Review of Raid on Rommel (1971) by Stefan P — 06 Nov 2009

Yet another magnificent piece of WWII film. It is hard not to be impressed by such mega-spectacles. This time, the action takes place in the desert, where Richard Burtonâ??s character tries to raid Tobruk (occupied by the Germans).

Due to a mix-up, he gets lumbered with an army doctor, a bunch of medics and the troublesome Italian mistress of an Italian general. This set of untrained soldiers soon learn the ropes and are successful in helping Captain Forster (Burton) to deceive Rommel (the stamp collectorâ??s trick is wonderful!) and complete the mission.

The plot is clear-cut in its entirety, though on the smaller level, I was sometimes a bit confused, wondering what went on exactly. â??Raid on Rommelâ?? scores highly on special effects: the pyrotechnics department went out of its way to leave a mark (terrific images of flame-throwers, right into the camera â?? and imagine these explosions in the fuel supply area and on the coast).

Many war movies (though beautifully made) tend to be more of the same thing, but this one has a memorable line of approach and deserves to be remembered, if only for the great Richard Burton.