Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

(89%) A mostly forgotten gem of a film that truly deserves to be more widely seen as it doesn't even have an English region 2 DVD release, which is a travesty owing to the British talent involved. Rod Taylor is perfect playing a tough soldier-of-fortune with a good heart, likewise big Jim Brown as his sidekick and Ken More as the missions alcoholic doctor. If you can get hold of a region 1 copy, which probably won't be cheap, but it will be worth it, as this is one of the best war films ever made, with fantastic direction, gut wrenching tension and brutal action. A theatrical re-release would be a real treat as the film hasn't hardly aged at all.

A band of mercenaries led by Captain Curry 'Rod Taylor' star of Hitchcock's 'The Birds' venture through the Congo across deadly terrain, battling the deadly 'Simba' armies, to procure for the President million's in diamonds 'Dark of The Sun' is nothing short of excellent, it's up there with other classic Mercenary men on a mission film's such as 'Wild Geese' 'The Dogs of War' this film was ahead of it's time in terms of it's shockingly violent content it still stands out today, their is nothing that dates it, the violence is nothing short of brutal and does not glamorous war as hell, it's not hard to see why Quentin Tarrontino's rants and raves about this! it's available on DVD but given the current clime with lack of care typical of film companies 'Dark of The Sun' has been shamefully released without the appropriate fanfare.

This is what you can call an old-fashioned boy's own adventure with a mind-set on a mammoth task, scathing violence and the dark underbelly beneath it of what length someone would go. While being lean, aggressive and tough, the primitive material is idealistically confronting and daring with interesting complexities of character reworking. Watching how certain characters tick was just as compelling as the hazardous trek with thrilling fire-fights, brutally intense one-on-one combats (which one includes a chainsaw!) and slam-bang explosions. Dominating the screen are the presences of a mighty Rod Taylor, Jim Brown, Peter Carsten, Kenneth More and the alluring Yvette Mimieux. All the players come across humane and well-rounded that we do get caught up in the plight and of their true intentions for the job. Some dry humour is drilled in too. Even being long in length, never does it flag about and Jack Cardiff's sturdy direction is well-timed and constructed. The agile camera-work spaciously frames the action and the striking African locations. Jacques Loussier's music score is characteristically layered in an uncanny grandness and enliven by a truly stirring current. It always seemed to match the mood and images to great affect. Familiar and gruff, but a very well done and technically efficient action/adventure joint that at the end has something boldly important to say on the human nature.

The movie was well cast with tough Australian born Rod Taylor as the mercenary Captain Curry. Dressed appropriately in his Congo Auxiliary forces uniform right down to the rolex watch so common to special forces personnel in (at that time-late 60's) the Vietnam era. The action is good but sporadic. The conflict over the mission, what each character represented, and the ending are too diverse. The distractions with respect to asides within the movie were not necessary and made the film longer than necessary. The movie would have been better if they did not change the ending used in the Wilbur Smith novel. In the novel (as I recall) Capt. Curry and the the girl (Claire) went to live in Paris with some of the diamonds they recovered.