Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

i must have seen a different film!!

Best movie ever!

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

What I remember as a kid was just how easy the German soldiers were killed and how hard it was for the Germans to kill an American. As little I understood about anything as a ten year old I understood that. Whenever a German was shot he would spring up to his feet with his chin up in the air and was hit by three or four more bullets so he died for sure and not have to be treated by the medic. As observed in other reviews only the replacement non regular Americans were killed. Except Long John who was shot probably a dozen times over the years but it was always a shoulder or leg flesh wound. I guess during WWII you had to be shot up pretty good to go home.In fact every time I watch Combat today on Me TV I still wonder why it took four years to beat the Germans. If they fought as poorly as they do on Combat the European theater should have ended by spring of 1942. Of course I didn't see it at the theater but on TV.

Combat! have not seen it since 1966/1967. But I remember it as a most realistic, exciting and emotional TV series developed by Hollywood at the time. As a 10 year old I was fascinated by the exploits of SGT Saunders and the squad of sometimes, dirty, dazed, exhausted and fallible soldiers battling through the country side and villages of post D-Day France and NOT glorifying War. I remember, the sound of the Artillery rounds "soaring" in over head! the classic Black & White look and the great sound and music. There was lots of action. However, the show focused on the individual soldier and how he dealt with the war at a personal level and as part of a team (the squad). I agree with those above that there were some brilliant episodes. There were also a some unbelievable ones like the time Saunders fought a Tank single handed to save the guest star who was down the road with a flat tire. Even my mother thought that episode was unbelievable. However, the majority contained terrific scripts, superb direction, some great-acting and believable characters. Yes,the guest stars nearly all got killed and in real War the guys in the squad would have been killed or injured on many occasions, but hey its Hollywood! In the scheme of Hollywood TV entertainment Combat is a true TV classic. It set a high standard in Direction, script's, acting, and production values. The series regulars were superb in their roles. Vic Morrow (SGT Saunders),Rick Jason (LT Hanley), Jack Hogan (Kirby & his BAR), Piere Jalbert(Caje), Dick Peabody (Littlejohn) and Conlan Carter(Doc). "Caje, take the point". Yep, and the the Germans seemed to actually speak German. So what if they were plastic copies, and they were so easily blown out of their trenches and half-tracks. The thing was we didn't know what they were saying? Whatever it was, it was bad news for the Squad. I believe that Jack Hogan, who played Kirby is still around, well done mate, good job! Regards Pete H,Sydney Australia

The very successful and highly acclaimed series which first aired on TV in 1962. It's main star, Vic Morrow, plays the part of Sgt. Chip Saunders. The other main character, Lt. Hanley, is played by Rick Jason. The Saunders character is somewhat unbelievable in his constant devotion to duty under ALL conditions. The Hanley character is cast a little more believable in that although he is more a "rules" type, like all officers are, he shows a more HUMAN side than Saunders. What really was the success of this series was the involvement of the human kind in various combat conditions and situations. Watching the tactics apllied by both the allies and the Germans is rather ridiculous. It seemed that the Americans were out manuvering the Germans for some reason and Saunders was always sticking out his squads "NECK" by taking unnecessary risks. As a combat veteran myself I would have questioned these leaders tactics as borderline suicide or just plain idiocy although one really sleeps with the other.The show was really about humanity and drama which was aptly displayed. They must have been doing things right or people would not have tuned in every season from 1962 to 1967. My own observation is that when they changed over to color filming 2 things happened. The tactics became more unbelievable and the missions as well.Strangely enough both the lead characters died untimely deaths.

I was born during a war and grew up with war in the headlines of newspapers thru-out the USA. In grade school thru high school we were at war in Vietnam and little did I know I would be in a war that lasted long enough to be drafted. In reality war is very, very terribly, horrible. I don't see any wrong in showing and telling about war and learning from it. Combat did not glorify war but told about emotions and how men deal with them in any circumstance. Combat should have gotten the Oscar for a televised series. It was the equivalent to what SAVING PRIVATE RYAN was on the movie theater. All hands down, there could not have been a most perfectly chosen cast for a squad of men and the German counterparts of which some of them were regularly casted as German Soldiers. Most people don't like too much foreign dialect in a movie, but COMBAT was an exception with both French & German spoken. It made it more real. A viewer could almost understand what they were basically saying in German if you watched every episode such as I. It is great to see it back on cable television 5 times a week and now on DVD. It brings back memories of growing up in the black and white days of television. Combat made it into the new color-cast TV era. Each & everyone of the squad deserved to have their handprints in cement. In 1999 the cast held a reunion of COMBAT and another one a couple of yrs. later. A 3rd one was in the planning stages til Ric Jason died. The public was invited to these reunions, one in Las Vegas and the 2nd one in Florida on a cruise ship. Since then Little John and Lt.Hanson passed away. I guess there will be no more since the main characters, Sgt Saunders,Pvt.Little John and Lt.Hanson have gone. It's a shame the recognition of such professional acting when television was still in early stages that these actors weren't given their due. When I hear the death of one pass on a little bit of me goes with them. There won't be another series of any war on TV that could touch the "COMBAT" series. I liked Sheckey Green as the jokester in "COMBAT,S" 1st year,but he quit because of doing Las Vegas Shows at the same time they were shooting "COMBAT". After he left the show it got more serious and very dramatic in the episodes that followed. I don't think his comedy would have fit in the show as the producers were feeling around on the scripts that were written for each and every show. It seemed everyone in the squad had a special script written for them. I have watched every episode,each & every year and found it to be that they all had their moments thru-out the series. One could see the individuality of their acting abilities. They all deserve an Oscar. This show was about a squad of men and a special guest star of "TOP Hollywood ACTORS",some in the prime of their movie career. This was unique at the time when a big "MOVIE ACTOR" would take the time to do a special appearance on a Television Series and the names were "BIG"- Lee Marvin, Charles Bronson,Sal Mineo,James Coburn,Richard Basehart,James Caan,Robert Duvall and the list goes on. You couldn't imagine the series "COMBAT" without a lowly Private named Kirby who was the squad's BAR MAN and could find a way to get into trouble accidentally but you could count on him and his BAR to cover your back; French speaking PFC Caje,whose character fit to a tee from D-DAY,Normandy thru their push into France; Little John,a giant of a man and Billy who buddied up to each other just as in real war; Mother Goose,Sgt Saunters who kept the squad in line and also had a lot of input in most episodes; LT. Hanley who led the charge in a lot of episodes and sometimes stayed in the background giving orders to Sgt Saunders to carry out; and two different Medics in the series,Actor Conley being the most recognized of the two. The series would not be what it became in the 5 years it ran on TV. The ingredient's was a perfect mix of cast members,writers,producers and directors. It surely was one of a kind and I don't think there ever will be another mix of so many characters that blended so well together in one series and each and every episode so different and not just about war. I think "COMBAT" is at least just as popular now in syndication on Cable Television and DVD then when it was being produced in 1962-1967. Since WWll there is Korean, Vietnam,Grenada,Gulf Warl and Gulf Warll veterans and great grand children to sons and daughters of veterans have more interest in our history of wars especially WWll movies,documentaries and books.