This movie is just one of those evergreens that people will watch and enjoy forever. It just is. Steve McQueen is just great as that dude who spend a lot of time locked up playing baseball with himself. But really, Donald Pleasance, James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Richard Attenborough etc etc with all those great stars you'd think you'd have critical mass but no. All play their roles brillantly wit... read more
Description:A stirring example of courage and the indomitable human spirit, for many John Sturges's The Great Escape is both the definitive World War II drama and the nonpareil prison escape movie. Featuring an unequalled ensemble cast in a rivetingly authentic true-life scenario set to Elmer Bernstein's admirable music, this picture is both a teA stirring example of courage and the indomitable human spirit, for many John Sturges's The Great Escape is both the definitive World War II drama and the nonpareil prison escape movie. Featuring an unequalled ensemble cast in a rivetingly authentic true-life scenario set to Elmer Bernstein's admirable music, this picture is both a template for subsequent action-adventure movies and one of the last glories of Golden Age Hollywood. Reunited with the director who made him a star in The Magnificent Seven, Steve McQueen gives a career-defining performance as the laconic Hilts, the baseball-loving, motorbike-riding "Cooler King." The rest of the all-male Anglo-American cast--Dickie Attenborough, Donald Pleasance, James Garner, Charles Bronson, David McCallum, James Coburn, and Gordon Jackson--make the most of their meaty roles (though you have to forgive Coburn his Australian accent). Closely based on Paul Brickhill's book, the various escape attempts, scrounging, forging, and ferreting activities are authentically realized thanks also to technical advisor Wally Flood, one of the original tunnel-digging POWs. Sturges orchestrates the climax with total conviction, giving us both high action and very poignant human drama. Without trivializing the grim reality, The Great Escape thrillingly celebrates the heroism of men who never gave up the fight. --Mark Walker... (more)(less)
Manufacturer : MGM Entertainment Release date : 1 February 2000 Number of discs : 1 EAN: 7321900566803
“This movie is just one of those evergreens that people will watch and enjoy forever. It just is. Steve McQueen is just great as that dude who spend a lot of time locked up playing baseball with himself. But really, Donald Pleasance, James Coburn, Charles Bronson, Richard Attenborough etc etc with all those great stars you'd think you'd have critical mass but no. All play their roles brillantly without egos getting in the way. Just one of the all time most watchable fims. One of the first DVDs I owned, still a favourite.” read more
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