The Secret Invasion (1964)

The Nazis imprison an Italian general who was planning to switch sides and turn over his army to the Allied side. Allied headquarters sends a small, somewhat misfit group of soldiers to ... See full summary »

Director:

Roger Corman

Writer:

R. Wright Campbell

Stars:

Stewart Granger, Raf Vallone, Mickey Rooney

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Stewart Granger	...	Maj. Richard Mace
Raf Vallone	...	Roberto Rocca - Organizer
Mickey Rooney	...	Terence Scanlon - Demolition
Edd Byrnes	...	Simon Fell - Forger
Henry Silva	...	John Durrell - Assassin
Spela Rozin	...	Mila (as Mia Massini)
William Campbell	...	Jean Saval
Helmo Kindermann	...	German Fortress Commandant
Enzo Fiermonte	...	Gen. Quadri
Peter Coe	...	Marko - Resistance Leader
Nan Morris	...	Stephana
Helmuth Schneider	...	German Patrol Boat Captain (as Helmut Schneider)
Giulio Marchetti	...	Italian Officer
Nicholas Rend	...	Captain of Fishing Boat
Craig March

Storyline

The Nazis imprison an Italian general who was planning to switch sides and turn over his army to the Allied side. Allied headquarters sends a small, somewhat misfit group of soldiers to spring the general from prison and carry out his plans.

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Plot Keywords:

general | nazi | prison | soldier | martial arts | 

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Taglines:

The Daring Plan; The Staggering Odds!

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German Italian

Release Date:

12 February 1965 (Norway)

Also Known As:

The Dubious Patriots

Filming Locations:

Dubrovnik, Croatia, Yugoslavia

Box Office

Budget:

$600,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Corman Company, The, San Carlos Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filmed in Yugoslavia, with much of the location work done in the Croatian city of Dubrovnik.

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Goofs

Aside from the military uniforms, all clothing worn by both the cast and the extras is current fashion, circa early 1960s.

User Reviews

A few notches above the average adventure.

This film is well directed by Roger Corman and has a great plot with some good twists. The Yugoslavian location filming adds to the enjoyment, there's plenty of action and the pace is fast. The top notch cast is what really puts it over. Mickey Rooney is excellent as Scanlon and provides much of the humor. Edd Byrnes, Stewart Granger, William Campbell and Henry Silva give solid performances and Raf Vallone adds an introspective quality that raises this film a few notches above the average adventure. My favorite quote is from his character, "Who will free it from us and who will free us from ourselves."

If you're not initially nuts about this flick like I was, be patient. I went to see this in 1964 with my cousin. It was my second time seeing it but her first. About twenty minutes into it I said to myself, "Boy, this is a good movie." "It is," she questioned in an unconvinced tone, but fifteen minutes later she nudged me and said very enthusiastically, "You're right! This is a good movie!"

It is also one of the first films I remember from the 60's that dabbled in graphic violence. Although there are only a few, the scenes were shocking and tense in 1964 and still strike a chord now.

The Dirty Dozen(1967), which I also like very much, may be the best known of the two but the Secret Invasion was a forerunner of the genre and in my estimation is the better film.