As far as I know The Best Of Enemies is the only film ever done about a forgotten part of World War II, the campaign in Ethiopia. The first nation to fall to Fascist aggression is ironically the first liberated by it. When Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa was captured by the British there was great rejoicing in the United Kingdom which at that point didn't have a lot to rejoice about. That incident is most important in the climax of the film.David Niven and Albert Sordi play beautifully off against each other as they take turns being each other's prisoners. Neither is a professional soldier and that's important as discipline from both armies kind of breaks down as the two try to get back to the war from the back outposts of the Ethiopian desert that both small companies are stuck in.I will say The Best Of Enemies does give credence that the Italians were not best of soldiers during World War II. Best scene in the film is when the native Ethiopians surround both and want the weapons they have and prove to be better strategists than either commander. The native chief gives out with a timely warning about taking your white man's war back to your own countries. The Best Of Enemies is a fine comedy with perfectly matched leads and even has some serious messages we should listen to.

The 'capture' sequence of the English patrol and the Italian patrol was filmed in Israel, a little way into the Negev Desert from the seaside town of Eilath.I was an American student attending Tel Aviv University, on school break at the time, when the director of production hired me to play the role of the Ethiopian Bandit Chief who conducts the capture. However, one problem presented itself, though I was an 'African' American, I was not dark complected enough to play an Ethiopian! The solution proposed was for me to 'live-on-the-beach' for a week until my skin was dark enough. This was the first and only time in my life that I was "paid to be Black!" Friends and family still chuckle about this singular 'experience' even today.

This movie is really great, it's not full of special effects or things like those, but it is made very well. Then, there's a great actor like Alberto Sordi, but the others actors are very good too: I think they have been very good to perform two kind of people: the italians and the english. It's very nice and sometimes comic, I think everyone should see it!

A war movie about the comedy of errors that occurs when blundering Italian and British combat units try to outwit each other in North Africa during WW II. Made with wit and humanity, it's a shame this fine picture never seemed to find the audience it deserved.