The Enemy General (1960) User Reviews

"To the Brave Maquis..."

[richardchatten · 6/10 · 28 August 2019]

Inferior to Powell & Pressburger's earlier 'Ill Met by Moonlight', but far less pretentious & long-winded - and thus much more watchable - than Dino de Laurentis's 'Five Branded Women' the same year, this addition to the "captured high-ranking German officer in the hands of the freedom-fighters" genre - which dates back at least as far as Hitchcock's wartime 'Lifeboat' - makes the enemy general of the title (played by Dutch actor John Van Dreelen) a complete skunk with absolutely no redeeming features; which makes an interesting change.

American star Van Johnson is parachuted into the film on the pretext of being an O.S.S. agent assisting the maquis, and that the film was shot in France means than in addition to a few familiar French faces in supporting roles, we actually get to see Johnson early on in the film in a brief scene shot in a rather wintry looking Paris itself...

Humdrum; not a waste of time to watch but certainly not worth re-watching

[booksultra · 5/10 · 26 April 2021]

Eugene Archer's review in the New York Times of 1960 described the plot as 'far-fetched' - an uncontestable claim.

However, he also believes that Strangely, Van Dreelen 'easily out-acts' the other members of the cast. This is more contestable as Van Dreelen seems to follow the Roger Moore school of eyebrow-acting - his left eyebrow is in constant action.

Van Johnson - always a 'B' actor, B-- here, compared with 'The Last Blitzkrieg' where he was more B+.

Having watched a lot of film noir material and Nazi-themed films during the long Covid-19 period 2020-1, this was not exactly scraping the bottom of the barrel (viz. George Montgomery in 'Bomb at 10.10' (1967), but one to be wary of.

Dumb plot gambit

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 22 January 2015]

Playing the title role in The Enemy General is Dutch actor John Van Dreelan who played a few Nazis during his career. Van Dreelan is the worst kind of Nazi around, one who massacred a big chunk of the population of a certain French village where Van Johnson of the OSS and Jean-Pierre Aumont are operating. During one operation Dany Carrel who is giving Johnson a little wartime morale booster is killed.

But now Johnson has a different assignment. Van Dreelan is being held as part of the plot against Hitler and he's scheduled to be shot. Through his French mistress Francoise Prevost, Van Dreelan's let the Allies know that he can help them out with their intelligence if they can liberate him before he faces the firing squad. That's the assignment Johnson and Aumont draw and they hate it. But they do it.

What was dumb here was why when they learned Van Dreelan was acting as a double agent they didn't just shoot him is beyond me. And the mistress while they were at it. Still Johnson and Aumont insist on doing the mission. Answer, because it made for an exciting climax shootout.

Despite what the cast knew was a dumb plot gambit they all perform to their best and the climax is a nice one.

You have to remember that this is a Sam Katzman production and perhaps even with location shooting and some major stars, Katzman still isn't exactly careful with his stories.

A not so bad Sam Katzman production

[searchanddestroy-1 · 15 March 2009]

That's probably one of the few good Sam Katzman productions I have ever seen. There are not a lot of them; the most known is EARTH VS FLYING SAUCERS. This 1960 movie directed by the prolific George Sherman is a fairly good war actioner, which takes place in France, during WW2, in the Alpes, where a group a french underground fighters, helped by an American member of the OSS, capture a German general who wants to give some information to the allies in London. Hot stuff.

But is the general really a traitor?

I did not expect so much from this Columbia production. No so cheap, after all. Van Johnson and Jean Pierre Aumont give here good performances; And let's not forget some other french second rate characters, such as Jacques Marin, who always plays " the good french" in American movies. See John Frankenheimer's THE TRAIN, for instance.

That proves that Sam Katzman can make good movies when he wants to.

About George Sherman, as Joseph Kane, he began his carrier in the late 30's, directing B westerns for Republic Pictures, and not only westerns, before going to Columbia Pictures, and continuing in Universal Studios, where he made here his most interesting films, especially westerns, such as WAR ARROW, DAWN AT SOCORRO, CHIEF CRAZY HORSE, BATTLE AT APACHE PASS and many other good features, that I have in my library. All of them made for Universal.

But after his Universal engagement, he seems to have lost himself, in some corny stuff, except perhaps TREASURE OF PANCHO VILLA, made for RKO pictures; a very good western, starring Rory Calhoun and Gilbert Roland.

George Sherman's last stand will be the superb BIG JAKE, Maureen O' Hara's nearly last picture too, and his bad guys gallery in the opening sequence, where they are presented one by one. But that's another story and another comment.

Getting back to ENEMY GENERAL, take it if you can. Don't be afraid by Sam Katzman's name in the credits. Don't turn the TV set off!!

After a while, this one stops making a lot of sense.

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 31 May 2024]

"The Enemy General" is a film which, at best, is just okay, though I think this might be a bit generous. It's a moive that occasionally stops making sense and really is never engaging...and it should have been.

The story is set in Occupied France during WWII. General Bruger (John van Dreelen...and one of the only interesting characters in the film) is an evil man whose heavyhanded tactics involve shooting innocent civilians in a reprisal against Underground attacks. However, towards the end of the war the Underground receive an odd order...to rescue this German general from prison. Apparently, he's been arrested and he's agreed to give the Allies secrets IF they rescue him. But this mission is especially difficult because the odd American in the group (Van Johnson) saw the General stage an execution of civilians...which included the American's girlfriend.

This film, despite the plot, never excites even once. And, late in the film the men smuggling the General out of the country learn he's NOT a prisoner...and was planted there to give false information to the Allies. Yet, despite this, when a large group of Underground members come to shoot the General, the American tries to stop them...which makes zero sense. What also makes zero sense is the Underground simply allowing the General's girlfriend to run off to alert the German army! Huh? And, I must say the rest of the tale never gets interesting and is just flat.

Overall, a film that is not very good but isn't so bad that it's fun to watch.

By the way, I have no idea if the Underground is supposed to be portrayed as stupid or not, but the first attack by the group is simply inept and the lady fires a machine gun in the most ridiculous and ineffective manner possible. Kinda shoddy, actually.

Fifties War Programmer

[Mozjoukine · 11 November 2014]

Companion piece to the Katzman/Van Johnson The LAST BLITZKIEG, the pair seem to represent the trash generating mass producer's only ventures off shore.

Straight faced account of WW2 French Marquis men Johnson (!) and Aumont rescuing from Orleans Prison a German General condemned to death after the Von Staufenberg plot. Is he what he seems? Pale comparison with ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT.

Emott's location photography of Paris and surroundings in crisp black and white outclasses the other elements. Feeble action.

"There is no man so low that a woman or a dog cannot love him" Dostoivesky indeed!