The Great Escape Movie Review 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.

Distribution

Criterion Collection, 210 E. 52nd St., 578 Broadway, New York, NY 10022, Phone: (212)212756-8822, Toll-free: 800-446-2001, URL: http://www.criterionco.com, Remarks: Does not sell directly to consumers

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 170 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Adventure Drama, World War II, Great Escapes, POW/MIA, True Stories, Nazis & Other Paramilitary Slugs

Screenplay

James Clavell, W.R. Burnett

Cast

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

Cinematography

Daniel F. Fapp

Director

John Sturges

Music

Elmer Bernstein

Producer

James Clavell, John Sturges, United Artists