The Dirty Dozen: The Next Mission
Encyclopedia
The Dirty Dozen: The Next Mission is a made-for-TV film and sequel
to the original Dirty Dozen
. It reunited Lee Marvin
, Ernest Borgnine
and Richard Jaeckel
18 years after the original hit war film
. Marvin returns to lead an all-new dirty dozen on a mission to assassinate an SS General played by Wolf Kahler
. It was directed by Andrew V. McLaglen.
General Dietrich (Wolf Kahler
) plots with other ranking Nazi officials to make a second attempt on Hitler
's life.
In England
, General Worden learns of the plot through the French Resistance
. He and other Allied generals are worried that if Dietrich assassinates Hitler, capable Nazi commanders will continue the war beyond 1945. Worden considers Hitler "their best ally," because his incompetence as a military commander is "paralyzing his own army."
In the meantime, Major John Reisman is on trial for hijacking a shipment of steaks intended for high-ranking American officers, when Worden summons him and tells him that he is to again train twelve convicted US soldiers for a suicide mission: namely, to assassinate General Dietrich before he can assassinate Hitler. Reisman considers the idea of stopping Dietrich ludicrous, but Worden leaves him little choice, threatening to send him right back to trial if he does not cooperate.
Reisman returns to Marston Tyne Military Prison to select a new dirty dozen, again with the help of MP
Sergeant Clyde Bowren. Although he initially selects thirteen prisoners or baker's dozen.
The New Dozen
Reisman and Bowren gather the selected soldiers together at a disused train station. Initially, there are thirteen of them but one volunteer is insubordinate and Reisman has him taken back to prison, bringing the number back down to twelve. He trains the group how to storm a train, assault the guards, and find and kill Dietrich. Initially they train only with wooden guns and rubber grenades but when General Worden informs Reisman that their schedule has been bumped up, Reisman gives the men real guns. There is mild strife when, during a German air raid
, convict Louis Valentine (Ken Wahl
) attempts to escape. However, Sixkiller and Wells capture him and beat him up, before bringing him back and explaining to Reisman he was merely sleepwalking.
Dressed as elite German soldiers, Reisman and the Dozen (this time without Sergeant Bowren, who remains behind) fly to a German-held French airfield and land, where they will take a bus
. Realizing a Wehrmacht soldier who was black would give them away, Reisman has Dregors bandage his face as though wounded. However his hands are bare, and a Gestapo
agent notices them and sounds an alarm, forcing the Dozen to escape in the bus. The Gestapo agent and several German soldiers pursue them.
During the chase, Wright attempts to murder Reisman but instead is shot and killed by Sixkiller. The bus driver is killed, causing a crash that claims the life of Anderson. However, they manage to fend off their pursuers with grenades. Hiking through the French countryside, they find a bullet-riddled Nazi staff car and get it running, though it later breaks down.
Because of the bus crash, they are behind schedule and Dietrich's train has already left. Most of the group want to scrap the mission, especially after an encounter with a German patrol that ends badly because, like the Gestapo agent at the airport, the lieutenant in command notices Dregors. Reisman however tells his men that there is a shipment of gold
aboard the train, prompting them to change their minds. They agree to continue the mission.
Aboard the train, Dietrich discovers that his longtime second-in-command Colonel Schmidt is suspicious of his motives. Fearing that Schmidt will out him as a traitor, Dietrich shoots and kills the other officer. The train arrives at a depot where it is met by hundreds of German troops. Arriving and taking shelter behind a stone wall, the Dozen watch in puzzlement. Reisman reveals he lied about the gold, angering his men. They wonder, then, if there is no treasure, why are there so many soldiers just to meet one general. They get their answer when a plane lands carrying none other than Hitler himself.
Dregors contemplates disobeying orders and shooting Hitler instead of Dietrich. Reisman however tells him if he kills Hitler, the war will just "go on and on." So, Dregors follows orders and shoots Dietrich with a sniper rifle. Chaos follows as Nazi officers bundle Hitler into a car and escape, while the soldiers attack the Dozen, who, rather than flee, recklessly attack the train, believing it to indeed contain treasure. It does contain treasure of a sort: priceless paintings and Beethoven's original piano, however these items are much too large to take with them amidst all the fighting.
They escape in the plane Hitler arrived in. During the run for the plane, everyone except for Reisman, Dregors, Perkins, Valentine and the pilot Wells are killed, although Dregors is shot in the stomach. During the trip back, Dregors dies from his wounds, and Reisman finds a briefcase tucked under a seat, containing top-secret intelligence information as well as a bag of jewels, which he agrees to split with the three remaining men.
The plane develops engine problems as they approach England but Wells manages to land them safely. Still in their uniforms, they depart, and are held at gunpoint by a farmer who thinks they are Nazis, until Reisman speaks English. The farmer tells them of a good pub in the nearby town, and Reisman agrees to buy them all a round of drinks.
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to the original Dirty Dozen
The Dirty Dozen
The Dirty Dozen is a 1967 film directed by Robert Aldrich and released by MGM. It was filmed in England and features an ensemble cast, including Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jim Brown, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas, and Robert Webber. The film is based on E. M...
. It reunited Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin
Lee Marvin was an American film actor. Known for his gravelly voice, white hair and 6' 2" stature, Marvin at first did supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers and other hardboiled characters, but after winning an Academy Award for Best Actor for his dual roles in Cat Ballou , he landed more...
, Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Borgnine is an American actor of television and film. His career has spanned more than six decades. He was an unconventional lead in many films of the 1950s, including his Academy Award-winning turn in the 1955 film Marty...
and Richard Jaeckel
Richard Jaeckel
Richard Hanley Jaeckel was an American actor of film and television.-Life and career:Jaeckel was born in Long Beach, New York. A short, but tough guy, he played a variety of characters during his fifty years in movies & television and became one of Hollywood's best known character actors...
18 years after the original hit war film
War film
War films are a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. At times war films focus on daily military or civilian life in wartime without depicting battles...
. Marvin returns to lead an all-new dirty dozen on a mission to assassinate an SS General played by Wolf Kahler
Wolf Kahler
Wolf Kahler is a German actor.Born in Kiel, since 1975 he has appeared in many US and UK television and film productions. Due to his height - he is 6 feet 2 inches tall - sharp features, blond hair and blue eyes he is often cast in roles as Nazis or other unsympathetic German characters...
. It was directed by Andrew V. McLaglen.
Synopsis
In 1944, in German-occupied France, Waffen-SSWaffen-SS
The Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
General Dietrich (Wolf Kahler
Wolf Kahler
Wolf Kahler is a German actor.Born in Kiel, since 1975 he has appeared in many US and UK television and film productions. Due to his height - he is 6 feet 2 inches tall - sharp features, blond hair and blue eyes he is often cast in roles as Nazis or other unsympathetic German characters...
) plots with other ranking Nazi officials to make a second attempt on Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
's life.
In England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, General Worden learns of the plot through the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
. He and other Allied generals are worried that if Dietrich assassinates Hitler, capable Nazi commanders will continue the war beyond 1945. Worden considers Hitler "their best ally," because his incompetence as a military commander is "paralyzing his own army."
In the meantime, Major John Reisman is on trial for hijacking a shipment of steaks intended for high-ranking American officers, when Worden summons him and tells him that he is to again train twelve convicted US soldiers for a suicide mission: namely, to assassinate General Dietrich before he can assassinate Hitler. Reisman considers the idea of stopping Dietrich ludicrous, but Worden leaves him little choice, threatening to send him right back to trial if he does not cooperate.
Reisman returns to Marston Tyne Military Prison to select a new dirty dozen, again with the help of MP
Military police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
Sergeant Clyde Bowren. Although he initially selects thirteen prisoners or baker's dozen.
The New Dozen
- Sam Sixkiller is an Native AmericanIndigenous peoples of the AmericasThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
GI who has managed to win nearly every medal going, but on the downside he's been imprisoned for numerous offences including drunk on duty and going AWOL. Sixkiller is the replacement for the character Samson Posey of the original film. - Arlen Dregors is a black soldier and former PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
police detective who murdered a white lieutenant that had raped a FrenchFrench peopleThe French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
girl. His marksmanship skills make Reisman choose him to be the team's sniper. Dregors role as the black GI is a replacement for the character of Robert Jefferson from the first film. - Otto Deutsch is a German-born American citizen who killed a sergeant in a bar brawl because the other soldier had called him a "fat krautKrautKraut is a German word recorded in English from 1918 onwards as a derogatory term for a German, particularly a German soldier during World War I and World War II. Its earlier meaning in English was as a synonym for sauerkraut, a traditional German and central European food.- Etymological...
." He had been drinking after receiving news that anti-GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
protesters had bombed his family's bakery, resulting in the death of his sister. Otto demands the right to "die like an American soldier," a right Reisman promises him. - Louis Valentine is an embittered jazz musician who sees the world as being against him. He's also a racist bigot who regularly clashes with Dregors until they both see combat.
- Robert Wright is a rapist who murdered a woman who, he claims, "liked it." Reisman barely contains his disdain for Wright (presumably because he reminds him far too much of the unstable Archer Maggott, his prototype in the original movie), prompting Wright to attack Reisman. Reisman subdues the convict, putting him in his place. Wright silently vows to kill Reisman the first chance he gets.
- Tommy Wells is a Southern crop duster pilot who collected 'souvenirs' from dead German soldiers. He expresses disdain at being "caged up," and, much like Otto, wants nothing more than to prove his worth in battle. Despite Reisman being impressed with the former pilot's zeal, he soon works out that Wells isn't the cleverest member of the group.
- Conrad E. Perkins is imprisoned for robbery from the corpses of dead American soldiers. Reisman vows to kill Perkins himself at first. Along with Wright and Valentine, Perkins is one of the main troublemakers in the dozen.
- Didier Le Clair and Gary Rosen are both deserters, with Le Clair deserting from the French Army. The group is completed by GIs Anderson, Baxley, Reynolds and Sanders.
Reisman and Bowren gather the selected soldiers together at a disused train station. Initially, there are thirteen of them but one volunteer is insubordinate and Reisman has him taken back to prison, bringing the number back down to twelve. He trains the group how to storm a train, assault the guards, and find and kill Dietrich. Initially they train only with wooden guns and rubber grenades but when General Worden informs Reisman that their schedule has been bumped up, Reisman gives the men real guns. There is mild strife when, during a German air raid
Strategic bombing
Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in a total war with the goal of defeating an enemy nation-state by destroying its economic ability and public will to wage war rather than destroying its land or naval forces...
, convict Louis Valentine (Ken Wahl
Ken Wahl
Ken Wahl is an American film and television actor, popular in the 1980s and 1990s. He twice won the title of Sexiest Man on TV, earned an Emmy nomination and won a Golden Globe.-Career:...
) attempts to escape. However, Sixkiller and Wells capture him and beat him up, before bringing him back and explaining to Reisman he was merely sleepwalking.
Dressed as elite German soldiers, Reisman and the Dozen (this time without Sergeant Bowren, who remains behind) fly to a German-held French airfield and land, where they will take a bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
. Realizing a Wehrmacht soldier who was black would give them away, Reisman has Dregors bandage his face as though wounded. However his hands are bare, and a Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
agent notices them and sounds an alarm, forcing the Dozen to escape in the bus. The Gestapo agent and several German soldiers pursue them.
During the chase, Wright attempts to murder Reisman but instead is shot and killed by Sixkiller. The bus driver is killed, causing a crash that claims the life of Anderson. However, they manage to fend off their pursuers with grenades. Hiking through the French countryside, they find a bullet-riddled Nazi staff car and get it running, though it later breaks down.
Because of the bus crash, they are behind schedule and Dietrich's train has already left. Most of the group want to scrap the mission, especially after an encounter with a German patrol that ends badly because, like the Gestapo agent at the airport, the lieutenant in command notices Dregors. Reisman however tells his men that there is a shipment of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
aboard the train, prompting them to change their minds. They agree to continue the mission.
Aboard the train, Dietrich discovers that his longtime second-in-command Colonel Schmidt is suspicious of his motives. Fearing that Schmidt will out him as a traitor, Dietrich shoots and kills the other officer. The train arrives at a depot where it is met by hundreds of German troops. Arriving and taking shelter behind a stone wall, the Dozen watch in puzzlement. Reisman reveals he lied about the gold, angering his men. They wonder, then, if there is no treasure, why are there so many soldiers just to meet one general. They get their answer when a plane lands carrying none other than Hitler himself.
Dregors contemplates disobeying orders and shooting Hitler instead of Dietrich. Reisman however tells him if he kills Hitler, the war will just "go on and on." So, Dregors follows orders and shoots Dietrich with a sniper rifle. Chaos follows as Nazi officers bundle Hitler into a car and escape, while the soldiers attack the Dozen, who, rather than flee, recklessly attack the train, believing it to indeed contain treasure. It does contain treasure of a sort: priceless paintings and Beethoven's original piano, however these items are much too large to take with them amidst all the fighting.
They escape in the plane Hitler arrived in. During the run for the plane, everyone except for Reisman, Dregors, Perkins, Valentine and the pilot Wells are killed, although Dregors is shot in the stomach. During the trip back, Dregors dies from his wounds, and Reisman finds a briefcase tucked under a seat, containing top-secret intelligence information as well as a bag of jewels, which he agrees to split with the three remaining men.
The plane develops engine problems as they approach England but Wells manages to land them safely. Still in their uniforms, they depart, and are held at gunpoint by a farmer who thinks they are Nazis, until Reisman speaks English. The farmer tells them of a good pub in the nearby town, and Reisman agrees to buy them all a round of drinks.
Trivia
- This is the second of four times that Michael SheardMichael SheardMichael Sheard was a Scottish actor who featured in a large number of films and television programmes.-Early life:...
has portrayed Adolf Hitler - Just like in McLaglen's The Wild GeeseThe Wild GeeseThe Wild Geese is a British 1978 film about a group of mercenaries in Africa. It stars Richard Burton, Roger Moore, Richard Harris and Hardy Krüger...
, the ending contains a rush for an aeroplane where many of the protagonists are killed and one dies on the plane just as they're about to reach safety. And of course the plane runs out of fuel and the pilot lands the plane on one engine. - Dietrich is named for the real Sepp DietrichSepp DietrichJosef "Sepp" Dietrich was a German SS General. He was one of Nazi Germany's most decorated soldiers and commanded formations up to Army level during World War II. Prior to 1929 he was Adolf Hitler's chauffeur and bodyguard but received rapid promotion after his participation in the murder of...
. - Wolf Kahler also portrayed the fictional Nazi Colonel Dietrich in Raiders of the Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford. It is the first film in the Indiana Jones franchise...
.
Cast
- Lee MarvinLee MarvinLee Marvin was an American film actor. Known for his gravelly voice, white hair and 6' 2" stature, Marvin at first did supporting roles, mostly villains, soldiers and other hardboiled characters, but after winning an Academy Award for Best Actor for his dual roles in Cat Ballou , he landed more...
as Major John Riseman - Ernest BorgnineErnest BorgnineErnest Borgnine is an American actor of television and film. His career has spanned more than six decades. He was an unconventional lead in many films of the 1950s, including his Academy Award-winning turn in the 1955 film Marty...
as Major General Worden - Richard JaeckelRichard JaeckelRichard Hanley Jaeckel was an American actor of film and television.-Life and career:Jaeckel was born in Long Beach, New York. A short, but tough guy, he played a variety of characters during his fifty years in movies & television and became one of Hollywood's best known character actors...
as Master Sgt. Clyde Bowren - Ken WahlKen WahlKen Wahl is an American film and television actor, popular in the 1980s and 1990s. He twice won the title of Sexiest Man on TV, earned an Emmy nomination and won a Golden Globe.-Career:...
as convictConvictA convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison", sometimes referred to in slang as simply a "con". Convicts are often called prisoners or inmates. Persons convicted and sentenced to non-custodial sentences often are not termed...
Louis Valentine - Sonny LandhamSonny LandhamWilliam M. "Sonny" Landham is an American movie actor and political candidate.-Acting career:At the beginning of his acting career, Landham was an actor in pornographic films...
as convict Sam Sixkiller - Larry WilcoxLarry WilcoxLarry Wilcox is an American actor, best known for his role as Officer Jonathan "Jon" Baker in CHiPs, an American television series.-Military service:...
as convict Tommy Wells - Ricco RossRicco RossRicco Ross is an American actor. Ricco was born in Chicago, Il. at Cook County Hospital, is the 5th of 8 children with three additional step sisters and another brother from his father and with his first wife. He begin acting in a local high school production...
as convict Arlen Dregors - Gavan O'HerlihyGavan O'HerlihyGavan O'Herlihy is an Irish actor.O'Herlihy was born in Dublin, the son of Elsa Bennett and Irish actor Dan O'Herlihy. In his youth, he was an avid tennis player, and even became Irish National Tennis Champion...
as convict Conrad E. Perkins - Jay BenedictJay BenedictJay Benedict is an American actor, best known in the United Kingdom for his role as Captain John Kieffer in Foyle's War .He has lived and worked in Europe since the 1960s...
as convict Didier le Clair - Stephen Hattersley as convict Otto Deutsch
- Rolf Saxon as convict Robert E. Wright
- Wolf KahlerWolf KahlerWolf Kahler is a German actor.Born in Kiel, since 1975 he has appeared in many US and UK television and film productions. Due to his height - he is 6 feet 2 inches tall - sharp features, blond hair and blue eyes he is often cast in roles as Nazis or other unsympathetic German characters...
as S.S. General Sepp Dietrich