Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Fatma Suarez The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Spikeopath The Secret Invasion is directed by Roger Corman and written by R. Wright Campbell. It stars Stewart Granger, Raf Vallone, Mickey Rooney, Edd Byrnes, Henry Silva, Spela Rozin and William Campbell. Music is by Hugo Friedhofer and Eastman Color cinematography is by Arthur E. Arling.1943 and British Intelligence send Major Richard Mace (Granger) and five convicts into Yugoslavia on a dangerous mission. They are to rescue an Italian General from German captivity in the hope that he will join the fight against the Nazis.An army based reworking of Corman and Campbell's Five Guns West from 1955, The Secret Invasion is cheap on budget but rich on action. A sort of forerunner to Where Eagles Dare and Operation Cross Eagles, and a definite companion piece for the far superior The Dirty Dozen that followed three years later, it's a film that's hard to dislike. There's such a sense of fun about the whole thing and Corman still manages to create suspense and craft potent action scenes.The ensemble cast bring to life the roll call of damaged characters who are either looking for redemption, personal gain or just a crack at getting the freedom dangled in front of them. The Eastman Color is very appealing, the pic actually filmed on location in Yugoslavia, and Friedhofer provides a very effective musical score that hits the right beats for the blend of drama and sorrow that fills out the plot.Corman inevitably has to cut some corners, such as one key character is killed off screen, not all the acting is great and veers close to being second string Spaghetti Western standard, and of course the plot is bonkers. But the flaws never stop it being worth the time of the Action War film fan. 6.5/10

sculptagain-1 There are way too many war movies that are not as embarrassing as this. The acting is Third-rate along with the screenplay. Although the theme is fine - the silliness prevails. Two of the characters have their 1950's hair cuts. And when one deserved a bullet to protect the mission, he is forgiven. That happens several times. M.Rooney is a buffoon as usual. Silva has always been a great actor until this junk. I blame the entire blame on the inept crew that wrote and directed this load of garbage. Even with a "low-budget" production, the story can be made well. But they decided to Glamourize rather than signify and capture the truth of the war. Stupid is as stupid does. The dead baby - what a joke... No mother is going to do this. I can put up with Low-Budget lighting, music, scenery - but this movie seems to be creating a new era of "B" rated stuff to fill television. Now here's the good parts: Italy - a most beautiful country.

drystyx This is Corman's second best film. His masterpiece is "I Hate Your Guts". This one stands out second best among his other films, which are among the worst ever made. The theme is the same as the Dirty Dozen, with some better writing, and probably better acting. There are some big names in here. The characters are probably not as well drawn as in the Dirty Dozen, but the plot and the turns are better. This group goes through a lot. Henry Silva stands out in this crowd. There is a very goofy character played by Raf Vallone that really makes no sense, and for some reason he plays a large role. It would have been better if Granger had a bigger part. His part is largely understated. It has good action and some character twists, and good plot writing that even Corman can't mess up. I may be generous rating this a 7. It could rate anywhere from 4-7, but it's a fun flick to watch, so I give it the benefit of the doubt.

frankfob Although producer/director Roger Corman is known for his "economical" pictures, this World War II actioner belies its $600,000 budget (small by conventional Hollywood standards, but an epic for Corman) and is a well-acted, tightly directed, enjoyable not-quite-so-little picture. The story of a group of misfit Allied soldiers sent to rescue an important Italian general who has been imprisoned by the Nazis, Corman makes good use of the Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia, locations and a cast consisting of much better actors then he usually got, especially Mickey Rooney, Stewart Granger and Henry Silva (in an outstanding performance as a taciturn, deadly killer who isn't quite as cold-blooded as he seems). Even Edd Byrnes is far less annoying than usual, and turns in a good job. The action scenes are very well handled, the picture looks much more expensive than its budget would indicate, and it actually garnered some of the best reviews of Corman's career up to that time, and deservedly so. It's a good one (and compares favorably to "The Dirty Dozen," which it preceded). Check it out.