This film is known as BITTER VICTORY in Britain and not by its French title AMERE VICTOIRE . I also couldn`t help noticing that the IMDB classes this movie as an American / French co -production . America and France co-operating on something ! I guess BITTER IRONY would be a great title for this movie with hindsight

The film makes the point that because someone holds rank it doesn`t necessarily indicate they`re the best man for the job which seems to be far more of a civilian sensibility far more than a military one . The point isn`t made well either and as noted several films have made the point much better , my own personal favourites include ATTACK and TOO LATE THE HERO . It also seems contradictory to have a movie with this subtext set in the North African desert with this particular campaign one of the effective in British military history . Wouldn`t the western front during 1914 -18 be a better setting ?

It also seems very heavy handed on the part of director Nicholas Ray . There`s a scene where Richard Burton`s anti-hero has to carry out a mercy killing for for a reason I won`t spoil can`t . He then carries a wounded man across the desert . This scene would have worked far , far better if it were much more subtle but the director insists on using melodramatic music and dialogue to hit the audience over the head as to how terrible some desicions are during wartime when combined with cruel luck when in fact the point didn`t need to be hammered home . There`s a couple of other examples through this movie

Despite this BITTER VICTORY is far from being a bad war movie and I can think of several worse war movies Burton has starred in like RAID ON ROMMEL , and the cast do a great job . Where this movie fails is when it doesn`t allow the audience to think for itself

BITTER VICTORY is a standard WW2 flick that seems to have heavily inspired the Italian run of WW2 movies that came out some ten years later. The bulk of the film is a men-on-a-mission thriller as a group of British soldiers steal some top secret documents from the Nazis and then are forced to flee for their lives into the desert. What follows will surprise nobody watching, as this is very straightforward stuff.

What BITTER VICTORY does have going for it is a good cast, headlined by Curd Jurgens (surprisingly playing a Brit) and Richard Burton. The two have a love triangle going on involving Jurgens's wife, so there's a lot of antagonism and even hints at forthcoming murder that helps to drive the movie's conflict. The supporting cast is rounded out by the likes of Nigel Green, Christopher Lee, and Alfred Burke.

This film is rather light on action, although the scenes set in Benghazi involving Green's safecracker are well handled. Overall the movie is well shot by American director Nicholas Ray (ON DANGEROUS GROUND),but it lacks quite a bit of suspense considering the premise so it's only middling stuff.

The fine playing of Curt Jurgens and Richard Burton raises Bitter Victory quite a few notches. Actors less capable than them and a director less capable than Nicholas Ray would have made a muck of this film which borders on incoherency at times in terms of the point it was trying to make.

I'm just finished watching it and I still don't know what it was all about. Jurgens who is a South African the better to explain his German accent while leading British troops in the desert war in Italy has been a staff officer for years and has no combat experience. But his knowledge of the German language is considered valuable on this mission. He's married to Ruth Roman who has joined the British WAAFs to help in the cause. And she's on duty at headquarters.

Which doesn't help matters as the other officer in consideration for commanding a commando raid on Rommel's headquarters is Richard Burton. He's an archaeologist, speaks Arabic and, oh yes, he's Roman's former boyfriend. And he's got the requisite combat experience.

But Jurgens is a major and Burton is a captain so Jurgens is in command. Burton is sure he's a coward when he hesitates shooting. And since he'd like to get back with Roman he'll do anything to discredit Jurgens.

What a recipe for a disaster and the mission nearly turns into one. One of them doesn't make it out of the Libyan desert.

Sad, but Ray, Burton, and Jurgens were all capable of better work and did it. I'd view this only if I were a fan of any combination or all of the above cinema icons.