Enduring the Confinement as Prisoner of War

Rating: 7/10 (27 May 2006)

'Tis the X-Mas season, but it's inside a German prisoner-of-war camp, filled with belly-aching Americans, during World War II. Holden is the camp opportunist, the conman, the guy lookin' for an angle - any angle - for himself. He orchestrates stuff like in-camp horse races, using mice as the subs for horsies. He's the one with the chest full of prime stuff, while everyone else slogs their way through with nary a cooked egg to their name. But Holden's wily ways catch up to him: his cynicism and willingness to bet on men failing to escape earn him the enmity of almost everyone in the camp. And when it becomes apparent that there is an informer among the men, probably selling info to the Germans, he naturally becomes the prime suspect. This soon earns him a beating and a reputation lower than the lowest rat. His only option: ferret out the real informer and clear his own name. There ain't much to celebrate for any of these jokers, having to spend the Holiday in prison overseas. Director Billy Wilder, known for his comedies, instills a sense of humor in scenes involving the German guards, to the point of making them all look clownish. In this day, this calls to mind the TV Series "Hogan's Heroes" - a comparison I'm sure the filmmakers did not have in mind. So, amid the death & drudgery, we have a few laughs. I've always found Holden to be miscast in the prime role; he seems much too stolid and heroic-looking to be the weasel here. Based on a famous play.