The Great Escape

Release Year: 1963

Director: John Sturges

Review: John Sturgis' WWII prison escape epic about a prison camp in Nazi Germany housing the most prolific escape artists that are in German custody.  What is most interesting about the film is that it is based on a real event, and tries to stay as close to those events as possible.  It lets you know this straight away which adds a layer of credibility to the film making the escape that much more intense.  The biggest problem was the pacing.  It took its time, building a nearly three hour long movie around one event.  The first half dragged, followed by a great middle, followed by a dragging end.  It played almost like a television series, particularly in the beginning.  In an episodic arch characters are going about their normal prison camp lives with some hi-jinx and escape planning mixed in.  It did provide an excellent back drop for the kind of people that this camp held.  These were veteran POWs.  They didn't so much care about being caught, as long as they were causing trouble for the guards.  It felt like a well oiled machine; a regimen designed to escape.  Steve McQueen hams it up as the ultra-cool American, and while he lightens the mood and adds another dimension to the film, it comes off as a bit over the top.  His motorcycle chase scene, however, more than justifies his appearance.  This isn't the best war drama, but it has a certain quality that makes it fun to watch anyway.  The run time is daunting, but it went by surprising quickly.  It can easily be broken up into two or three sittings without losing anything.  One thing the length does add is that you get invested in the characters, you care for them on a personal level and want them to escape which makes the even all the more thrilling.
Rating: 3/5