The 5-Man Army

Set during the Mexican Revolution and ruling General Huertas , a two-fisted man known only as "The Dutchman" has a scheme , to carry out a huge robbing in a train for the Mexican Army , as he teams up a motley bunch , including a veteran captain and other three colleagues to help him out by promising a $1000 reward if it succeeds . The plan turns out to be a fool's mission : rob a train carrying $500,000 that's guarded by dozens of heavily armed soldiers . Naturally, his friends agree to go along with the scheme . They must pull off the dangerous objective , as Dutchman and the ambitious drifters join forces to rob a lot of money located into an impregnable train . In the hands of hardboiled director Don Taylor and a tough-as-leather cast headed by Peter Graves of ¨Mission : impossible¨ , that's all the plot that's needed to make one rip-roaring Spaghetti Western flick . Peter Graves 's mission is two-fold and in ¨Dirty dozen¨style : first an unexpected reunion among ex-colleagues turned into a fighting unit and then turn them loose on a heavily armored train occupied by Mexican soldiers . Dutchman brings four of his old acquaintances , his crime-minded characters include Bud Spencer as a bouncing thief , the old army buddy (James Daly) expert on explosives , an escaped acrobat (Nino Castelnuovo) , and a swordsman samurai (Tetsuro Tamba , who acted in ¨ James Bond's You Only Live Twice¨ also playing a Samurai) expert on daggers . The first half of the film allows the colorful cast of character actors to have their fun as they get their tails whipped into shape and develop shaky relationship with their leader . It will be a long and dangerous mission with continuous risks , as the final part is all action, as the motley group aboard a train , there wreak havoc , passes through a steady stream of military checkpoints and then run for their lives .

Pretty good S.W. about a relentless and exciting caper set against spectacular scenery of Almeria . The dangerous assignment is set against stark environment , risked railway and hazardous trails . This Western is superior than subsequent Spaghetti entries because it displays stirring adventures, shootouts, riding pursuits , some touches of humor and is pretty amusing . The picture mingles violence , thrills , fights and it's fast moving and for that reason results to be entertaining . This film belongs to the numerous group that are set during the Mexican revolution , called ¨Zapata Western¨ , like are the Italian films : ¨ Duck you sucker¨, ¨The professional¨ ,¨Tetepa¨ , ¨Il Mercenario¨ , ¨Compañeros¨ , ¨What am I doing in middle of the revolution¨ and the American movies : ¨The wild bunch¨, ¨Villa rides ¨, and ¨The professionals¨. There are many fine technicians and nice assistants as the cameraman Enzo Barboni (who subsequently directed Trinity movies : Terence Hill and Bud Spencer) makes an excellent photography with barren outdoors, dirty landscapes under a glimmer sun shot on outskirts of Rome , Lacio , Elios studios and of course Almeria, Spain . And partially shot on ¨Once upon the time the West¨(1968) location as the railroad and the farmhouse . The musician Ennio Morricone creates a classic Spaghetti soundtrack and perfectly conducted by his habitual collaborator Bruno Nicolai.

Well produced by Italo Zingarelli , the famous producer of ¨Trinity series¨ and being well directed by Don Taylor . Don was a notorious secondary actor who sometimes played top roles as in the trend-setting crime drama ¨The naked city¨ (1948) , ¨Battleground¨ and ¨Stalag 17¨. In later years Taylor became a film and TV director, being nominated for an Emmy for his direction of an episode of "Night Gallery" (1969). Taylor met his wife Hazel Court when he directed her in a 1958 episode of "Alfred Hitchcock presents¨ and he went on directing films as the successful ¨The final countdown¨ , ¨Damien , omen 2¨, ¨Escape from Planet of Apes¨ and ¨Island of Doctor Moreau¨, his only Spaghetti Western is this "The Five Man Army¨. Rating : Above average Ravioli Western , it will appeal to Spaghetti aficionados .

Five Man Army may not be as epic or as groundbreaking as other Spaghetti Western films, but it's a lot of fun to watch and overall, provides a good slice of western action. My main reason for tracking down and seeing this film is due to the fact that it was co-scripted by Italian horror maestro and one of the men behind Sergio Leone's masterpiece 'Once Upon a Time in the West', Dario Argento. Argento worked on scripts for a number of Spaghetti westerns, and while this is only the second that I've seen (Leone's masterwork being the other one), it's the one that gets mentioned second most often, which leads to believe that it's one of his best. The plot centres on a man named 'The Dutchman', who hatches a plot to rob a train of $500,000 worth of gold. He can't do it on his own, however, and so recruits the services of four men with expertise in different areas. They all have something to prove, and the $1000 he's offering for their help gives them the initiative to try and prove it. The film then follows the makeshift 'Five Man Army', as they steal the gold.

The film begins with a man going round asking the prospective members of the army to join the foolhardy scheme. This sort of plot device is common in the movie, as it's all rather simply told. However, if you ask me this is a good thing as some films like this tend to get a bit too complicated, and it can take something away from the enjoyment of watching. There's plenty else to enjoy too, as Argento and his fellow scriptwriter have managed to create a varied assortment of characters that play well off one another and, of course, there's all the explosions and shootouts that Spaghetti Western fans have come to expect. It does have to be said that there's not as much violence in this film as there is in similar movies, as much of the movie focuses on the train robbery at the end, which is pulled off with very little bloodshed. The acting is decent enough also, with veteran actor Peter Graves heading up a good versatile cast, which fit into their roles well. Ennio Morricone provides another good western score, and overall, this film is always going to be a target for fans of Argento's work. I won't recommend going into the film with high expectations, but it's a fun viewing and I enjoyed it.

An exiled American soldier known as the Dutchman gathers together a bunch of fellows to embark on a train robbery, telling them that although the locals think they're stealing the gold dust for the Mexican revolution, the gold is really for themselves.

Our Five Man Army is made up of the Dutchman, the Captain (an explosives expert), Bud Spencer (a…food expert I guess), the Samurai, and a young guy whose name escapes me. It's a heist movie, basically, with loads of Spaghetti Western action thrown in. And an Ennio Morricone soundtrack for good measure.

As with the majority of these films, there's plenty of gunfights to keep you going as our army square up to Mexican soldiers, get involved in riots, have punch ups and generally cause mayhem until we get to the heist, which is rather cleverly done and not without tensions.

While not an outstanding film, this is a good time waster with plenty of likable characters and a few twists thrown in for good measure.

The Mexican emissary and former acrobat Luis Dominguez (Nino Castelnuovo) comes to America to summon the outlaw Mesito (Bud Spencer) that is working in a farm; the gambler and expert in dynamite Capt. Nicolas Augustus (James Daly); and the mute Japanese Samurai (Tetsuro Tamba) that has a great skill with knives under the call of their acquaintance Dutchman (Peter Graves) from Mexico with the promise of a reward of one thousand dollar for each one. When the five men reunite, Dutchman explains that there is a big, fat, juice train transporting five hundred thousand dollar for the Dictator General Huerta and the leader of the revolutionary forces proposed them to rob the train to support the peasants and the revolution. However, the plan seems to be impossible to be accomplished since the train is protected by an army, but the five men decide to rob the gold and double-cross the revolutionaries. But some of them have hidden intentions…

"Un Esercito di Cinque Uomini" is a "spaguetti" western at best. The story, with screenplay of Dario Argento, is full of action and betrayals developed in a fast pace and with a great camera work. The result is a funny and entertaining movie, with situations resolved in the most impossible way. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Exército de 5 Homens" ("Five Man Army")

American actor Don Taylor tries his hand at directing a truly international "spaghetti western". A fast pace, fine musical score and satisfactory performances hold this rip-off of "The Magnificent Seven" and "The Wild Bunch" together over the course of nearly two hours.

"The Dutchman" (Peter Graves) recruits for of his old friends to go on a suicide mission. This involves infiltrating, capturing and then making off with a train filled with Mexican Gold. Each will get a small share; the rest will go to aid the Mexican revolutionary forces that the Dutchman has fallen in with.

Young writer Dario Argento's script doesn't hold up to his later flair, but keeps the familiar characters and plot line interesting enough to hold dedicated attention. The Dutchman is the typical hero of the piece, and Graves comes to life despite the fact that we know nothing about his background. He seems a little uncomfortable – somewhat uneasy – although his dedication to the robbery is very convincing. He does introduce the 4 members of the "Army" in an obligatory speech, and the rest of the cast stick their characterizations with little or no added ingenuity.

First, there's Augustus (James Daly), a grizzled demolition expert who's been in hiding since Spanish-American War. Augustus and Dutchman are two tired, old men and they have a great dramatic discussion reflecting the changing of the times and how they no longer fit into society. Bud Spencer is a lot of fun as the dimwitted Mesito, a giant whose sole redeeming quality seems to be his brute strength. Interestingly enough, Spencer recorded his own dialog in English, and his real voice simply adds to the humor his character – he's got a thick accent, but good command of English, which balances out perfectly. Then there's Samurai (Tetsuro Tamba) a silent warrior who was rescued from a circus sideshow to help carry out the mission. Rounding out the band is Luis, a former acrobat-turned-outlaw who found a home in the Revolution while on the run from the Mexican Army. Throughout the piece, the heroes are out to satisfy their own greed, but a surprise ending ties together all of the loose ends.

The musical score of this piece is above-average work from the always-excellent Ennio Morricone, who contributed scores for some of the best spaghetti westerns, including "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly". It's appropriately rousing and adds flair to the exciting moments, and occasional mournful and evocative in the slower, sad sequences – notably, Dutchman's moving speech near the end which explains just why he's in league with the Revolution. He also contributes a fine extended, ultra-weird piece when one main character falls from the train and has to run for several minutes to catch up with his comrades.

The film never has a boring moment. Taylor keeps his camera moving in every scene, always showing off sagebrush, pueblos and military garrisons which always look and feel real. The movie is about men on the go – it never stays in one location very long, and while there, something exciting is always happening. Every piece of dialog helps to flesh out the characters or explain the mission further. When people aren't talking, they're in an intense situation – whether it be the ambush of a Mexican truck, escape from a military prison, or the lengthy takeover of the train (which, perhaps, is one of the best extended action sequences ever caught on film) – there is never a dull moment.

Taylor manages to keep the action interesting enough and different enough in each scene, too – there's not just lots of fast gun-play going on. There is one notable capture-and-escape sequence involving a heavily fortified Mexican garrison, and the 20+ minute sequence depicting the infiltration and capture of the armored train is nail-biting. The stunts look to be performed by the real actors on a moving train – there is no rear-projection here.

The production values are higher than usual for this genre. The crowd scenes are truly massive, and Taylor is able to take time establishing his locations using cranes and long pans before jumping right into the action. Although the first half of the film has a dry, depressing look to it (the exteriors are barren and desolate) the second half features several large, open grassy plains – something not often seen in a film of this kind. The territory surrounding the train, especially, looks vast and open – only once do we notice the painfully obvious presence of a sound-stage, as the characters observe the train from a distance.

There are a lot of little things that go wrong with the production or some small parts of the film which lack badly needed care, however, which hamper the effectiveness of the proceedings. The second unit direction seems a bit half-hearted. When extras are shot and die, they slump over with considerable effort and never really look to have been shot. There are also noticeable gaps in logic – the heroes board the train in full view of some very unobservant Mexican guards; the main characters seem afraid of a giant cannon on the train, but it's not as though it can fire at them at such a close range. Also, the engineer (Jose Torres) is taken prisoner because he's allied with the military government, but near the climax, his character disappears. One moment he is standing on the train; in the next shot he is simply gone. What happened to him? In the end, "The Five Man Army" is no more than merely a hash of clichés, but manages to be engaging and entertaining throughout without offering anything new and notable.