Fully deserving of negative waves.

Rating: 3/10 (25 January 2020)

When American soldier Kelly (Clint Eastwood) learns of a fortune in Nazi gold being stored in a bank behind enemy lines, he organises a mission to relieve the Germans of their treasure.
With a fun premise, a proven director in Brian G. Hutton (Where Eagles Dare) and a terrific ensemble cast, Kelly's Heroes could have been a hugely enjoyable WWII 'men on a mission'/crime caper, but winds up being an irritating mess of a movie due to its screwball comedy, its 'futility of war' subtext, and its late-'60s/early '70s hippie spirit, most evident in its madcap characters, of which the most oddball is even called 'Oddball' (played by Donald Sutherland).
The flower-power affectations and anti-war message reflect the peace movement of the day and many Americans' sentiments about the Vietnam war, which was in full swing at the time. However, the tone is so completely at odds with the WWII setting that it makes for a very awkward movie. Had they done away with the anachronistic counterculture vernacular and the screwball 'It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World' approach, and made Kelly's Heroes an authentic war movie, I would have enjoyed it a whole lot more.
The catchy theme song 'Burning Bridges', sung by the Mike Curb Congregation with music by Lalo Schifrin, is reminiscent of 'The Self Preservation Society', the theme song from the previous year's The Italian Job, which was written by Kelly's Heroes' writer Troy Kennedy Martin and also revolved around a daring gold heist. The Italian Job is far better than Kelly's Heroes.
3.5/10, rounded down to 3 for Sutherland's hugely annoying performance.