The Wild Geese

If you want action that respects the story underneath it, The Wild Geese is available in the US on Amazon Prime Video and YouTube TV, and in the UK on Amazon Prime Video right now. The length is exactly right for the story it is telling — nothing rushed, nothing dragged out. With 282 viewer ratings on TMDB, this is not a title flying under the radar. Richard Burton anchors the chaos with real screen presence. There is no real reason to keep putting it off — it is right there on Amazon Prime Video.

Part of the current wave of titles people are actually watching, The Wild Geese earns its spot. The Wild Geese moves fast and earns its action sequences rather than just delivering them. A British multinational company seeks to overthrow a vicious dictator in central Africa. It hires a band of (largely aged) mercenaries in London and sends them in to save the virtuous but imprisoned opposition leader who is also critically ill and due for execution. Just when the team has performed a perfect rescue, the multinational does a deal with the vicious dictator leaving the mercenary band to escape under their own steam and exact revenge. Richard Burton and Richard Harris lead a cast that brings real weight to the material. It was released in 1978. The action sequences are expensive-looking without drawing attention to their own budget — they serve the story rather than interrupting it. There is real craft here, even in the moments that do not fully land.

For viewers who want their entertainment to move fast and not waste a scene, The Wild Geese respects your time. It has built its own audience without needing a direct comparison. Best experienced as a single, sustained watch from start to finish. Richard Burton is the obvious draw, but the supporting cast gives the action the context it needs to land. The action holds up because the character work underneath it never lets up.