The Dogs of War (film)

The Dogs of War
Theatrical release poster by Tom Jung
Directed byJohn Irvin
Screenplay byGary DeVore
George Malko
Based onThe Dogs of War
by Frederick Forsyth
Produced byLarry DeWaay
Norman Jewison
Patrick J. Palmer
StarringChristopher Walken
Tom Berenger
Colin Blakely
CinematographyJack Cardiff
Edited byAntony Gibbs
Music byGeoffrey Burgon
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release date
  • 17 December 1980 (1980-12-17)
Running time
118 minutes
CountriesUnited States
United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$8 million[1]
Box office$5.4 million[2]

The Dogs of War is a 1980 British war film based upon the 1974 novel of the same name by Frederick Forsyth. Largely filmed in Belize, it was directed by John Irvin and starred Christopher Walken and Tom Berenger. In it a small mercenary unit of soldiers is privately hired to depose the president of a fictional African country modeled on Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry, Equatorial Guinea and Angola (as they were in the late 1970s), so that a British tycoon can gain access to a platinum deposit.[3] The title is based on a phrase from William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar: "Cry, 'Havoc!', and let slip the dogs of war."

  1. ^ Perry, Simon. "FINANCE FOR LOCAL TALENT". Sight and Sound. Vol. 49, no. 3 (Summer 1980). London. p. 144.
  2. ^ "The Dogs of War (1981)". Box Office Mojo.
  3. ^ New York Magazine Feb 23, 1981