Play Dirty **** (1969, Michael Caine, Nigel Davenport, Nigel Green, Harry Andrews) – Classic Movie Review 6838

Director André de Toth’s last movie is Play Dirty from 1969 and it stars Michael Caine as the British captain in charge of a gang of ex-con soldiers who must obliterate Nazi oil supplies deep in the German-held sector of North Africa in World War Two.

Play Dirty is a popular and exciting wartime action thriller in the wake of The Dirty Dozen (1967), giving plenty of room to great British star character players like Nigel Davenport as Captain Cyril Leech, Nigel Green as Colonel Masters and Harry Andrew as Brigadier Blores, and Caine is excellent, totally in his element as Captain Douglas, a British Petroleum executive working as an officer with the British Army in North Africa handling port duties for incoming fuels.

Though The Dirty Dozen (1967) remains the definitive version of this kind of story, Play Dirty will do as a runner-up, making it seem fresh again.

The screenplay is co-written by the South Bank Show’s Melvin Bragg, with Lotte Colin, from the story by George Marton.

Also in the cast are Bernard Archard, Daniel Pilon, Vivian Pickles, Scott Miller, Patrick Jordan, Martin Burland and Jeremy Child.

Play Dirty is directed by André de Toth, runs 117 minutes, is a Lowndes production, is released by United Artists, is written by Lotte Colin and Melvin Bragg, shot in Technicolor by Ted Scaife, produced by Harry Saltzman, scored by Michel Legrand and designed by Tom Morahan.

Richard Harris claimed he quit as the star after a row with producer Harry Saltzman when his role was changed in last-minute script revisions.

André de Toth (aka Sasvári Farkasfalvi Tóthfalusi Tóth Endre Antal Mihály) directed the 3D classic House of Wax (1953) although he only had one eye.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 6838

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