NINE MEN 1943
This is one of the best productions to come out Britain during World War Two. It is a neatly done film which uses service personal in the roles.
This one starts with a Sgt at a training barracks, Jack Lambert, telling the new recruits about a battle in North Africa he had been in. It is late 1941, Lambert along with eight others, are crossing the desert in a truck. The vehicle becomes bogged down in the deep sand. The men jump out to push. The truck is set upon by two German fighters who strafe the truck and men. Two of the men are wounded and the truck set alight.
The men manage to pull their weapons, a little ammo and a few canteens of water out of the blazing truck. The officer of the group is among the wounded. The section Sgt, Lambert, takes charge and they set off toward their lines carrying the two wounded.
A vicious sand storm brews up and the group loses their bearings. They however stumble onto a small abandoned building and take shelter inside. The storm blows its self out by the next morning. The officer has died of his wounds during the night and the men bury him outside the building.
As the British prepare to move on, a group of Italians soldiers approach them out of the desert. The British open fire killing several and putting the others to flight. Lambert is not sure just how many Italians there are, and decides to hole up for a bit. The other wounded man has taken a bad turn and needs further rest. The men watch the dunes for any enemy movement. The Italians at the moment are quite happy just sniping at the British.
The Italians try a quick assault just before dark, but are shot to pieces by the British who are firing from cover. They then try to have a go during the night with a light armoured car. The one Brit, Grant Sutherland though is a wiz with the Boys anti-tank rifle they have. He puts a few .55 calibre rounds into the armoured car, disabling same. Lambert sends off one of the men towards the British lines to fetch help. The Brits can see the Italians gathering in ever growing numbers.
Lambert figures the Italians will soon try and swamp them. The Brits are out of water and down to about 15 rounds each. The other wounded man has also succumbed to his wounds. Lambert has two of the men take all the grenades and hide in the dunes outside the building. If the Italians attack, they are to toss all the grenades and scream like they are a dozen men. Hopefully they can bluff the Italians into thinking they are a large group.
That evening, the Italians do come a calling again. The night is soon ablaze with rifle fire, yelling and grenade blasts. The trick works and the Italians pull back. The Brits though are down to 4 or 5 rounds apiece. The Italians attack the building the next morning. In response, Lambert leads his men out for a bayonet charge.
It looks like the end of the British, but the Italians get a rude shock as British reinforcements arrive, along with a pair of tanks. There is a quick dust up with the Italian bunch being knocked back on their heels. Some are killed, others run, but most raise their arms and surrender. The surviving men, led by Lambert, are loaded on a lorry for a trip back to their base.
The rest of the cast includes. Fred Piper, John Varley, Jack Horsman, Bill Blewitt, Eric Miklewood, Richard Wilkinson and a 20 year old Gordon Jackson.
The director of this excellent film was Harry Watt. A former documentary film maker, (TARGET FOR TONIGHT) Watt keeps the pace even and shows a solid hand with the action sequences.
The lead, Jack Lambert had a long film career being of screen from 1931 to 1975.
This is one of the best productions to come out Britain during World War Two. It is a neatly done film which uses service personal in the roles.
This one starts with a Sgt at a training barracks, Jack Lambert, telling the new recruits about a battle in North Africa he had been in. It is late 1941, Lambert along with eight others, are crossing the desert in a truck. The vehicle becomes bogged down in the deep sand. The men jump out to push. The truck is set upon by two German fighters who strafe the truck and men. Two of the men are wounded and the truck set alight.
The men manage to pull their weapons, a little ammo and a few canteens of water out of the blazing truck. The officer of the group is among the wounded. The section Sgt, Lambert, takes charge and they set off toward their lines carrying the two wounded.
A vicious sand storm brews up and the group loses their bearings. They however stumble onto a small abandoned building and take shelter inside. The storm blows its self out by the next morning. The officer has died of his wounds during the night and the men bury him outside the building.
As the British prepare to move on, a group of Italians soldiers approach them out of the desert. The British open fire killing several and putting the others to flight. Lambert is not sure just how many Italians there are, and decides to hole up for a bit. The other wounded man has taken a bad turn and needs further rest. The men watch the dunes for any enemy movement. The Italians at the moment are quite happy just sniping at the British.
The Italians try a quick assault just before dark, but are shot to pieces by the British who are firing from cover. They then try to have a go during the night with a light armoured car. The one Brit, Grant Sutherland though is a wiz with the Boys anti-tank rifle they have. He puts a few .55 calibre rounds into the armoured car, disabling same. Lambert sends off one of the men towards the British lines to fetch help. The Brits can see the Italians gathering in ever growing numbers.
Lambert figures the Italians will soon try and swamp them. The Brits are out of water and down to about 15 rounds each. The other wounded man has also succumbed to his wounds. Lambert has two of the men take all the grenades and hide in the dunes outside the building. If the Italians attack, they are to toss all the grenades and scream like they are a dozen men. Hopefully they can bluff the Italians into thinking they are a large group.
That evening, the Italians do come a calling again. The night is soon ablaze with rifle fire, yelling and grenade blasts. The trick works and the Italians pull back. The Brits though are down to 4 or 5 rounds apiece. The Italians attack the building the next morning. In response, Lambert leads his men out for a bayonet charge.
It looks like the end of the British, but the Italians get a rude shock as British reinforcements arrive, along with a pair of tanks. There is a quick dust up with the Italian bunch being knocked back on their heels. Some are killed, others run, but most raise their arms and surrender. The surviving men, led by Lambert, are loaded on a lorry for a trip back to their base.
The rest of the cast includes. Fred Piper, John Varley, Jack Horsman, Bill Blewitt, Eric Miklewood, Richard Wilkinson and a 20 year old Gordon Jackson.
The director of this excellent film was Harry Watt. A former documentary film maker, (TARGET FOR TONIGHT) Watt keeps the pace even and shows a solid hand with the action sequences.
The lead, Jack Lambert had a long film career being of screen from 1931 to 1975.