Intercutting dramatic vignettes with newsreel footage, the story follows the characters from an infantry squad as they make their way from Sicily to Germany during the end of World War II.
Direction
Foreman's deliberate pacing weaponizes boredom into dread.
Writing
The Christmas Eve execution scene—devastating structural genius.
Acting
Eli Wallach carries the film's broken soul on his shoulders.
Director
Carl Foreman
Eli Wallach
Sgt. Craig
George Hamilton
Trower
George Peppard
Cpl. Chase
Jeanne Moreau
French Woman
Romy Schneider
Regine
Maurice Ronet
French Lieutenant
Peter Fonda
Weaver
Albert Finney
Russian Soldier
Vince Edwards
Baker
Melina Mercouri
Magda
Rosanna Schiaffino
Maria
Elke Sommer
Helga
Michael Callan
Eldridge
James Mitchum
Grogan
Senta Berger
Trudi
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Columbia Pictures slashed the runtime from 175 to 154 minutes for US release, destroying Foreman's cross-cutting structure.
Released months after JFK's assassination, its unpatriotic honesty made it box office poison during peak Vietnam escalation.
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