Desert Commandos (1967)

aka: Attentato Ai Tre Grandi
Dir: Umberto Lenzi

When I think of Umberto Lenzi, and who doesn't on a sunny spring day like today, the film where I first read his name in the credits, the outrageous fast zombies NIGHTMARE CITY, will come to mind. Seeking out more of the Italian's films I picked up his two entries into the 80's cannibal cycle EATEN ALIVE! and CANNIBAL FEROX. Then I discovered that the man directed giallos, and poliziotteschi. Lenzi directed films in many different genres and it wasn't until a couple of decades after discovering him that I delved into his macaroni war output with the Italian / German / French co-production DESERT COMMANDOS.

Nazi command has learned that the 'Big 3' of Roosevelt, Churchill and de Gaulle will be meeting at a conference in Casablanca, Morocco. They assemble a crack team of soldiers led by the stoic Captain Fritz Schoeller (Ken ATTACK OF THE KILLER LEECHES Clark). Second in command is Lt. Roland Wolf (Horst THE CAT O' NINE TAILS Frank). Third in line of command is the demolitions expert Sgt. Erich Huber (Carlo MEAN FRANK AND CRAZY TONY Hinterman). Rounding out the five man commando crew are a couple of privates who don't do much other than get bossed around. Too many chiefs and not enough Indians.

The commando squad is dropped behind enemy lines dressed as British soldiers. They are to cross the desert, meet their contact at an oasis and then make their way to Casablanca. At the oasis they learn that their contact died in a car accident and it's up to his daughter Fadoja Hassen (Jeanne Valerie) to aid in the Axis mission. At an outpost outside Casablanca they cross paths with a German sympathizer Simone (Fabienne KILL BABY, KILL Dali) who owns a nightclub in the city. She agrees to help them enter the city but it's slowly becoming apparent that someone in the group has tipped off the British.

Lenzi's direction is deft and he keeps the action coming quickly. Toss in a bit of thriller element with a possible double agent and a little bit of forbidden romance between Lt Wolf and Hassen and this makes for a decent war film. The choice to have German soldiers as the protagonists (I will not go so far as to say heroes) of the film and is an interesting one. We want to see the characters we've been following succeed but they fight for the wrong side! The conflict onscreen between the do anything to enable success of the mission Capt. Scholler and the American sympathizer and Jew lover Lt. Wolf is echoed in the mind of the viewer.

Two decades ago I was all about Lenzi's gory horror output but he was a far more rounded director than I gave him credit for.

**1/2 out of ****