The Great Escape

Director: John Sturges, Poul-Erik Heilbuth, Mirisch Company, James Clavell

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:	05/19/2009
UPC:	0027616668028
Original Release:	1963
Source:	Mgm (Video & Dvd)
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[monaural]
Language:	English
Time:	2:52:00
Sales rank:	8,483

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	Virgil Hilts
James Garner	Hendley
Richard Attenborough	Bartlett
James Donald	Senior Officer Ramsey
Charles Bronson	Danny Velinski
James Coburn	Sedgwick
David McCallum	Ashley-Pitt
Gordon Jackson	MacDonald
John Leyton	Willie
Angus Lennie	`The Mole' Ives
Nigel Stock	Cavendish
Jud Taylor	Goff
William Russell	Sorren
Robert Desmond	`The Tailor' Griffith
Tom Adams	Nimmo
Lawrence Montaigne	Haynes
Hannes Messemer	Von Luger
Robert Graf	Werner
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
Donald Pleasence	Blythe
Lonnie Snowden	Actor
Lavinia Mo	Actor
Dianne Feinstein	Actor
Julian Assange	Actor
Sarah Harrison	Actor
Chelsea Manning	Actor
Patrick Ventrell	Actor
Regina Ip	Actor
Jen Psaki	Actor
Richard Jaldin	Actor
Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger	Actor
Elmer Bernstein	Composer
Flemming Nordkrog	Composer

Technical Credits

James Clavell

W.R. Burnett

John Goetz

Klaus Nedergaard

Christine Wiegand

Paul Brickhill

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

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

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