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
Source:	STUDIO DISTRIBUTION SERVS LLC
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[monaural]
Language:	English
Time:	2:52:00
Sales rank:	3,706

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

Technical Credits

W.R. Burnett

James Clavell

John Goetz

Klaus Nedergaard

Christine Wiegand

Paul Brickhill

John Sturges	Director,Producer
W.R. Burnett	Screenwriter,Screenwriter
James Clavell	Screenwriter,Producer
Walter Mirisch	Executive Producer,Producer
Wayne Fury	Sound Effects
John Goetz	Screenwriter
Klaus Nedergaard	Screenwriter
Christine Wiegand	Screenwriter
A. Paul Pollard	Special Effects
Paul Brickhill	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

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.