The Great Escape

Director: John Sturges John Sturges

Overview

John Sturges' nail-biting POW classic The Great Escape arrives on DVD with a widescreen transfer that preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1. English and French soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Stereo. English, Spanish, and French subtitles are accessible. Supplemental materials include a half-hour documentary, production notes, trivia, and the original theatrical trailer. This fine package will please fans of the film and may draw some interest from people unfamiliar with it.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/31/1998
UPC:	0027616668028
Original Release:	1963
Rating:	NR
Source:	Mgm (Video & Dvd)
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[monaural]
Time:	2:52:00
Sales rank:	3,956

Special Features

24-minute documentary on the making of "The Great Escape"; Trivia and production notes; Original theatrical trailer; Dual-layer format for continuous playback

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Steve McQueen	"Cooler King" Hilts
James Garner	"The Scrounger" Hendley
Richard Attenborough	"Big X" Bartlett
James Donald	Senior Officer Ramsey
Charles Bronson	Danny Velinski
James Coburn	"The Manufacturer" Sedgwick
David McCallum	Ashley-Pitt "Dispersal"
Donald Pleasence	"The Forger" Blythe
Gordon Jackson	MacDonald "Intelligence"
John Leyton	Willie "Tunnel King"
Angus Lennie	"The Mole" Ives
Nigel Stock	Cavendish "The Surveyor"
Jud Taylor	Goff
William Russell	Sorren
Robert Desmond	"The Tailor" Griffith
Tom Adams	Nimmo
Lawrence Montaigne	Haynes
Hannes Messemer	Von Lugar "The Kommandant"
Robert Graf	Werner "The Ferret"
Harry Riebauer	Strachwitz
Hans Reiser	Kuhn
Robert Freitag	Posen
Heinz Weiss	Kramer
Til Kiwe	Frick
Ulrich Beiger	Preissen
George Mikell	Dietrich
Karl Otto Alberty	Steinach

Technical Credits

W.R. Burnett

James Clavell

John Sturges	Director,Producer
Elmer Bernstein	Score Composer
W.R. Burnett	Screenwriter
Fernando Carrere	Art Director
James Clavell	Screenwriter
Bud Ekins	Stunts
Daniel L. Fapp	Cinematographer
Bert Henrikson	Costumes/Costume Designer
Emile LaVigne	Makeup
Jack N. Reddish	Asst. Director
Ferris Webster	Editor

Scene Index

Scene Selections
0. Scene Selections
1. Main Titles [:21]
2. The Prisoners Arrive [3:22]
3. Escape Attempt #1 [4:45]
4. The Blind Spot [8:18]
5. To The Cooler [:28]
6. Barlett's Arrival [1:40]
7. The Objective [3:23]
8. The Escape Committee [4:32]
9. Forger & Scrounger [4:19]
10. Stealing Steel [2:24]
11. Tunneling Begins. [1:21]
12. Spot Inspection [2:17]
13. Hilts & Ives' Plan [4:19]
14. Come All Ye Faithful [1:09]
15. Tempting The Guard [:17]
16. Dealing For A Camera [2:27]
17. Tunnel Collapse [2:06]
18. Independence Day [2:51]
19. Finding "Tom" [6:24]
20. Doubts Abut Blythe [1:21]
21. The Escape Begins [8:48]
22. 20 Feet Short [3:28]
23. Discovered! [1:56]
24. The Chase [1:53]
25. Death At The Station [6:13]
26. Taking The Plane [1:42]
27. Crash Landing [5:16]
28. Motorcycle Pursuit [2:48]
29. The Resistance [7:25]
30. The Massacre [2:00]
31. Back To The Cooler [6:04]
32. End Titles [6:36]

Menu

Main
Play
   Menu Group #1 with 33 chapter(s) covering 02:52:05
Special Features
   Documentary
   Theatrical Trailer
Languages

Editorial Reviews

Director John Sturges (The Magnificent Seven) pulls out all the stops in The Great Escape, his classic big-budget World War II POW extravaganza. The title pretty much says it all: The film tells the true story of some determined Allied prisoners who manage to tunnel out of a new and presumably escape-proof camp in which they have all been interred. Sturges lovingly details every aspect of their elaborate scheme, as the prisoners bring a host of skills -- engineering, forgery, and even tailoring -- to the job at hand. There is some rudimentary character development along the way, but don’t expect detailed, complex glimpses into the inner workings of these guys’ psyches. The inmates (Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, Charles Bronson, James Garner, and many more) are cleanly drawn as heroic to a man, and their camaraderie, ingenuity, and courage allows them to pull off a truly impressive feat. Yes, these are idealized portraits, but immensely satisfying ones. The structure of The Great Escape evokes a powerful sense of liberation, as the claustrophobic atmosphere of the first half of the film gives way to open-air chases in the second half, including McQueen's famous motorcycle romp through some spectacular wide-screen vistas of the German countryside, with a battalion of soldiers in hot pursuit. Topping it all off is a memorable -- and eminently whistle-able -- score from Elmer Bernstein. The Great Escape is Hollywood entertainment at its finest. Sit back and enjoy.

Barnes & Noble - Gregory Baird

John Sturges' The Great Escape could easily be the most under-appreciated movie of its genre and decade, which may seem a strange thing to say about a movie that is one of the most popular World War II adventure films ever made. It not only defined the screen personae of Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough and much of the rest of the cast, but along with The Magnificent Seven represented a high-water mark in Sturges' career. Yet, despite that and the millions of dollars it earned at the box office, The Great Escape didn't command much respect until years after its release. Critics lumped the film together with such mammoth World War II productions as The Longest Day, The Guns of Navarone and Battle of the Bulge and overlooked its unique status as a fundamentally tragic movie that still managed to appeal to audiences in an upbeat manner. Beneath the fact-based heroics, the humor of many of the portrayals and Elmer Bernstein's rich, rousing score lay the elements of a classic tragedy. While ordinary viewers responded to the driving dramatic forces among the characters -- Bartlett's obsession, Hilts's self-absorption and cynicism, Hedley's practical approach to survival and the mission -- critics and scholars viewed the movie as an artless, empty blockbuster. They were looking for self-conscious subtlety and obvious artistic touches in a story that required only a straightforward, unpretentious telling. The Great Escape expresses its depth and drama through action rather than ponderous dialogue, and in that sense, was probably too true to its subject for its own good, at least in terms of achieving critical respect. Only in recent years have film historians grudgingly confronted the fact that The Great Escape's audience has broadened since its release, and reappraised its unique qualities.

All Movie Guide - Bruce Eder

John Sturges' The Great Escape could easily be the most under-appreciated movie of its genre and decade, which may seem a strange thing to say about a movie that is one of the most popular World War II adventure films ever made. It not only defined the screen personae of Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough and much of the rest of the cast, but along with The Magnificent Seven represented a high-water mark in Sturges' career. Yet, despite that and the millions of dollars it earned at the box office, The Great Escape didn't command much respect until years after its release. Critics lumped the film together with such mammoth World War II productions as The Longest Day, The Guns of Navarone and Battle of the Bulge and overlooked its unique status as a fundamentally tragic movie that still managed to appeal to audiences in an upbeat manner. Beneath the fact-based heroics, the humor of many of the portrayals and Elmer Bernstein's rich, rousing score lay the elements of a classic tragedy. While ordinary viewers responded to the driving dramatic forces among the characters -- Bartlett's obsession, Hilts's self-absorption and cynicism, Hedley's practical approach to survival and the mission -- critics and scholars viewed the movie as an artless, empty blockbuster. They were looking for self-conscious subtlety and obvious artistic touches in a story that required only a straightforward, unpretentious telling. The Great Escape expresses its depth and drama through action rather than ponderous dialogue, and in that sense, was probably too true to its subject for its own good, at least in terms of achieving critical respect. Only in recent years have film historians grudgingly confronted the fact that The Great Escape's audience has broadened since its release, and reappraised its unique qualities. Bruce Eder

All Movie Guide