The Secret Invasion (1964)

Crappy film

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

See it- Raise your hand if you like a rousing World War 2 suicide mission movie. Well here's one you may not have even heard of. A team of soldiers with special skills attempt to tunnel into a Nazi fortress to break out an Italian prisoner of war. When things go wrong, they must use their skills to make one last desperate attempt to accomplish their mission. Great action scenes include a rooftop gunfight, the hijacking of a Nazi boat, and a long escape/battle through the Balkan mountains. Unfortunately, like all good B-movies, it has its share of corny moments. For instance one of the soldier's special skills is forgery. It's kind of hard not to chuckle when the soldier, after being tortured, says with a straight face, "It's okay, they didn't hurt my writing hand." This war film has no huge movie stars, but familiar faces include Stewart Granger, Raf Vallone, Mickey Rooney, and Henry Silva. 3.5 action rating.

I saw this one today and I was very surprised by the film. Not only does it have a theme reminiscent of the later Dirty Dozen, but there's a scene towards the beginning that smacks of the Guns of Naverone. The casting is surprisingly top notch and I was overall pleased with the entire film. Stewart Granger is Good as the troubled British officer out for revenge. I loved Mickey Rooney, who seemed to be having the time of his life as an IRA demolition expert. The other members of the cast rounded out an almost perfect ensemble with notable mention to William Campbell & Edd Byrne. The only thing I found odd about this film was the speed at which the actors found themselves on their secret mission. It seemed within 20 minutes they were introduced, trained, and already in enemy waters. Other than that, it was a solid WW2 movie with plenty of action! I HIGHLY recommend it.

Stewart Granger, Raf Vallone, Mickey Rooney, William Campbell,Edd Byrnes, and Henry Silva are part of "The Secret Invasion," directed by Roger Corman. Vallone, Rooney, Campbell and Silva are prisoners who are brought in as part of a mission to free an Italian general, who was about to turn on the Nazis and turn his army over to the allies and is now being held by the Nazis. Granger, as Major Mace, is put in charge of them. If they don't die, they will win their amnesty.The levels of commitment vary among the men. The organizer, Rocca (Vallone) is a brilliant man who is dedicated to the mission, while Simon Fell (Byrnes), a forger, is not and tries to escape. Mickey Rooney plays the munitions expert, a cheerful Irishman, and Henry Silva plays an assassin, Durrell, who, although quiet, has feelings that run very deep. Saval (Campbell) doesn't trust him.While this is a derivative movie, it's filled with action, some good characters, sadness, and violence. Corman paces it well. On a side note, because I know German, the German spoken was perfect and, unlike Das Boot, easy to understand.Corman made this on a low budget, and the actors' performances vary as a result of not being able to fill this movie with an all-star cast. Edd Byrnes leaves a lot to be desired. I remember William Campbell from my childhood in a TV series called "Canonball" - actually, his big claim to fame is that he was married to JFK-Sam Giancana girlfriend Judith Exner. Granger, Vallone, Rooney and Silva are excellent as are the members of the German cast.Good drama, good war story.

This film was a big disappointment. It lacked energy, a good cast, involvement and enthusiasm. I blame most of this on the director and an equal amount on the editor. It was chock full of bad cuts and continuity errors, e.g. the key scene where Henry Silva quiets the crying infant. Silva, Raf Vallone and a few others were the only assets to the cast. It was Stewart Granger, Mickey Rooney and above all Edd "Kookie" Byrnes whose acting was really bad. The script was very badly written and formulaic. The film might've worked with better casting, directing, and a better script, but I doubt it very much as this type of story has been told before and with more energy. Its only pluses were a decent score and excellent cinematography. All in all this was a 'bust'!