Commando Squad (1968)
aka Commando Force
Directed by Charles Nizet
Genesis Home Video VHS
THE FILM
To paraphrase Groucho Marx, "Well, they can't all be good. You've got to expect that once in a while."
Charles Nizet made Rescue Force. RF is a kinetic, mad, crazy-ass journey to the desert with a dozen plotlines dangling in the first half and constant shootouts in the second half. Funny looking men mingle with the Pinnacle of 80s Women. It seems to be based somewhere between the world of Rambo: First Blood Part 2 and Some Insane Unknown Place where Charles Lives.
Commando Squad is from the late 60s and it's a very reasonable war film. Not terribly interesting but something that could have been shown in drive-ins. I wish Rambo had been around in the mid-60s.
During WWII, a group of five men is sent to the African desert to destroy a secret underground Nazi base. The Nazis are working on a very special bomb. The squad of men parachutes some distance from the base and slowly approach it. Shootouts, arguments, walking in the sun...It's all here. And, there are points where it all seems to go in Real Time, which is commendable but makes one look around the room a lot.
Nizet improves greatly as his career progresses. I know this because Rescue Force is so fantastic and this film is so not-as-great. It never quite gets to a really interesting place. A place that makes me smile and stand up and cheer. The opening briefing sequence made me think we'd be touching on the RF magic. A bunch of guys talking, a desk...All the elements were there. But, it goes on and on and by the time we reached the end of the sequence, I'd forgotten who everyone was and what their mission actually consisted of. I didn't go back to reacquaint myself.
Nizet does throw in a few energetic action sequences. A lot of people shoot. Things explode. People die. And then, the man in charge says "We got 'em all!" You don't quite know where everyone is in relation to everyone else but it's exciting enough...and then it ends.
Groucho was right. They can't all be good. Commando Squad is set in the same exact area as RF (Las Vegas desert) but is a rather generic war film that could have used a shot in the pants. (Maybe a surprise visit from Kiki and the Rescue Force?) I don't mean for this review to be half-assed. But, if you've seen Rescue Force, you know that this film does not present the viewer with the Full Ass. So, I have returned the amount of Ass I originally received.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
Genesis Home Entertainment! They put out some kickass whoppers over there. It looks and sounds like a Larry Buchanan film from that time period, except for the occasional shootouts. Two minutes of that is livelier than the Buchanan Canon.
EXTRAS
One person in the crew has the last name of Tezin. Once the credits start to roll, everything's an Extra.
FINAL THOUGHTS
One beautiful moment: During the final series of explosions, we suddenly sees a huge sandy, dirty area. A man dashes from the foreground and dives behind a pile of dirt in the mid-ground. A huge explosion goes off in the background. An enormous cloud of smoke spreads towards us. It covers the tiny man and relentlessly fills up the screen. That's awesome!
From small things big things come...Watch Commando Squad if you want to see Nizet lay the foundation for insanity. But, expect a lot of shots of men walking through the desert and imagine yourself thinking "Couldn't they have parachuted a bit closer?"
— Dan Budnik, 06.30.11 |
|
