Wizard-8 I hadn't even heard of this movie before coming across an ex rental video copy at a thrift store in my city. Though upon sitting down to watch the movie, it soon became clear why I hadn't heard of the movie before. It certainly boasts an interesting cast - Bruce Davison, David Carradine (who gives a very lazy performance), and Oliver Reed (who only appears for about six minutes) - and for what was a limited budget the movie's production values aren't bad, at least if you aren't a nitpicker about certain World War II military details. However, the script is kind of a mess. It tries to both be funny and hard-hitting, but the two extremes do not jell. It's too serious (and violent) to be funny, and it's too goofy to be serious. Another problem is that the narrative is kind of rambling. It takes forever for the central characters to be assigned their mission, going through a number of vignettes that add little to nothing to the movie. Then when the mission starts, there is still a clear lack of focus - the characters seem kind of aimless as they go forth, lacking proper planning and preparedness. It almost seems as if the filmmakers were making things up as they went along.In the end, this is a movie that is too strange to be immediately dismissed, but at the same time it's not terribly entertaining.

Scott LeBrun The cast makes all the difference in this reasonably amusing adaptation of a WWII novel by Sven Hassle (who's played in the film by Slavko Stimac). It's basically a variation on the Dirty Dozen formula, in which a group of misfits - including those who had been in prison - are recruited by the Nazis to be a fighting force. Our "misfit brigade" are sent on a delicate mission to get beyond the Russian border and destroy a train. They are told that if they succeed at this task, they can enjoy an early "retirement".Adequately directed by cult filmmaker Gordon Hessler ("The Golden Voyage of Sinbad"), the movie has a fairly colourful band of characters. These men are very much anti-authority and also pretty much anti-Nazi, resulting in an interesting hook. On location filming in Yugoslavia is one nice touch; period recreation is also good. Hessler manages to create some tension and the action is decently executed.This group of familiar faces does look to be having a good time. Bruce Davison ("Willard"), David Patrick Kelly ("Dreamscape"), D.W. Moffett ("Traffic"), Jay O. Sanders ("The Day After Tomorrow"), and Keith Szarabajka ("The Dark Knight") are among our heroes. If you're watching this as a fan of Oliver Reed, be warned that he only shows up at the end, with just a handful of lines. David Carradine is most amusing in his turn as a sneering Nazi officer. One does have to suspend their disbelief quite a bit with these very Americanized performances, and with no real attempt made to make people look Germanic.Personally speaking, this viewer did not have a problem with the light hearted approach of this adaptation. The healthy dose of humour does keep it watchable. It's nothing great, but it offers some fun.Seven out of 10.

GUENOT PHILIPPE I should say it's a very poor man's CROSS OF IRON. The spirit is the same: German army troops, a platoon actually, lost in the middle of the Russian front. I won't add anything more to the other comments, which are very interesting concerning details, except, again, that the screenwriter was inspired by Sam Peckinpah's war movie shot in 1977. Brutal vision of war from the German side, in Russia, without any glorification of this very same war, helped by a powerful characterization - for this kind of production, I mean. A war movie that ends with a sort of moral. The cowardliness of the superior officers is pointed out very clearly. In this movie, they are not Maximilien Schell but Oliver Reed and David Carradine.A pretty good ending.

leybarsinister This is one of my favourite flicks!Based on the Sven Hassel book "WHEELS OF TERROR."Nothing fancy here.Good casting job bringing Hassel's characters to the silver screen.Having read most of Hassel's books,makes me biased towards this film.It has all the elements of a good war/anti-war film.David Carradine has a blast as the commander and,the cast works well with/off each other.Oliver Reed has a cameo that is perfect for him.I really like the tank sequences.Real armor was used to great effect.This is on my top 10 war films list.It is a shame that no other films were made,based on Hassel's books.