THE 25TH REICH appears to be another indie movie heavily promoted by friends and family of the filmmakers who have grossly inflated the film's rating and standing. It's a typical mundane indie with a few imaginative sci-fi touches but that's about it. The beginning and end feature some cool-looking CGI robots and apparatus but the majority of the running time just features soldiers traipsing through the woods endlessly. Hardly what I call entertainment, now.

You get the cardboard cut-outs of a group of characters in this. You have the good guy, the bad guy, the crazy guy and the rookie(s). The budget is so small that the first time the guys are lifting something "heavy" (a machine, that plays a big role, who'd have thought that? Yes, everybody!), it is really painfully obvious that what they're lifting is pretty lightweight.

There is some nice CGI, but the story is more than predictable (apart from one or maybe two little twists that is). I'm not sure what to think of that ending either. There is one scene there, that will disturb people a lot (depending on what they're used to take in ... no pun intended)!

In 1943 a special group of army soldiers are tasked to hunt two escaped pumas in Australia. They take with them a large radio which is carried around like the Ark of Covenant. We have a long wait for action as we get introduced to the characters that appear to be the campy counterparts from WWII movies.

Private Eli Ishbak (Dan Balcaban) A Jewish kid who wants to be in the movies.

Captain O'Brien (Jim Knobeloch) He was a Hollywood actor before enlisting

Rifleman Roberto Barelli (Angelo Salamanca) An Italian from Brooklyn.

Corporal Haywood Updike (Jak Wyld) He is a country boy who wants to be president. His dad is a senator.

Sergeant Carl Weaver (Serge De Nardo) Has a fake sergeant's voice.

As they get to their destination we discover one of the group works for the OSS and the radio is really a time machine. Their real mission is to go BACK in time and recover a flying saucer that was found buried in the ground and bring it to the present to defeat Hitler.

The film was campy by design and was made to look like a 1950's film (except in color) including the scenery riding by to simulate vehicle movement. While back in time, the animals are a bit larger and pose some problems.

Based on a novella, "50,000 Years Until Tomorrow" by J.J. Solomon. This movie is the first part of a series (hopefully) and doesn't give closure. Good fun for those who enjoy the older Sci-fi classics and don't care too much about special effects.

F-bomb, male rape, rear nudity.