The film tells the fictional alternate history story of a plot to assassinate Nazi Germany's political leadership.

A group of very clever but eccentric misfit engineers and scientists are given carte blanche (by the french) and a blank cheque ( by the British and Americans) to get rid of Hitler and his confederates.

The hope of the Allied high command is that either they'll succeed (which will be good) or that most or all of them will be killed (which in some people's view will be even better).

To the astonishment and dismay of the high command, they not only succeed, but do so with only dramatically necessary casualties, by means of a hilarious and improbable series of Heath Robinson/Rube Goldberg improvisations, and extremely dangerous and inadvisable use of obscure physical, chemical, biological and mathematical principles.
-- 8th of 7, Oct 04 2016

//they not only succeed, but do so with only dramatically necessary casualties, by means of a hilarious and improbable series of Heath Robinson/Rube Goldberg improvisations, and extremely dangerous and inadvisable use of obscure physical, chemical, biological and mathematical principles.// Wasn't this basically the entire British team in WWII?
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Oct 04 2016


Certainly not. Equal reliance was placed on a number of insanely brave/stupid aristocratic blokes such as the Earl of Suffolk, Lord Lovat, John Stirling, and "Mad Jack" Churchill, along with the usual backup team of cheerful working-class Good Chaps who were quite prepared to follow their reckless yet charismatic leaders to the ends of the Earth ... mainly out of morbid curiosity.
-- 8th of 7, Oct 04 2016


Must involve bees. But not bumblebees. They're on the protected list.
-- RayfordSteele, Oct 04 2016


When the working class gets the blame, a sequel is made:

"Ignominious Blackards"
-- Ling, Oct 04 2016


When they succeed, do they create a paradox by which their technology and group don't exist because WWII never started?
-- RayfordSteele, Oct 05 2016


/When they succeed, do they create a paradox by which their technology and group don't exist because WWII never started?/

That could actually take place around the beginning of the movie. The future self of one of the scientists sitting in the room materializes, somewhat haggard and worse for the wear and notifies the assembly that he has prevented the whole thing from occurring and that there will be no need for any dangerous and inadvisable shenanigans. Seeing all that grant money at risk, two of them shoot the fellow sitting in the room, whereupon his future self disappears.

Eyebrows are raised. "Well then! Where were we?"
-- bungston, Oct 05 2016



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