The Great Escape

views updated

The Great Escape ★★★½ 1963

During WWII, troublesome allied POWs are thrown by the Nazis into an escape-proof camp, where they join forces in a single mass break for freedom. One of the great war movies, with a superb ensemble cast and lots of excitement. The story was true, based on the novel by Paul Brickhill. McQueen performed most of the stunts himself, against the wishes of director Sturges. Followed by a made for TV movie 25 years later. 170m/C VHS, DVD . Tom Adams, Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Donald Pleasence, David McCallum, James Donald, Gordon Jackson, Hannes Messemer, John Leyton, Nigel Stock, Jud Taylor, Hans Reiser, Robert Freitag, Karl Otto Alberty, Angus Lennie, Robert Graf, Harry Riebauer; D: John Sturges; W: James Clavell, W.R. Burnett; C: Daniel F. Fapp; M: Elmer Bernstein.

About this article

The Great Escape

Updated About encyclopedia.com content Print Article