A Comparison Of Leadership In Kelly's Heroes And The Dirty Dozen

This paper will provide a comparison of leadership principles and concepts between the movies “Kelly’s Heroes” and “The Dirty Dozen.” Kelly’s Heroes is about a group of worn out infantry Soldiers that voluntarily put themselves back into the line of combat to liberate a fortune of 14,000 gold bars from behind the German lines. The commanding officer, CPT Maitland, is inattentive and privileged due to being the commanding general’s nephew. The two key non-commissioned offices, Big Joe and SGT Kelly, have to keep their Soldiers alive. The leadership of Big Joe (MSG) is put in question because SGT Kelly stumbles upon an officer in charge of transporting 14,000 gold bars behind the German lines. Kelly, behind Big Joe’s back, convinces the

Soldiers to risk their lives on this adventure instead of going into reserve and temporary separation from combat. I chose Kelly’s Heroes because there are examples of both strong and weak leadership. Strong leadership style with Kelly and Big Joe working together; they effectively lead their team and meet their objectives. I see weak leadership style with CPT Maitland, who during a withdrawal engagement is involved in preparing a sailing boat for shipment to their headquarters and eventually back to the states.
The Dirty Dozen involves 12 condemned and convicted Soldiers that get the opportunity to have their sentences commuted if they survive a suicide mission to kill several high-ranking German officers behind enemy lines.

I selected The Dirty Dozen because I found them on the same DVD and they are both great examples of the challenges of leadership. MAJ Reisman must take a group of criminals and make them Soldier’s again. This is extremely difficult because they do not trust each other, they do not trust Reisman, and some of them are looking for the first opportunity to escape. This is an extreme case in leadership because he has to get a dozen convicted Soldiers, many facing the death penalty, to work together as a

team.
In Kelly’s heroes, the unit is already a well-functioning machine; whereas there is no camaraderie between the men of The Dirty Dozen.

MAJ Reisman, with the help of his MP SGT Bowren, works to get the men into shape and act as a team. One method he uses is that if one of the ex-prisoners escapes, he will hold all the others accountable and return them to their cell and sentences. The team runs afoul of an arrogant airborne brigade commander, COL Breed, who uses his Soldiers to break into the dozen’s training compound. Without Reisman around, they are lined up and questioned, but they refuse to answer any questions. This is one of the first examples of unity that they show; where they refuse to answer the COL’s questions. MAJ Reisman arrives to sneak into camp and pull his weapon on the COL; this allows the dozen to disarm the COL’s men and get some revenge hits on the airborne Soldiers. This is also the first signs of respect they show the MAJ. COL Breed reported his side of what happened up the chain of command; from this, the generals were ready to dissolve the unit and return them to prison. MAJ Reisman, suggested that they prove their validity as a non-conventional force in an upcoming battle exercise. Using cunning and deceptive tactics, they are able to capture COL Breed without direct actions against his elite airborne units. This is an example that Reisman used unconventional tactics that his men felt appropriate to their former status as prisoners; this

solidified the men as a team.
Kelly and Big Joe lead their men based on proven trust and a common goal. It does not matter to the unit if any of them die on this unauthorized mission because they would be subject to the same chances in normal combat. SGT Kelly uses his charisma and his ability to make deals with the division’s mortar NCOIC and a group of “hippie” Sherman tank crews to join in his plan to liberate the gold bars from the Germans. The leadership of Kelly and Big Joe are very similar as those of the MAJ Reisman, they used their rank to lead but more importantly, the confidence of their men felt towards them. They felt that the leaders had their best interest in mind while they were performing the mission. Many of the men from each movie died in action, but that did not affect their ability to control and lead their men.
These two movies show great examples of leadership in combat. The Soldiers had confidence in their leaders because they were competent and valued each member of the unit. Leaders should not put themselves above their Soldiers; they should be willing to do the same things their Soldiers must go through. These two movies are great examples of leadership and I would recommend both. Kelly’s Heroes shows how the unit can react and overcome numerous obstacles and types of combat and pull through. The Dirty Dozen focuses on building team cohesion from individuals who are solely looking out for their best interest. In the process of training, the Soldiers build confidence and respect for authority that they had lost from being imprisoned.