This is my first comment on IMDb. I am a big fan of WWII films, so when I saw this one at Blockbuster I picked it up. The plot summary sounded interesting. Unfortunately, the plot summary on the DVD case was the best part of this production.<br /><br />I can't really comment on the quality of the acting, because I think it is impossible for an actor to turn in a good performance when he/she is given nothing to work with. The plot was muddy to begin with, there was no clarity as to why Operation Matchbox was so important for the British. The viewer was left in the dark as to what was going on. The rationale of the SS goons did happen to make sense, but the characters were so stereotyped as to make them seem like cartoon characters with no believability at all. Finally the motivation for Vollner's character was never make clear. He and his friend Beck just seemed like a couple of refugees out of a Three Stooges movie out to make a score.<br /><br />Have I mentioned the cartoon like aspect to the writing yet? Madsen's character ( the American Colonel ) was straight out of a comic book. What American military man did the writers have n mind - someone from Hogan's Heroes? <br /><br />This is the first time I have given a 1 rating to a film. But this one was so horrid it deserved it. It also deserved it for being an insult to the intelligence of WWII genre fans. This was a real stinker of a movie. There is no excuse for this sort of amateurism.