ManiakJiggy This is How Movies Should Be Made

SteinMo What a freaking movie. So many twists and turns. Absolutely intense from start to finish.

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

Ariella Broughton It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

cinemajesty Movie Review: "The Wild Geese" (1978)A 1970s action thriller enriched with some political dispute material; Actor Richard Burton (1925-1984) presents himself in one of his most accomplished roles, leading fellow actors Roger Moore (1927-2017), Richard Harris (1930-2002) among others into battle on Central African grounds to break out a disposed African President. The action comes in paced doses. Yet the spectator needs to be prepared to engage into some former hard-boiled attitude variations, which may not be all too contemporary anymore. Nevertheless the mediocre-to-decent direction of Andrew V. McLaglen (1920-2014), a fairly driven adapted script by Reginald Rose (1920-2002) and the powerhouse scene-owning acting by Richard Burton will bring two-hour-entertainment to the motion picture tolerant and world-siding knowledgeable audience.© 2017 Felix Alexander Dausend (Cinemajesty Entertainment LLC)

Adam Peters (68%) Before the days of the Expendables movies came this all-star action adventure featuring a cast on the more ripe end of the life line. This really is a red blooded slice of beef of a film meaning there's tons of action that doesn't shy away from the blood and guts of combat and there's a great feel of one of those old war comic books about it. Despite the really strong cast this is a film you watch more the action than the performances and the fact that it tells its simple plot so effectively. Without doubt this is one of the better men on a mission movies and well worth tracking down for all true action film fans.

SnoopyStyle Merchant banker Sir Edward Matherson hires colonel Allen Faulkner (Richard Burton) to lead soldiers of fortune to rescue Julius Limbani, imprisoned leader of an African country. Faulkner hires various people including pilot Shawn Fynn (Roger Moore) and Rafer Janders (Richard Harris) in a cloak and dagger operation in London. They successfully rescue Limbani but their extraction takes off without them. Matherson has made a new deal with the new leader of the country.It's a bit slow at the start. The rounding up of the men and the training isn't very exciting or interesting. It builds the characters but that could be done better. There is an argument of the inherent racism in the movie. It has some valid points but the mercenaries aren't all white. There are some black 'good guys'. I won't defend the filming taking place in South Africa. I just don't think that any racism in the movie is that out of the ordinary for that era. The politics of Apatheid probably accentuated any problems. This is rip-roaring mercenary fun when it works.

Spikeopath Marvellously macho, a men on a mission movie proudly proclaiming that the old adage is indeed true, there is life in the old dog(s) yet. A notable cast of British and Irish thespians were rounded up and unleashed into a plot that required a band of mercenaries sent to extract an African President from some prison in the darkest part of Africa. The formula is tried and tested, the leader is a man made of stern stuff but carrying emotional baggage, his band of men assembled are a mixture of ex soldiers who have either fell on hard times or just haven't been able to let go of the army life that they feel was their calling in life. The latter of which causes great consternation amongst spouses and immediate family members.Director Andrew V. McLaglen lets it unfold in steady and unfussy time, structuring it in three stages. Stage one is getting to know the principal players, their fears, pet peeves and psychological make up, stage 2 is the re-training programme, where the good old boys wait to see who keels over from a heart attack first, then stage 3 is the mission, where blood will be shed, bodies will fall, treachery and racism are big irritants, and of course big sacrifices will have to be made during a whirl of explosions and politico pummelling. The screenplay, much like the actors playing the key roles, is very self aware to not take itself too seriously, it's also very funny at times, there is some absolute cracker-jack slices of dialogue here.The PC brigade and political historians beat themselves around their heads trying to flatten the appeal of The Wild Geese, it didn't work. Most action movie fans understood fully just what was going on, and it's the reason why today it still holds up as a perennial favourite on the British TV schedules. Richard Burton, Richard Harris, Roger Moore, Hardy Kruger, Jack Watson, Kenneth Griffith, Ronald Fraser and Percy Herbert, I salute you all. 8/10