Remake of the 1943 Bogart film which I haven't seen so I can't compare, but believe it or not its actually a really decent film that boasts some great performances, great location work and a nice overall look of realism with uniforms, weapons and vehicles.
Belushi takes the lead as the American Sgt. Joe Gunn (nice butch name there) and really does well with his role, he's strong decisive and all American as it should be god damn it. He is accompanied by a decent assortment of character actors portraying a selection of allied soldiers from various countries including France, England, Australia and Sudan. Each of the soldiers also come from different regions in each country eg. Yorkshire and London in England.
The film is your classic gung-ho, manly, machine gun totting heroism which could easily be a propaganda tool if you think about it. All the allied soldiers are salt of earth stand up blokes who think nothing of fighting till the bitter end, standing alongside their Sgt.
Yes its a bit overblown and not too realistic as this small bunch of gruff fellas take on a whole German battalion in the middle of the Sahara (within an ancient ruin) simply to halt their progress because the Germans think there is a water filled well there. But the simplistic plot and abundant all American stars n stripes mixed with various nationalities and their own patriotic views as they band together to stop the Nazi war machine is well presented with some exciting boys own type action sequences that would make Indy proud.
With the odds stacked against them I think you can guess this small band of brothers fate, unless you've seen the Bogart version then you already know but do you really think Uncle Sam's boys would fail to stop the Germans here?
7/10
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