“In 1942, having expended enormous resources on recapturing escaped Allied POWs, the German armed forces move the most determined to a new, high-security prisoner-of-war camp”. Upon arrival, the POWs immediately begin their escape attempts. When they all fail, the group realizes they must be craftier and work together. Everyone has their role: Hendley (James Garner) procures items, Velinski (Charles Bronson) is an expert tunneler, Lt. Blythe forges documents, Sedgwick assembles things, and Squadron Leader Bartlett (Richard Attenborough, aka John Hammond) drafts the plans and coordinates their effort. And don’t forget Capt. Hilts, played by Steve McQueen, who often rests comfortably in solitary confinement, planning his next chance to bolt for freedom. The team works together until they stage their—great escape. *gasp* Only a compete watch-through will tell if they make it.
I liked this film. Like ‘The Magnificent 7’, ‘Oceans 11’, or ‘The Avengers’, this is one of those great team-up films. Everyone has their thing to do and, despite each being wired as every man for himself, they learn to help each other out. The film often made me chuckle and I enjoyed the climactic chase through the Bavarian countryside.** The film was undeniably “Hollywood” and yet the story was simple and sobering.
In a large way, the film reframes WWII into the conflict we celebrate it as. The two American characters (Hendley and Hilts) play the roles that America often views itself as fulfilling—the industrial supplier and the reluctant hero. And until the end, the Nazis were portrayed as uncharacteristically oafish and gentlemanly, framing the conflict as a battle of wits. Despite these tropes and an incredibly long runtime, I ultimately found myself won over by the film’s charm. Chock full of talent and somewhere between ‘The Longest Day’ and ‘The Sound of Music’, this film is one of the WWII classics.