The Dirty Dozen

The Dirty Dozen (1967) is Robert Aldrich's war epic you can watch online on iFILM. On the eve of the Normandy invasion, Major Reisman is handed an impossible job: turn twelve convicted soldiers, all facing the gallows, into a commando unit.

The men are murderers, rapists and troublemakers offered one deal — survive a suicide raid and walk free. First they have to be broken down and rebuilt as a fighting squad. Lee Marvin plays the major who drills the dozen into shape, then leads them behind enemy lines to hit a château full of German officers. The lineup is stacked: Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, John Cassavetes, Telly Savalas and a young Donald Sutherland.

The film set the template for the whole misfits-on-a-mission genre, copied for decades right up to Inglourious Basterds. Cassavetes earned an Oscar nomination for his role. Tough, sardonic and refreshingly un-heroic combat cinema. Stream The Dirty Dozen (1967) online on iFILM.