The perfect film for holiday afternoons

Rating: 8/10 (23 December 2003)

More or less guaranteed to be shown during holiday afternoons this is based on a true story. During WW2 the germans create a prison where they house all the most notorious escapees. It's a plan that is either ingenious, if they can keep everyone in, or stupid, if everyone escapes. As we all know from the movie it turns out to be an idea of the stupid variety.
It's very interesting to watch the documentaries on the escape and discussions on whether it was worth it. The german officer that killed the escapees was following orders and was eventually executed himself after the war which is also a very interesting moral question. Should he have disobeyed the orders and been shot and did he deserve to die for obeying the orders.
Anyway back to the film and it seems hard to believe that anybody could have not seen this. The Steve McQueen bike ride has gone into cinema folklore. The main purpose of the escape is to cause as much trouble as possible to the germans and thereby aide the allies. A great film, but also a sad story.