Kelly's Heroes came across my plate when my landlord, George, mentioned that he and his brother were reminiscing over how much they loved this movie while playing cards long after the ball had dropped on New Years Eve of 2023 and decided to order it from Amazon at 3 in the morning.

George didn't even recommend that I see it, but when a film becomes so endeared upon another person's heart—especially someone who's opinion I respect— that it merits instant viewing at 3 AM, that's enough to draw my interest.

I consider myself to be an above average Clint Eastwood fan. Maybe not to the height of fanaticism, but enough to consider myself pretty loyal. Off hand, I can't remember a poor title that he has appeared in of which I have seen. That doesn't mean his catalog is absent of any duds, just that I have yet to come across such a nugget on screen.

Having said this, I was surprised that I hadn't taken the time to see Kelly's Heroes before. This movie packed one whale of a cast and went in a direction that I most definitely did not expect. I had seen the cover in movie stores before when I was a kid and just assumed it to be another war mongering battle reel from the 60's-70's era with light bloodshed and antiquated special effects.

I was quite surprised to find out that the nucleus of this story revolved around a gold heist. Even more surprising was the blatant disillusionment that was written into all of the characters (even the enemy) throughout the film, especially with the setting being World War II. The last war (it feels like) which had universal acceptance and support for having occurred. Rarely do you ever see critiques or disillusionment associated with the demise of the Axis powers in the movies. Only persistent themes of outrageous hardships, exuberant liberation, or resilient smiles on American soldiers coming home to ticker-tape parades as the spoils of victory.

The pessimism of Kelly's Heroes wasn't nearly to the level of Catch-22, Johnny Got His Gun, or All's Quiet on the Western Front (WW1). But you could tell that the soldiers had endured enough horrifying imagery and imperialistic drudgery that they no longer cared about the cause and felt that the pay scale was completely off-kilter.

One by one I found it amusing that killing Nazi's and conquering Hitler took a backseat to the contagious embracement of avarice. Everything was there for the taking and everyone—from top to bottom—was grabbing anything he could handle. The soldiers had participated in enough rallying cries and had killed their fair share of swastika baring goons to satisfy their inner judge and jury. Money—gold—in Nazi hands was ripe for the picking in a French village that, if the squadron of heroes Kelly enlisted didn't get to first, would surely fall into the hands of the government, which would then in turn only use the booty to fund another war and force the next generation of children into the throes of battle for lost causes. Why not cut out the middle man and use their skills to walk away from this mess with pockets filled to the brim of the world's most valuable commodity?

The characters were fantastic and it is difficult to imagine any part being cast by anyone else. Telly Savalas as the weathered old dog clinging desperately to a life that hasn't exactly produced a massive return on his investment of unconditional loyalty. Don Rickles as Crapgame, the scheming Supply Sargeant who's only mission in the war is to come out a buck ahead. Donald Sutherland as Oddball, the eccentric tank squadron commander who leads a platoon of equally spaced out cadets into a charge through the countryside where they blare music and terrify the opposition with paint blasts. And finally, Kelly, the calloused scapegoat who refocuses the cross hairs of his scope from Nazi's to money.

And lots of it.

After the elements are endured and the stalemate ceases enemy lines erode and everyone walks away with their fair share of the gold. Both Nazi and American a like enjoy a genuine smile that only opulence can etch while an oblivious General Colt, who was hot on the trail to…something, is falsely hailed as a hero by the liberated Frenchies who believe him to be Charles de Gualle.

In the end, everyone wins.

Stars: ****

Verdict: Watch

Cousins: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, Three Kings, Catch-22, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre