Archetypal Prisoner-of-War Drama

Rating: 8/10 (25 December 2013)

Over the last half-century THE GREAT ESCAPE has established itself as THE prisoner-of-war drama for future directors interested in the genre to emulate. There are other films which can compete for this title (Billy Wilder's STALAG 17 (1953)) is a good candidate), but John Sturges' film simply gets everything right, from the ensemble cast to the locations and Elmer Bernstein's iconic theme tune. There is no need to rehearse the plot; rather we should pay attention to the way Sturges creates character cameos to show how the escape was essentially a team effort in which everyone - regardless of rank or nation - played their part. Donald Pleasance's Blythe ("The Forger") proves exceptionally adept at his task, even though his myopia hinders the escape when it actually takes place. Charles Bronson's Danny ("The Tunnel King") becomes almost paralyzed with fear when the time comes to escape; it is as if he cannot contemplate the prospect of life outside. Even James Donald, as the SBO (Senior British Officer) has his part to play - although not actively involved in the escape - he knows how to manage his German captors. The set-designs (Kurt Ripberger) and photography (Daniel L. Fapp) are wondrous; we get sense of the claustrophobia of the prison-camp, which is only exacerbated in the tunnels; this is contrasted with the wide expanses of the Alps as the fugitives make their futile bids to reach the Swiss border. While there might be some slightly jarring elements (James Coburn's Australian accent is rather eccentric, to be polite), THE GREAT ESCAPE is nothing less than a timeless classic.