The Wild Geese was a film I often saw on local television here in New York. I always enjoyed it and have the DVD.
Two years later, a similar film, "The Dogs of War" came out with Christopher Walken, Tom Berenger, and Colin Blakely.
Any thoughts on which is the better film and which team were better mercenaries? I saw "Dogs of War" once a long time ago, but I don't remember much of it.
I'm kind of prejudiced toward TWG.
Thoughts?
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Agree; WG is the better film, though DOW is the better novel. The WG novel pretty much picks it's plot from DOW, which was published in 1974. The WG novel didn't actuall get published until the film came out, which was based on an unpublished manuscript. Both base their mercenaries on real people: Faulkner is essentially Mike Hoare, while Cat Shannon is based on Taffy Williams, a mercenary who served on the Biafran side in the Nigerian civil war. Forsyth worked as a journalist covering the Biafran war and became a sort of spokesman for the Biafran cause, basing the characters of DOW on mercenaries who were there and "the General" is Ojukwu, who lead the Biafran side.
I wouldn't say Dogs of War is terrible, but it is a bit disjointed. Walken is ok, but Freeman does come across more realistically. Berenger is too over the top. Too bad Ed O'Neil doesn't go on the mission. I would have loved to have seen Al Bundy in action. Jean-Francois Stevenin (Michel)is fairly believable.
Dogs of War (the film) was darker. The characters were not particularly likeable. There is an overwhelming sense of despair, in the plight of the country, in the characters, in their sacrifices, etc. Even though the Wild Geese was a revenge flick due to a double cross and MOST of the characters die, it was still a rip roaring hero's film. There was sadness and sacrifice, but the tone wasn't nearly as dark (and depressing) as Dogs of War.
Dr. Kila Marr was right. Kill the Crystalline Entity.share
Both movies do well to play to an armchair audience looking to back a hero of some sort or another in the proven Holywood style. But this type of warfare in Afica has never really been portrayed in a true sense of reality or morality for that matter. Until....
shareIt was rumoured that Forsyth had actually funded a coup somewhere in Africa to base his novel on and that a lot of the circumstances were based on his journalistic experience where Carney had served in the military at one point and his book , while turned out to be a better film is poor in comparrison to Forsyths
shareI believe Carney actually served in a police unit in Rhodesia, though paramilitary in nature. The book was ok, but DOW is far more professional. Forsyth is alleged to have been involved in a coup attempt in Equatorial Guniea, which fell apart when the arms were seized by Spanish authorities.
Someone really should make a film about Bob Denard, though, and his shenanigans in the Comoros Islands, before the French finally put an end to his misadventures.
"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read."-Groucho
Dogs of War is a great book, haven't read Wild Geese yet. Regarding films, Wild Geese all the way.
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