Commander, Der (1988)

Director:

Antonio Margheriti

Writers:

Tito Carpi (writer)
Arne Elsholtz (screenplay)

Release Date:

28 April 1988 (West Germany)

Genre:

Action | War

Plot:

Cast

Lewis Collins	...	Major Colby
Lee Van Cleef	...	Col. Mazzarini
Donald Pleasence	...	Henry Carlson
Manfred Lehmann	...	Mason / Hiccock
Brett Halsey	...	McPherson
Chat Silayan	...	Ling
Hans Leutenegger	...	Gutierrez
Christian Brückner	...	Frank Williams
Frank Glaubrecht	...	Lennox
Thomas Danneberg	...	Gustafson
Anita Lochner	...	Mrs. Mason
Wolfgang Kühne	...	Krüger
Paul Muller	...	Carbalo
Bobby Rhodes	...	Kongo Klaus
Romano Puppo	...	Angelo
Antonio Cantafora	...	Nick De Carlo
John Steiner	...	Duclaud
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Brass	...	One of Dong's soldiers (uncredited)
Protacio Dee	...	General Dong (uncredited)
Edoardo Margheriti	...	Flame (uncredited)
Mike Monty	...	Corporal Stone (uncredited)
Ilse Pagé	...	Barmaid (uncredited)

Directed by
Antonio Margheriti		(as Anthony M. Dawson)

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Tito Carpi		writer
Arne Elsholtz		screenplay

Produced by
Erwin C. Dietrich	....	producer

Original Music by
Walter Baumgartner
Eloy

Cinematography by
Peter Baumgartner

Film Editing by
Marie-Luise Buschke

Production Management
Piet Lessnick	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Edoardo Margheriti	....	second unit director

Sound Department
Hans-Jürgen Bellenbaum	....	sound
Hermann Ebling	....	sound

Special Effects by
Edoardo Margheriti	....	special effects supervisor

Production Companies

• Ascot Film
• Prestige Film

Distributors

• Impuls Home Entertainment (2000) (Switzerland) (DVD)
• Ascot Filmverleih (1988) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Ascot Video (1988) (West Germany) (VHS)
• Entertainment in Video (????) (UK) (VHS)
• Video Junkie

Also Known As:

The Commander
Triangolo della paura, Il (Italy)

Runtime:

UK:84 min (video version) | Norway:105 min

Country:

West Germany | Italy

Language:

German

Color:

Color (Fujicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:15 | West Germany:16 (f) | Norway:18

Filming Locations:

Amalfi, Salerno, Campania, Italy

Company:

Ascot Film

Trivia:

Most of the action scenes in this film are directly lifted from Geheimcode: Wildgänse (1984). Hence there is a loss of continuity, especially at the end of the film.

Movie Connections:

Follows Geheimcode: Wildgänse (1984)

THE COMMANDER (Antonio Margheriti, 1988) *1/2

Around Christmas I had watched COMMANDO LEOPARD (1985), a passable low-brow German-Italian war flick; that film was the middle part of a trilogy and, back then, I had expressed a wish to check out the remaining two entries – CODENAME: WILDGEESE (1984) and THE COMMANDER (1988). I now happened upon the latter, but the result was even less rewarding! Lewis Collins is once again the hero and, as ever, producer Erwin C. Dietrich manages to assemble a fair line-up of actors in support: Lee Van Cleef, Donald Pleasence, Manfred Lehmann and John Steiner (both from COMMANDO LEOPARD), Paul Muller (as Van Cleef’s smart butler!) and Brett Halsey.

The convoluted plot involves an Asian dictator, a consignment of drugs and an all-important incriminating “floppy disk” (but which looks more like a CD!). The band of gung-ho mercenaries this time around also includes a native girl but, with much of the action being relegated to the second half, it’s mostly by-the-numbers stuff – until the explosive climax (which only Collins and Lehmann survive…though one member had expired early on from the bite of a cobra!). However, there’s a nice twist at the end regarding the characters of Van Cleef (fitted with a silly pirate-like earring throughout!) and Pleasence (alternating between hysteria and sarcasm and, finally, campily turning up as a tourist-photographer) – as they prove exact opposites to what they’d been played up to be!