Review of Never So Few (1959) by Rodolfo R — 05 Jun 2005

Approximately 65 minutes into the picture, Steve McQueen takes off his shirt. He looks really hot in a tanktop.

And that's the high point of the picture. If you like girls instead of boys, Gina Lollobrigida has a scene in a bathtub. This is McQueen's second movie (after [i]The Blob[/i]) and the first of three he made with John Sturges featuring Charles Bronson. Those other two pictures happen to be [i]The Great Escape[/i] and [i]The Magnificent Seven[/i] and this cast includes Frank Sinatra, Paul Henreid, Peter Lawford and Dean Jones in addition to Bronson, Lollobrigida McQueen. But don't let those facts mislead you. [i]Never So Few[/i] is one boring-ass movie.

I know that there's a plot here, I just don't remember what it is. Some sort of military maneuver needs to take place, a fact that is established in the first ten minutes. Fifty-five minutes pass and McQueen takes his shirt off. Thirty-five minutes later, the maneuver takes place over the remaining 20 minutes of the film. That leaves about 90 minutes of filler. Sure, stuff happens. Sinatra romances Lollobrigida. Sinatra stands up for the rights of somebody. Jones learnes a lesson of racial tolerance from Native American Bronson. Sinatra stands up for the rights of somebody else. I have to admit that my attempt to figure out what the hell Paul Henreid was trying to accomplish with his French/Greek/German accent was diverting, but ultimately I gave up and stopped caring.

Only for completionists or those who found that you can buy The Essential Steve McQueen Collection ([i]Bullitt, The Getaway, Papillon, The Cincinnati Kid, Tom Horn, Never So Few[/i]) for the same price as any three of the films individually.

Nerts.