THE DIRTY DOZEN
It’s not a regular egg salad sandwich, it’s a deviled egg salad sandwich.
I watched The Dirty Dozen for the first time this past week, and I had every intent to pair it with a deviled egg salad sandwich. Why, you ask? Well, first of all, “dozen” makes me think of eggs (duh… duhzen). And the fact that it’s the dirty dozen, I thought, DEVILED EGGS. So, there’s not a scene where these men are eating deviled eggs, just fyi. But anyhoo, let’s get into it.
First things first, this movie is killer. I was riveted the whole time — and I say this as a person who frequently multi-tasks (read: does not pay attention, plays stupid games on phone) while watching movies. The Dirty Dozen is a solid watch, and I did not play even one round of tetris. And hey, Lee Marvin is in it, man!
Liz Lemon’s love of Lee Marvin throughout 30Rock always gets me.
If you’ve been keeping up with this blog, you’ll know I do a lil research on the film before crafting my post. After watching DD, my personal takeaway was that Tarantino yoinked the core of Inglourious Basterds from this film. And upon reading this article on Collider, I was vindicated: ”Tarantino has openly acknowledged that he started writing Basterds because he wanted to do his own version, a more brutal version of The Dirty Dozen. He has mentioned that he always uses a specific genre as a jumping-off point for his scripts and that for Inglorious Basterds he employed the "man on a mission" genre, using The Dirty Dozen as a key reference.”
And furthermore, film critic Mark Harris writes “…it’s the film’s melding of anti-authoritarianism and team spirit that has proved to be a blueprint for five decades and counting: without The Dirty Dozen, there is no Inglourious Basterds and (for better or worse) no Suicide Squad,” on Film Comment in 2017. Bonus points for that link, btw: Harris also goes into good points about how the audience of 1967 was primed for this type of war movie due to the late 60s sentiment of rebelliousness, Vietnam protests, and cynicism about patriotism.
That being said, I highly recommend this film, if you haven’t seen it. If you have, holler at me and let me know your favorite (or not so favorite!) parts. I love Lee Marvin and Charles Bronson in this film — their characters are fascinating, and the actors really brought it. Well, all the men did, but I gotta say, Telly Savalas’s character is revolting. But he plays it so viciously realistic, it’s another component of what makes it a great movie.
So let’s eat. For Deviled Egg Salad Sandwiches:
Instead of copying this recipe, I’m just gonna link to it: Love and Lemons’ Deviled Eggs
Smash said deviled eggs up into egg salad filling (consistency is up to you whether you like it a bit chunky or completely smooth; I prefer chunky)
Sourdough baguette, sliced length-wise and toasted in a pan with butter
Load those bad boys up and sprinkle with paprika
You might find that the sandwich is too dang big, but it works wonderfully as an open-faced ‘wich as well. I could definitely see these being a hit at a picnic, or maybe at some chateau in France. Just don’t go in the basement.
Resources:
Cinema ’67 Revisited: The Dirty Dozen
The WWII Movie That Ripples Through Quentin Tarantino’s Filmography
QUENTIN TARANTINO TALKS INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS - RT INTERVIEW
Love & Lemons Deviled Eggs
30Rock: Lee Marvin vs. Derek Jeter
