Alien Outpost (2013)

Dir: Jabbar Raisani

In 2021 aliens invaded the Earth and by 2033 they have been beaten back to a few strongholds by the United Space Defense Force (USDF), a collective of the world's soldiers. Orbital satellites help defend the Earth from further intrusions by the aliens preventing reinforcements from landing. Feeling safe now after years of fighting and devastation, the world begins to forget that the fight is still ongoing in remote corners of the planet.

Two documentary film makers grab their cameras and tag along with a USDF squad being sent to Outpost 37 (the original title of the film), one of the few remaining bases still engaging the enemy, located in a DMZ between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Yes, this is a mockumentary or found footage film. And yes, there are shots where it would have been impossible for the documentarians to have captured the shot. We follow the yet to be battle tested squad from their last few days at home prior to being sent into action to their arrival at Outpost 37, and through the bases' destruction. Interspersed are interviews with the squad.

Visual effects artist turned director Jabbar Raisani does a fine job of capturing the look and feel of a military base under attack both the locals and aliens, forgotten by a war weary world. That look and the squad interviews reminded me of the documentary RESTREPO (2010) about a platoon of soldiers manning an outpost in Afghanistan. The action scenes are nicely done despite the low budget being obvious at times (in a shot of an artillery bombardment of a valley filled with attacking locals it's easy to see that the enemy are propped up dummies). The scrip however really needed another pass or two. The alien invaders, nicknamed 'heavies', come across as more bumbling than menacing as they stand in the open and seemingly fire their advanced weaponry randomly. The on camera interviews with the soldiers confused the timeline of events for me as they jumble past and present.

An interesting idea not fully formed.

**1/2 out of ****

Sven Hassel's Wheels Of Terror (1987)

aka: The Misfit Brigade
Dir: Gordon Hessler

Cpl Porta looking very refined

The German 27th Panzer is a penal brigade made up of murderers, thieves, sister fuckers and other detritus willing to swap prison for the Eastern front. They don't fight for Hitler or an ideology, they fight to survive. The company of battle weary drunkards is portrayed by Bruce (WILLARD) Davison, D.W. (FALLING DOWN) Moffett, David Patrick (THE WARRIORS) Kelly, Slavko (CROSS OF IRON) Stimac, and Jay O. (THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW) Sanders with Yugoslavian actors filling out the remainder of the crews.

The film is more episodic than driven by a specific plot thread. The soldiers get drunk and get into a fight. They get drunk, visit a brothel and get into a fight. At mess they get into a fight. It's not until crazed Cpl. Porta (Davison) challenges Col. Von Weisshagen while on guard duty and places him under arrest for not providing a password that the company is given a mission. They are to travel deep behind enemy lines and blow up a train. In exchange for completing the suicidal task the Col. promises to transfer the 'volunteers' to some part of the war safer than the Eastern front. They don't trust the Col. but the horror of the Eastern front has nearly crushed their souls so they see little other option than to accept the mission and the glimmer of hope of leaving the meat grinder behind.

The film's title comes from the second of fourteen books that Danish born Sven Hassel wrote about WWII. Hassel left Denmark for Germany and joined the army shortly before war broke out. His novels recount his experiences during the war but I'm not sure how much poetic license he applied in telling the dark and darkly comedic tale of the penal brigade. As I have read and immensely enjoyed a couple of the novels and with a screenplay written by Nelson Gidding (THE HAUNTING) and the film directed by Gordon Hessler (who did everything from working with Alfred Hitchcock to directing Kiss to helming the LITTLE WOMEN mini series) I was really looking forward to the film. Throw in David Carradine and Oliver Reed and this should have been a winning combination. Carradine is only in the film for a few scenes and Reed doesn't show up until the very end. The tank battles aren't very exciting and a bit confusing as to which tank is where. Only the character of Porta feels fleshed out but Tiny (Sanders) a dim witted demolition school drop out hulking brute makes an impression.

There's enough in the film to recommend it to war fans but I'd like someone to take another crack at bringing Hassel's vision to the screen. In the mean time I'll stick with the similar but far superior CROSS OF IRON.

**1/2 out of ****

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 ****

The Liberator (2013)

aka: Libertador
Dir: Alberto Arvelo

With a tagline stating that Simon Bolivar 'fought over 100 battles against the Spanish Empire' and a poster that featured soldiers with raised weapons I rented the film thinking it would be an historical epic depicting the clash of thousands. Director Alberto Arvelo's biographical THE LIBERATOR is a bit more bio and drama than action.

Edgar Ramirez (DELIVER US FROM EVIL) stars as Simon Bolivar, who was born in Venezuela in 1785 to a wealthy family and partially educated in Europe. Through Venezuelan teachers and mentors and ideals encountered while in Europe, Bolivar became passionate about not only freeing Venezuela from Spanish rule but uniting all of South America. The film places emphasis on the time in Bolivar's life where his passion turned to rebellion and the guerrilla style actions fought against the Spanish. There are a number of action set pieces but only the final depicted battle approaches a grand scope.

Well shot and well made, THE LIBERATOR is an entertaining Hollywood style history lesson that never managed to completely win me over or stir my heart to free Venezuela.

** 1/2 out of ****

The Last Grenade (1970)

Dir: Gordon Flemyng

Major Harry Grigsby (Stanley ZULU Baker) and his mercenary company are bottled up at an industrial facility in the Congo. The only way out for Grigsby and his men is via the helicopter commanded by comrade in war Kip Thompson (Alex AIRWOLF Cord). But Thompson has other plans. He's switched over to the other side as they pay better. When Grigsby's men head towards the helicopter, Thompson opens up with the door machine gun mowing down the shocked mercenaries. Turning the weapon on the compound, within moments it is smashed to bits and the bits are on fire. Cursing Thompson's treachery, Grigsby swears vengeance.

Thompson about to give 'em hell

Grigsby and a few of his followers have made it back to Britain, it's not explained how. Grigsby is once again suffering from tuberculous but his illness hasn't stopped him from plotting the death of Thompson. Learning that his former comrade has been causing trouble along the Chinese border with Hong Kong, Grigsby manages to get monetary backing from Whitehall. They want Thompson dead as well but can't afford a possible political incident by attacking Thompson and his new mercenary band across the border. Grigsby gathers four of his most devoted men and heads to Hong Kong.

Groovy shirt, man

I must admit that I was expecting more of a film like DARK OF THE SUN (1968), more mercenary action than drama. When in Hong Kong Grigsby meets with the milquetoast General Charles Whiteley (Richard Attenborough) and his wife Katherine (Honor COCKNEYS VS ZOMBIES Blackman). Katherine takes a liking to the hard drinking man of action Grigsby and peruses him. In between rumpy-pumpy with the General's wife, Grigsby is repeatedly handed his arse by the far more cunning Thompson. The romance is out of place and may have only been included to explain a change of heart and tactics by Grigsby that leads up to the climatic show down between him and Thompson. The final fight is certainly expected but how it plays out is not.

Baker plays the focused, driven (consumed?) Grigsby well but was unable to sell me on the direction the romantic sub plot was headed. Cord is a hoot as the maniacally laughing, demented, Dartmouth t-shirt wearing mercenary who seemingly uses a love of money to hide his true love for inflicting pain on all creatures great and small (a scene with him feeding birds explains his character's motives remarkably well).

** 1/2 out of ****