Ski Troop Attack
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''Ski Troop Attack'' is a 1960
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...
war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...
directed by
Roger Corman Roger William Corman (April 5, 1926 – May 9, 2024) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Known under various monikers such as "The Pope of Pop Cinema", "The Spiritual Godfather of the New Hollywood", and "The King of Cult", he w ...
and starring
Michael Forest Gerald Michael Charlebois (born April 17, 1929), better known as Michael Forest, is an American actor who provides the voices for many animated titles, and played the god Apollo on Star Trek. Early life Forest was born in Harvey, North Dakota ...
, Frank Wolff, Richard Sinatra and Wally Campo.
Filmgroup The Filmgroup was a production and distribution company founded by filmmakers Roger Corman and Gene Corman in 1959. Corman used it to make and distribute his own movies, as opposed to ones he was making for American International Pictures. (The re ...
released the film as a
double feature The double feature is a Film, motion picture industry phenomenon in which theaters would exhibit two films for the price of one, supplanting an earlier format in which the presentation of one feature film would be followed by various short subjec ...
with ''
Battle of Blood Island ''Battle of Blood Island'' is a 1960 American World War II war film filmed in Puerto Rico and directed by Joel Rapp. It was based on the 1958 short story ''Expect the Vandals'' by Philip Roth.
'' (1960).


Plot

In 1944, five American soldiers led by Lt. Factor are skiing on a reconnaissance mission behind enemy lines in Germany's
Hürtgen Forest The Hürtgen forest (also: Huertgen Forest; ) is located along the border between Belgium and Germany, in the southwest corner of the German federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Scarcely in area, the forest lies within a triangle outlined ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Sgt. Potter has ordered the Americans to attack the Germans, to the annoyance of Lt. Factor, who wants the patrol to be for reconnaissance only. The next morning, the troops see a large German unit with tanks. Factor radios the information and is informed that the Allies are under attack. The patrol encounters some Germans and a fight ensues in which an American is killed. The group find a cabin and order a young woman named Ilse to cook for them. She tries to poison the men's coffee, but Factor stops her. Ilse tries to shoot the soldiers and they kill her. Factor orders the men to make camp at a nearby cave, where they celebrate Christmas. Factor decides to destroy a railroad trestle vital to the Germans. The men meet resistance from the Germans and a fight begins. The men succeed in destroying the rail line, but Jocko and Herman die.


Cast

*
Michael Forest Gerald Michael Charlebois (born April 17, 1929), better known as Michael Forest, is an American actor who provides the voices for many animated titles, and played the god Apollo on Star Trek. Early life Forest was born in Harvey, North Dakota ...
as Lt. Factor * Frank Wolff as Sgt. Potter * Wally Campo as Pvt. Ed Ciccola *Richard Sinatra as Pvt. Herman Grammelsbacher *
Roger Corman Roger William Corman (April 5, 1926 – May 9, 2024) was an American film director, producer, and actor. Known under various monikers such as "The Pope of Pop Cinema", "The Spiritual Godfather of the New Hollywood", and "The King of Cult", he w ...
appears in an uncredited role as a
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
soldier entering the cabin *James Hoffman *Chan Biggs *Tom Staley *David Markie *Skeeter Boyer *Wayne Lasher *Sheila Carol as Ilse


Production

The script was written by Charles B. Griffith, who had previously worked for Corman. Griffth was inspired in part by the Battle of the Hurtgen Forest. The film was shot in
Deadwood, South Dakota Deadwood (Lakota: ''Owáyasuta''; "To approve or confirm things") is a city that serves as the county seat of Lawrence County, South Dakota, United States. It was named by early settlers after the dead trees found in its gulch. The city had its ...
in the
Black Hills The Black Hills is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk Peak, which rises to , is the range's highest summit. The name of the range ...
over ten days. Corman selected the location because he could hire a crew from Chicago for lower rates than he would have paid a Los Angeles-based crew. To consolidate costs, Corman's brother Gene produced another film titled ''
Beast from Haunted Cave ''Beast from Haunted Cave'' is a 1959 Horror film, horror heist film directed by Monte Hellman and starring Michael Forest, Frank Wolff (actor), Frank Wolff and Richard Sinatra. It was produced by Gene Corman, Roger Corman's brother. Filmed in ...
'' at the same time on the same location, and with the same screenwriter and lead actors. The two films took five weeks to shoot, with one day off between films, and ''Beast from Haunted Cave'' was shot first.
Michael Forest Gerald Michael Charlebois (born April 17, 1929), better known as Michael Forest, is an American actor who provides the voices for many animated titles, and played the god Apollo on Star Trek. Early life Forest was born in Harvey, North Dakota ...
was paid $500 a week and later recalled that "what was taking place was tough on us physically." Corman hired ski teams from high schools in Deadwood and
Lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...
but could only film them on weekends and after school. One played the Germans and the other played the Americans. He cast a German ski instructor to play the head of the German ski troop, but the instructor broke his leg two days before the shoot, so Corman played the role himself. He had skied occasionally at college and took a one-day skiing lesson prior to filming. Corman recalled the shoot as "a very tough challenge. It was unbelievably cold and snowed all the time. The film's musical score, written by cellist Fred Katz, was originally written for ''
A Bucket of Blood ''A Bucket of Blood'' is a 1959 American comedy horror film directed by Roger Corman. It starred Dick Miller and was set in the West Coast beatnik culture of the late 1950s. The film, produced on a $50,000 budget, was shot in five days and sha ...
''. According to Mark Thomas McGee, author of ''Roger Corman: The Best of the Cheap Acts'', each time that Katz was asked to write music for Corman, Katz sold the same score as if it were new music. The score was used in a total of seven films, including ''
The Wasp Woman ''The Wasp Woman'' (also known as ''The Bee Girl'' and ''Insect Woman'') is a 1959 American Independent film, independent science fiction film, science-fiction horror film produced and directed by Roger Corman. Filmed in black-and-white, it st ...
'' and '' Creature from the Haunted Sea''.


Reception

''Variety'' liked the action sequences but found the characterization clichéd and the lack of establishing shots to be a weakness. ''
Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...
'' called it "a crude war film which just about gets by when it sticks to action. But the attempts at deeper meaning and characterisaton ends in cliches flying thick and fast."SKI TROOP ATTACK Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 28, Iss. 324, (Jan 1, 1961): 24.


References


External links

*
Ski Troop Attack
at
TCMDB Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie-oriented pay-TV network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasting campus in the Midtown business district of ...

Ski Troop Attack
at BFI
Ski Troop Attack
at Letterbox DVD
Roger Corman on ''Ski Troop Attack''
at
Trailers from Hell ''Trailers from Hell'' (branded as ''Trailers from Hell!'') is a web series in which filmmakers discuss and promote individual movies through commenting on their trailers. While the series emphasizes horror, science fiction, fantasy, cult, and exp ...
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ski Troop Attack 1960 films 1960 adventure films 1960s English-language films 1960s German-language films American black-and-white films American skiing films Western Front of World War II films Films directed by Roger Corman Films produced by Roger Corman Films with screenplays by Charles B. Griffith Films shot in South Dakota 1960s American films English-language adventure films