Great 'Boy's Own' adventure

Rating: 9/10 (12 March 2017)

When an American general is captured by the Germans and taken to an Alpine castle a small team is sent to free him before he can be forced to give the Germans plans for the opening of a second front. This is a British operation led by Major Smith; it includes five other British soldiers and American Lt Schaffer. All of them are fluent German speakers; something that is essential as they will be infiltrate the castle in German uniforms.
Once they parachute into Germany things start to go wrong; one of the group is found dead; Smith announces that he broke his neck but it is clear that he knows the man was killed. Smith's behaviour quickly show that there are parts of the operation that other members of the team are being kept in the dark about as he sneaks off to meet a woman, Mary Ellison, who is later instructed to go to the castle as a member of staff. Shortly afterwards another member of the team is killed then the others are captured; Smith and Schaffer manage to escape and carry on the operation alone. Once in the castle there are a lot of revelations; traitors are exposed and the true reason for the mission revealed once that is done they just have to get out of the castle than make their way to a nearby airfield while hundreds of Germans try to stop them.
If you are looking for a gritty, realistic war film then this is likely to disappoint you but if you are looking for a 'Boy's Own' adventure full of daring-do, lots of action where heroes seldom miss, bad guys are unlikely to inflict more than a flesh wound and there are so many twists that at one point or another most of the team have suspicion pointed at them then this might be the film for you. There is lots of exciting action; this includes shooting, explosions and even a fight on top of a cable car. Richard Burton does a fine job as Smith, especially in the scene the truth is revealed. He is ably supported by Clint Eastwood as Schaffer and Mary Ure as Mary Ellison; the rest of the cast is pretty solid too. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to anybody looking for an exciting wartime adventure.