IMDb > The Dirty Dozen (1967)
The Dirty Dozen
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The Dirty Dozen (1967) More at IMDbPro »

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The Dirty Dozen (1967) -- MattTrailer.com - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
7.8/10   19,175 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 33% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Nunnally Johnson (screenplay) and
Lukas Heller (screenplay) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for The Dirty Dozen on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
15 June 1967 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
Train them! Excite them! Arm them!...Then turn them loose on the Nazis!
Plot:
A US Army Major is assigned a dozen convicted murderers to train and lead them into a mass assassination mission of German officers in World War II. full summary | full synopsis
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 5 wins & 6 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(17 articles)
Walter Hill: The Hollywood Interview
 (From The Hollywood Interview. 9 September 2009, 12:07 AM, PDT)

The Pleasures of Putting a Team Together
 (From IFC. 18 August 2009, 12:28 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
"Feed the French, Kill the Germans" more (111 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Dirty Dozen (International: English title) (informal title)
more
Runtime:
150 min
Country:
Language:
Colour:
Colour (Metrocolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.75 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Stereo | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)
Certification:
USA:Approved (certificate #20802) | Iceland:16 | UK:12 (2006) | West Germany:16 (f) | Netherlands:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (DVD rating) | Australia:PG (cable rating) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1968) | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video rating) (1986) | UK:X (original rating)
Company:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The character of Reisman (Lee Marvin) was based on John Miara of Malden, Massachusetts, who was a close personal friend of Marvin's while both were serving in the Marine Corps during WW II. more
Goofs:
Continuity: As Wladislaw exits the room with the rope and hook, he drops the rope at his feet. In the next far shot, Wladislaw is holding the rope and again drops it at his feet before throwing the hook. more
Quotes:
Major John Reisman: You know what to do, feed the French and shoot the Germans! more
Movie Connections:
Spoofed in Cecil B. DeMented (2000) more
Soundtrack:
Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree With Anyone Else But Me more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
9 out of 13 people found the following comment useful.
"Feed the French, Kill the Germans", 7 April 2007
7/10
Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

John Wayne who apparently was offered the part of Major Reisman probably wisely turned it down. Wayne would never have done in the part of the maverick major in charge of training the way Lee Marvin was so perfect in the role. In fact Marvin's and the performance of others in the cast helped The Dirty Dozen get over two very big improbable situations I have always found in this film.

The first one being the way the conflict between Robert Ryan and Lee Marvin is handled. I can certainly see why a spit and polish West Point graduate like Ryan would not like Marvin, why Marvin would rub him the wrong way. But I cannot understand why when the Dozen are transferred to his command for parachute training they don't tell him what's going on. I would think he would have a need to know. Then again a whole big part of the film wouldn't have occurred if Ryan had been let in on Marvin's mission.

The second thing is that granted these guys might be considered expendable to say the least with several of the dozen scheduled for a firing squad, but the army would want to make sure the mission had some chance of succeeding. There's no way, absolutely no bloody way, that a psychotic like Telly Savalas would have been allowed on the mission. And why Lee Marvin didn't scrub him when psychiatrist Ralph Meeker offered to is beyond me as well.

Those glaring holes in the story have always prevented me from giving The Dirty Dozen the top rating that most have given it. But it hasn't prevented me from enjoying the film.

The basic idea of the film appeals to me. An unorthodox major taking a group of nonconformists to say the least and making them a crack fighting outfit. Regular army training did not do it for this crew the first time around.

Charles Bronson is one of the dozen and this film certainly put him well on the way to top billing. A dozen years later in fact he'd have it over Lee Marvin in Death Hunt. Jim Brown also having just finished his football career began his movie career with a winning performance as another of the dozen. John Cassavetes was singled out for a Best Supporting Actor nomination. Also Donald Sutherland got his first real notice as yet another of the dozen.

A year later William Holden and Cliff Robertson did The Devil's Brigade which bore a lot of resemblance to The Dirty Dozen. It got slammed by critics for ripping off from The Dirty Dozen. The only problem was that Holden's film was based on a real outfit and The Dirty Dozen is pure fiction. Only in movieland.

Marvin's mission is to infiltrate and kill a lot of the German high command as they gather at a French château in the weeks before D-Day. How he does is something you have to watch The Dirty Dozen before. But I think you'll like seeing what happens.

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