The Great Escape is A Great Deal of Fun And - In Itself - A Kind Of Escape!

Rating: 9/10 (14 January 2016)

At a Luftwaffe-run high-security WWII prison camp somewhere in Germany, a group of Allied officers plot one of the most inordinately ambitious escape attempts ever hatched. Not just a dozen or two, but 250 men are planning to escape. Each man contributes his expertise. British Squadron leader Roger Bartlett (Richard Attenborough) nicknamed Big X designs the plan, which involves digging three tunnels at once with Charles Bronson as the "chief digger", despite his lifelong claustrophobia. James Coburn is the "manufacturer," who invents a way to keep air flowing through the tunnels. James Garner plays the "scrounger", whose job is to get a hold of things like picks and shovels as well as ID badges and documents. Donald Pleasance is a "forger" who prepares the fake documents the prisoners will need once they escape. Finally, we have Steve McQueen playing Hilts, who spends most of his time in the cooler, bouncing his baseball against the wall and is ready to go through the tunnel to get important information, and then allow himself to be recaptured so he can give them the information.
With its luxurious three hours, The Great Escape deliberately details all the ins and outs, the successes and pitfalls of the plan. We learn how the diggers get rid of the excess dirt. We learn where the wood comes from to brace the tunnels. We see how the scrounger makes friends with - and double-crosses - the guards to get what he wants from the outside. The escape itself occurs in the middle of the film, and the way it is shot is absolutely gripping. The cast is a cavalcade of tough guys from 1960, offering a fantastic ensemble - a punchy cast with the moxy you'd expect from a group of officers trying to buck the system.
Unlike other prison camp movies, it does not dwell on disputes between prisoners or on the deprivations, which seems almost comfortable. The story gives us an exceptional example of professionalism, courage, resourcefulness, teamwork, and loyalty of every one of the prisoners. But, it is not one bit preachy. It is in fact, an absurdly fun movie to watch: it says very little about the human condition but it doesn't ever sag for long enough to let you notice that fact. John Sturges' genius is that he presents each detail of the plan with all the excitement of a major set-piece: he understands the human tendency towards curiosity in how things work and rewards it by lingering over every step in the process. Elmer Bernstein's exemplary score helps a great deal. He lays on the dread when Sturges forgets about it, and ramps up the suspense when necessary with a rollicking, jingoistic collection of iconic marches and leitmotifs that give the film a bouncy momentum that carries us through.
It is, when all is said and done, a mechanical film: but god, what a beautiful machine!