap entirely around the same railway station in a rainy August, it rehashes huge chunks of dialog from the first film, recited with a notable lack of enthusiasm by a visibly bored Lee Marvin who knows this isn't worth the effort and so rarely makes any. The premise is good - they're sent to assassinate a German general planning to kill Hitler because the Allies are terrified of the Nazis replacing Der Fuhrer with a competent leader - but this dozen are a bland bunch, although things pick up slightly in the last half hour. Amazingly there were briefly plans to release this as a feature film outside the US, but even as an extra feature on the original film's DVD it feels like padding.
The first of the TV movie sequels, The Deadly Mission, is also included on the disc, and limp stuff it is too. Looking like it was shot on the cheap entirely around the same railway station in a rainy August, it rehashes huge chunks of dialog from the first film, recited with a notable lack of enthusiasm by a visibly bored Lee Marvin who knows this isn't worth the effort and so rarely makes any. The premise is good - they're sent to assassinate a German general planning to kill Hitler because the Allies are terrified of the Nazis replacing Der Fuhrer with a competent leader - but this dozen are a bland bunch, although things pick up slightly in the last half hour. Amazingly there were briefly plans to release this as a feature film outside the US, but even as an extra feature on the original film's DVD it feels like padding.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
best of the three
certainly the best of the three dirty dozen films-plenty of action with a great cast of "B"actors who later became "A" class - good fun!
Published 17 days ago by e.s.
Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson,, Clint Walker, Donald Sutherland, Jim...
(THE FILM)They are convicts, psychos, lunkheads, losers - and champs at the box office and in movie lore. Read more
Published 29 days ago by S. F. husseiny
Never been a fan of this film
I tried to watch this film again,with the view of trying to say something nice about it.I couldn't.I soldiered on gamely to the part where Marvin shoots the rope without kiliing... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Awfully nice chap
Basically a good Comedy.
This essentially Boys Own stuff meets satire with a bit of an anti war (if anything) back story. 'Not' based on a a true story and rather fanciful but there was a considerable... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Barry Wom
One of the most quintessential macho movies of all time
The Dirty Dozen is directed by Robert Aldrich and adapted for the screen by Nunnally Johnson & Lukas Heller from the novel by E. M. Nathanson. Read more
Published 16 months ago by Spike Owen
The Dirty Dozen
This film is still as good as when we first saw in the mid 1960's!
The casting is brilliant, the screen play excellent, the humour and the pathos in equal measure. Read more
The casting is brilliant, the screen play excellent, the humour and the pathos in equal measure. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Josephine March
Masterpiece!
This has to be one of my all time favourite war movies. I watched it for the first time (i wasn't around when this was first released) and i must say this movie has an amazing cast... Read more
Published 22 months ago by +)Icarus(+
THE DIRTY DOZEN DVD
EXCELLENT DVD, GOOD VALUE AS YOU WOULD EXPECT SHOPPING AT
AMAZON. CO. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS SHOPPING SITE TO ANYONE
WHO LOVES DVD,S R TREWHELLA,
AMAZON. CO. I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS SHOPPING SITE TO ANYONE
WHO LOVES DVD,S R TREWHELLA,
Published 23 months ago by Mr. Roger C. Trewhella
12 convicts, 1 suicide mission and a very good film
The original Dirty Dozen movie was voted the 27th best war movie of all time in a programme by Channel 4, it thoroughly deserves that and probably more. Read more
Published on 28 Mar 2010 by The Reviewer
Brilliant stuff
Could watch this film over and over, well acted, good story, and full to the brim with gripping scenes, and spendid acting.
Published on 17 Mar 2010 by LOTTO WIZARD
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