Kelly's Heroes

In 1944 France, during World War II, United States Army Private Kelly (Clint Eastwood)-a former lieutenant scapegoated for a failed infantry assault-captures Colonel Dankhopf of Wehrmacht Intelligence. Kelly realizes that Dankhopf is carrying several gold bars and after getting him drunk, learns that they are from a cache of 14,000 gold bars worth $16 million, stored in a bank 30 miles (50 km) behind German lines in the French town of Clermont. Dankhopf is then killed when the Germans overrun the American line. Kelly tries to recruit his master sergeant, "Big Joe" (Telly Savalas) into a plot to steal the gold. Big Joe refuses to risk his men's lives for money, and warns Kelly against telling them of his plan. Kelly then recruits scheming Supply Sergeant "Crapgame" (Don Rickles) to provide the needed weapons and supplies. Eccentric hippy tank commander "Oddball" (Donald Sutherland) overhears and offers to join the caper with his three unattached M4 Sherman tanks. Finally, Kelly broaches his plan to Big Joe's platoon, who-disillusioned with the pointless battles, being bombed by their own side, and risking death daily for little-eagerly join him. After much argument, Big Joe agrees to go along. Kelly's men fight their way through the German lines. However, the bridge needed for Oddball's tanks to rendezvous with them is destroyed by Allied fighter-bombers. Oddball contacts an engineering unit to build a replacement bridge, and the engineers, in turn, bring in even more men to supply support. Proceeding on foot after their jeeps and half-tracks are destroyed by Allied fighter-bombers who mistake them for German forces, Kelly and his men walk into a minefield and one man is killed. They are forced to probe their way out with bayonets, but a German patrol arrives before the last two men can extricate themselves. The bulk of Kelly's men ambush the German patrol, but to Joe's dismay, the Germans kill the trapped men before being themselves defeated. Oddball's tanks rendezvous with Kelly two nights later, along with the extra troops he recruited. Kelly and Oddball's men battle their way to Clermont. Their radio messages are intercepted by Major General Colt (Carroll O'Connor), who interprets them as efforts by an aggressive unit independently pushing through the previously unmoving battle lines. Colt immediately rushes to exploit this "breakthrough." Kelly's men infiltrate Clermont and eliminate the German infantry, while Oddball's unit destroys two of the three superior Tiger I tanks. When Oddball's last tank breaks down, the men find themselves stalemated, unable to damage the last Tiger or breach the heavily fortified bank. At Crapgame's suggestion, Kelly, Big Joe, and Oddball parley with the Tiger commander, surmising that he is, like them, a soldier following orders. In exchange for an equal share of the gold, the commander uses the Tiger to destroy the bank's armored doors. Afterward, the Germans and Oddball's crew depart with their shares, while Kelly's men each receive $875,000 of gold. Learning that the still oblivious Colt is on the outskirts of town, Big Joe tells the celebrating townspeople that Colt is French General Charles de Gaulle, and they block his path, allowing Kelly and his men time to escape with the gold.