About halfway through this movie, I was debating whether to review it. It's not that I wasn't enjoying it, instead I just didn't know what to say or write. But as the story progressed, it became a whole lot easier to take this one on. Instead of showing the stories of French or Filipino resistance groups, 'Commandos' documents the story of a group of Norwegian fighters and their involvement in the early years of WWII. There was no title card saying this was based on a true story, but it's the type of heroic story you know happened in one form or another during the war years.
It's 1939 and widower Erik Toresen (Paul Muni) lives in a tiny Norwegian fishing village on a fjord with his young daughter, Solveig. At a wedding in the village, the townspeople are introduced, an eclectic group of individuals who all more or less get along. Erik even meets Judith Bowen (Anna Lee), the daughter of an English admiral visiting Norway. But as their feelings for each other grow, she must leave, and it's only days before Hitler attacks Poland and WWII is on. Norway is soon overrun and under German control. The townspeople agree to go along with their occupiers, after all the Germans say they are equals and will be treated as friends.
Of course, everything is not so rosy as restrictions are placed on the people that tie down any semblance of normal life. Then, when the rules are broken and several people are lined up against a wall and shot, Erik and the townspeople realize they must fight back no matter the consequence. Organizing into a tight-knit fighting group, the Norwegian resistance ambushes German soldiers, blows up and destroys needed supplies, anything to hurt the war effort. One day hiding from a German patrol, Erik stumbles upon a secret airfield high up in the mountains. The resistance decides they must get to England and warn the high command of the Germans' secret plans.
Often enough, movies made before the mid 1960s are accused of being too bland, too sanitized. In a lot of cases, that's true, but 'Commandos' is ahead of its time in dealing with this not so well known war story. The depiction is very frank as the resistance has more and more success. Husbands and brothers are shot point blank, no superhero soldiers to drop in and save them. Erik and the resistance must deal with traitors from within, handling them in an efficient, brutal fashion. But what was most surprising was the ending following the commando assault on the airfield. Big picture, it's a happy ending, but when looking at a personal level, it's a downer for sure. Caught me off guard, especially as the government and movie studios wanted to inspire audiences, not give them a dose of reality.
As the lead, Muni gives a great performance. His Erik cares for his daughter after his wife dies in child birth. He's a quiet, peaceful man, content with his life especially when he meets Judith. Even when the Germans arrives, Erik says to try and live within their restrictions only to see soon after there's no living with the Germans brutal tactics. The rest of the cast is a reliable ensemble with many townspeople stepping to the forefront including Ray Collins and Lillian Gish as an old married couple, Rod Cameron as the village's Pastor, Barbara Everest as Mrs. Olav, an older widower looking after Erik's daughter (Ann Carter), and finally Robert Coote as Judith's brother and commando team leader helping Erik.
Movies like The Vikings took advantage of their settings and filmed in the locations where their story took place. Not so lucky here with British Columbia filling in for the Norwegian fjords. The fjords have a very distinct, awe-inspiring look, and these locations do an admirable job of making the viewer feel like you're there. Shot in black and white, there's a huge scope to certain scenes on the waterfront and on the hills surrounding the village. William C. Mellor's cinematography brings the movie up a notch or two in creating an idyllic setting of this Norwegian village.
Commandos Strike at Dawn <---trailer (1942): ***/****
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