Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

The Great Escape Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov April 5, 2020

John Sturges' "The Great Escape" (1963) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; two audio commentaries; new program with critic Michael Sragow; and other archival programs. The release also arrives with an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Sheila O’Malley and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

The Great Escape is only slightly more believable than Stalag 17, which essentially means that it is a cinematic fairy tale suitable for adults who don’t know history or simply choose to ignore it. What you see in this film never happened, and never could have happened, because real soldiers do not think, communicate, and behave like the men that made it.

John Sturges directed the film from an original script by James Clavell and W. R. Burnett, who had adapted Paul Brickhill’s novel about a very large group of Allied officers that managed to escape from a newly built German camp operated by the Luftwaffe (the German air force). This is a true story and the real camp where the officers were held was in Sagan, Poland.

In the film, the officers begin plotting their escape almost immediately after they are transported to the camp. Many of them know each other and have done it before, so all they have to do is agree on the perfect plan. Soon after, under the guidance of Roger Bartlett (Richard Attenborough) men with special skills -- there are builders, forgers, scroungers, etc. -- are given specific tasks and multiple teams go to work. The only officer that chooses a different path to freedom is an American named Hilts (Steve McQueen), who eventually becomes famous as The Cooler King because he repeatedly gets caught and thrown in solitary confinement.

The original escape plan, which calls for three different tunnels to be dug in different areas of the camp, undergoes a lot of adjustments because of unexpected setbacks and errors, and some men are lost. However, the failures and sacrifices bring the prisoners even closer and eventually, with The Cooler King part of the group, they accomplish their goal. (Not too long after that, however, virtually all escapees are recaptured and more than fifty of them are executed by the Gestapo).

The star power on display is hugely impressive. Some of the greatest American and British actors of the era come together and quickly begin working as a team rather than a group of individuals trying to outdo each other. Unfortunately, this might be the biggest compliment one can give the film. Indeed, its tone and attitude are so seriously mismanaged that sizeable portions of it look like they are coming from a period comedy about a motley crew of goofy outcasts and wise guys, not a serious war film about real soldiers who are risking their lives in a dangerous mission. Even more unbelievable are the people running the prison camp, with Robert Graf’s character, Werner, going to such extremes to convince he is legitimately clueless about the real intentions of the people that he is supposed to keep an eye on that it is hard to believe no one felt the need to step up and trim his scenes a bit.

The final third of the film is where the most exciting material is, though it does very little, if anything at all, to restore its credibility as a legit war drama. There are a few nicely shot sequences from the underground tunnel and of course here is the iconic footage with McQueen riding the bike. But again, this is the type of flashy material that looks right in a period Hollywood action film, which is not what this film was meant to be.

Sturges relied on the services of cinematographer Daniel L. Fapp, whose credits include such hits as West Side Story and The Big Clock. Oscar winner Elmer Bernstein created the soundtrack for the film.

*Criterion’s upcoming Blu-ray release of The Great Escape is sourced from an exclusive new 4K restoration of the film.

The Great Escape Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Great Escape arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the leaflet that is provided with this Blu-ray release:

"This 4K digital restoration was undertaken by MGM. A digital transfer was created in 10-bit 4K resolution on an ARRI film scanner from the 35mm original camera negative at EFILM in Los Angeles. A 35mm interpositive was also scanned at Deluxe in Sherman Oaks, California. Original Metrocolor prints of The Great Escape are badly faded, making accurate color references difficult to find. Color references for this edition included an original 35mm dye-transfer print from the Academy Film Archive's Technicolor Reference Collection, a 35mm acetate print owned by Martin Scorsese, and a 35mm acetate print owned by Quentin Tarantino.

The original monaural soundtrack was remastered from a 35mm magnetic track. The alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack was created in 2002 by Chace Audio in Hollywood, California.

Colorists: Roman Hankewycz/Harbor Picture Company, Santa Monica, CA; Kevin O'Connor/Deluxe Sherman Oaks, CA."

I own the first release of the film that MGM produced and I think that the technical presentation on it is very strong. The film does look a tiny bit softer than it should -- and given the age of the master as well as the technology that was used to produce it, it is perfectly fine -- but overall I think that it has a very pleasing organic appearance without any serious technical anomalies. This upcoming release is sourced from an exclusive new 4K master that offers two major improvements and a few smaller ones. The major improvements are what virtually every new proper master delivers: better density levels and finer fluidity. So, if you already own the first release you should expect to see 'tighter' visuals on the new release. During daylight footage this can make quite a difference, especially if you view your films on a larger screen, or even better project them. However, native softness, which is part of the original cinematography, is obviously retained, so it important not to confuse better density with sharper visuals in particular areas where it exists. Examples where despite the better density the visuals remain softer as they are on the previous release can be seen in screencaptures #3 and 10. The stronger fluidity is again easy to appreciate if you have a larger screen, and if you decide to upscale to 4K then the overall improvement becomes even bigger.

Here are a few smaller improvements that you should see on the new master: In some darker areas finer nuances are better exposed. However, keep in mind again that the management of light and camera positioning produce minor fluctuations that could flatten the visuals a bit, and when the effect becomes prominent these finer nuances again could become difficult to identify. In other words, this is a limitation of the original cinematography. You can see two examples with similar limitations in screencaptures #5 and 15. The color grading job introduces a few small expansions in the supporting nuances, but the overall balance and temperature of the color scheme are extremely similar to that of the previous release. Lastly, the new master is healthier. How much? As far as I am concerned the difference is quite obvious, but the improved density levels I think also help because they support stability as well. All in all, this is a really, really strong technical presentation of The Great Escape which I think its fans will be enormously satisfied with. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

The Great Escape Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0 and English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

I viewed the entire film with the original Mono track. I think that it sounds fantastic. It is clean, clear, stable, and completely free of age-related anomalies. Older films tend to reveal weaknesses in the upper register, but there are none here. Also, there are no encoding anomalies to report in our review.

The Great Escape Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - a remastered vintage trailer for The Great Escape. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080p).

• "The Great Escape": Heroes Underground (2001) - this vintage program focuses on the real event that inspired The Great Escape. It is narrated by Burt Reynolds. In English, not subtitled. (44 min, 1080i).
  
  1. Bringing Fact to Fiction
  2. Preparations for Freedom
  3. The Flight to Freedom
  4. A Standing Ovation

• The Real Virgil Hilts: A Man Called Jones (2001) - this archival program takes a closer look at United States Army Air Forces Pilot David M. Jones, who was the inspiration for Steve McQueen's character The Cooler King. In English, not subtitled. (25 min, 1080i).

• Return to The Great Escape (1993) - this archival program focuses on the production history of The Great Escape and features clips from vintage interviews with James Garner, James Coburn, Donald Pleasence, David McCallum, and Jud Taylor, amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (25 min, 1080i).

• Michael Sragow - in this exclusive new video interview, critic Michael Sragow discusses the production of The Great Escape and the life and legacy of its creator, director John Sturges. The interview was conducted in Los Angeles in January 2020. In English, not subtitled. (24 min, 1080p).

• Audio Commentary One - this archival audio commentary features director John Sturges, composer Elmer Bernstein, production manager and second unit director Robert E. Relyea, and stuntman Bud Ekins. It was recorded in 1991 and previously appeared on Criterion's LD release of The Great Escape.

• Audio Commentary Two - this archival audio commentary features an interview with director John Sturges from 1974, production manager and second unit director Robert E. Relyea, actors James Coburn, James Garner, David McCallum, Donald Pleasence, and Jud Taylor, production designer Fernando Carrerre, stuntman Bid Ekins, and Steve McQueen's manager Hillard Elkins. It is hosted by Jay Rubin, author of Combat Films: American Realism, 1945-2010.

• Leaflet - an illustrated leaflet featuring an essay by critic Sheila O'Malley and technical credits.

The Great Escape Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

German war camps were nothing like the place you would see in The Great Escape, and to assume that soldiers and civilians that were unlucky to end up there could behave like the many stars that made the film is beyond naive. This is the biggest problem with this film -- it sells a fairy tale, it does not recreate a true story. This does not mean that it is an awful film. No, not at all. There is plenty of good acting with memorable action footage in it, but it is not the masterful and authentic war drama that Hollywood wanted it to be and various critics argued it was. (You can get a much more accurate idea of what German camps were like if you see Lajos Koltai's Fateless. And for a similar viewing experience revealing the truth about the Soviet gulags, you can spend an evening with Hardy Martins' As Far as My Feet Will Carry Me). Criterion's upcoming Blu-ray release of The Great Escape should make admirers of the film very, very happy. It is sourced from a very beautiful new 4K master and has a great selection of archival and new bonus features. RECOMMENDED.