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Great Film overall

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Capt. Beau Carter (Stephen Boyd) is tasked with leading "B" Brigade to secure a dam. The group is unorthodox and ill equipped as soldiers.Perhaps the sell point of the film is the iconic cast of Pryor, Grier, Moses Gunn, Billy Dee Williams, and Susan Oliver. The film reveals the stereotypes and attitudes of the era. Decent film

At first glance this gives the impression that it is going to be a laughable blaxploitation flick, and it does contain moments where it veers in that direction. However, the basic story idea is much stronger than might be expected, and is a respectable effort at portraying racial issues in the World War II era Army. The recognizable cast is hit and miss, with Glynn Turman, Richard Pryor and the underused Billy Dee Williams faring best. Stephen Boyd, however, stops just short of twirling his bushy mustache in an overindulgent star turn.The obviously low budget leads to inconsistency in the production values. The locations are great, the effects and action are weak. Imagine if "Saving Private Ryan" had consisted of half the platoon getting killed exactly the same way Vin Diesel's Caparzo had (except we do get to see the shot because they effects can't handle it), then Hanks, Damon and Burns drove around in a jeep and shot five Germans for the climax. Yet, the denouement, with the heroic soldiers receiving no respect for their accomplishment because they are black, and Boyd's racist Captain being effected by this, is compelling, as are the sequences of of Turman's character writing in a journal of his imagined exploits if the soldiers were allowed to fight instead of digging latrines.In short, "Black Brigade/Carter's Army" doesn't quite succeed. But it's a respectable failure, not a bad joke. It could be remade as a very good film, and, as it stands, is an interesting effort.

I got this as part of a 50 Movie Pack Combat Classics on amazon.com and for the price of the whole set this movie and Commando's which is on it also, are worth it alone, it's a good deal. Is this a low budget cheesy made for TV war movie with an over the top racism message? Absolutely! And why not make another over the top war movie with a racism message? Seems good to me, by the way white males must be the most educated when it comes to race relations since there are so many war movies made with the racism card played out and I don't think many other groups watch war movies. Anyway this is the first blaxploitation made for TV movie I ever saw, and man has it got a cast of black stars in it! I stayed with it all the way, despite how stupid it was sending a few men to take over a large dam, and men from a sanitation unit at that! If I was black I would probably rate it even higher although I think I'm being pretty generous giving it a 6 of 10 rating. I would have liked this a lot better if it was made for the movie theater because then we would have had a real street sense movie with all the colorful language and lord knows what else thrown in, being made for TV did make it a little PC in that I think that southern white officer would have been fragged and here he is not, lol. On a white guy geek note, there are prominent actor's from both the Star Wars and Star Trek universe's in here! I bet you can guess Billy D Williams as the first one (from Star Wars), but the lady in the farm house is none other then Vina from the Star Trek pilot, Susan Oliver (getting close to 40 and not so hot with her lack of green body paint on). I thought that was as Johnny Carson might say, "Some weird wacky stuff!". Black Brigade is definitely cult material and worth a viewing!

I bought this for a dollar at a local chain store and was a little surprised by the good storytelling in this. The reasons I happened upon buying this was because A, I'm trying to own 1000 movies, and B it had great actors on the cover. When i saw that Billy Dee Williams was in this all I could think was how cool it was going to be to see a young Lando Calersion type fighting in the second world war. But he really had no vigor in him in this film. He was serious and to the point which is probably more real life as what this film needs to be showcased proper. Richard Pryor was the second actor who influenced me into buying this because I thought his comedy would shine through the move. Again it did not. He is the cut up of the unit but he is still serious in this which I believe is one of first roles. Robert Hooks who is an actor I had never heard of and have still yet to see any follow ups to this is very good in his performance of a red neck put in charge of an all black squad only to realize that they fight just as hard as any white man for what the believe in. The film does a good job of showcasing racial tensions during a 1940's setting. It is hard to take that we actual segregated that little back in our history. If your on the look out for a film that will grow your mind this is it. I recommend it for war buffs.