Too Late the Hero

WW2 jungle warfare

In 1942 the Brits have a base at the southern tip of a Jap-held island in the Philippines; a unit is sent on a mission with an American Lieutenant (Cliff Robertson) to take down the radio at the northern end of the isle. Michael Caine plays a troublesome private while Denholm Elliott is on hand as the leader of the patrol.

In tone and story, Too Late the Hero (1970) is similar to Ambush Bay (1966); other comparable flicks include The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957) and Beach Red (1967). Of course Kwai is superior, but Too Late aint no slouch.

I had a bad attitude during the first half because of some unrealistic scenes. Im no veteran of jungle warfare, but Im pretty sure you shouldnt be blithely singing so...

Cliff Robertson is "Lawson", an American soldier drafted in to lead a squad of war-weary British soldiers on a jungle mission to destroy a Japanese radio transmitter. It isn't that his men are in any way cowardly, but with Michael Caine's "Tosh" foremost amongst them, they are disillusioned at the relentlessness of it all. What do they do that ever makes a difference? The film comes alive as the troop must try to evade their pursuing enemy - and all of their dastardly mantraps and psychological warfare - to return to safety of their outpost. The acting from the two leading men, along with some gritty and plausible contributions from stalwarts Ian Bannen and Ronald Fraser amongst others; some angry but focussed dialogue and the claustrophobi...