Kommando Leopard (1985)

User Rating:

4.5/10   

Director:

Antonio Margheriti

Writer:

Roy Nelson (screenplay)

Release Date:

24 October 1985 (West Germany)

Genre:

Action

Tagline:

Hard as stone soldiers of fortune fighting to survive

Plot:

A cruel dictator rules a Latin American state. Corruption, brutality and exploitation are present every day...

Plot Keywords:

Resistance | Guerilla | Dictator | Guerilla Warfare | Latin America

Cast

Lewis Collins	...	Carrasco
Klaus Kinski	...	Silveira
Cristina Donadio	...	Maria
Manfred Lehmann	...	Padre Julio
John Steiner	...	Smithy
Hans Leutenegger	...	Capitan
Thomas Danneberg	...	José
Francis Derosa	...	Hidalgo
Alan C. Walker	...	Emiliano
Rene Abadeza	...	Hector (as René Abadeza)
Subas Herrero	...	Homoza (as Subas Herrera)

Also Known As:

Commando Leopard

Runtime:

Norway:100 min

Country:

Italy | West Germany | Switzerland

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Norway:16 | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Maracaibo, Estado Zulia, Venezuela

Company:

Ascot Film

Trivia:

In the German version Thomas Danneberg dubbed Lewis Collins and therefore himself had to be dubbed by another actor, Rainer Brandt.

Movie Connections:

Follows Geheimcode: Wildgänse (1984)

COMMANDO LEOPARD (Antonio Margheriti, 1985) **

This is the second part of a war actioner trilogy which seems to enjoy some kind of cult status – the others being CODENAME: WILD GEESE (1984) and THE COMMANDER (1988) – and featuring the same star (Lewis Collins), producer (Jess Franco regular Erwin C. Dietrich) and director (Margheriti, who dabbled in every "Euro-Cult" subgenre there is, though he was at his best perhaps handling atmospheric Gothic chillers). Actually, it provides little more than standard heroics – albeit done on a fairly elaborate scale, with a couple of notably spectacular action sequences (including the blowing up of a dam, a stationary airplane and a moving train); allegedly, it was the most expensive Swiss-budgeted production up to that time.

Collins plays Carasco, a quasi-mythical leader of a band of revolutionary mercenaries – which include feisty Cristina Donadio, cynical John Steiner and world-weary Luciano Pigozzi (who is curiously uncredited) – up against the dictatorial regime of an unidentified Latin American state and, more specifically, Klaus Kinski's bloodthirsty militia. Another major character is that of the heroic priest (Manfred Lehmann) of a war-torn village who stands up to Kinski and, consequently, earns the respect and help of the mercenaries; the religious/political elements of the plot may be intended to give the whole a more serious tone than the typically mindless Euro-Cult fare – but we've still seen this "saintly martyr vs, cruel oppressors" scenario countless times in earlier and better Hollywood movies, so that this segment is actually more predictable than anything else.

The German 2-Disc set of the film which I happened upon at a local DVD rental outlet also contains a 50-minute "Making Of" Documentary but, unfortunately, I didn't have time to watch more than a few samples from it...