The Colditz Story

THE COLDITZ STORY takes artistic license with facts and the sequence of events, as noted in the foreword, but manages to hold interest when it concentrates on the fortunes of its chief escape officer, JOHN MILLS, and his various experiences with the prisoners and their national rivalries with each other.

Aside from some stereotyped Nazi humor at the expense of stupid guards and the usual assortment of prisoners, the story maintains humor and suspense in equal measure as the men try to tunnel their way to freedom while under the scrutiny of their German captors. Characters are not deeply explored, but ERIC PORTMAN does a standout job as Colonel Richmond and JOHN MILLS is excellent as the real-life escape prisoner Pat Reid.

BRYAN FORBES, IAN CARMICHAEL and LIONEL JEFFRIES are fine in support. Unfortunately, ANTON DIFFRING has little to do as officer Fischer nor does THEODORE BIKEL as one of the POWs.

As escape films go, this POW film is taut with suspense toward the last escape try but a bit flabby in the telling for the most part. Other such films have managed to cover the same territory with more excitement and suspense.

You might call it a low-key story based on true incidents given a rather routine treatment despite some fine performances.

People who watch The Colditz Story have probably seen The Great Escape as well and should bear in mind the fact that that camp where Steve McQueen, James Garner, and the rest was built to house all the big escape artists. Those really persistent offenders got incarcerated at the castle called Colditz. Those that is that didn't get summarily executed by the Gestapo as we well remember from The Great Escape.

What an incredible waste of manpower, but those guards had to be lucky because they could be at the Russian front. In The Colditz Story there are more guards than prisoners. When you think about it, it would have been easier for the Nazis to let this bunch be exchanged.

The protagonist of the story is later historian Pat Reid and he's played here by John Mills. Mills's character is the official British escape officer, there are French, Dutch, and Polish officers among those nationalities. Getting international cooperation here is about as easy as the alliance that defeated Nazi Germany with all the cracks and fraying in that endeavor.

There are two other standout characters, the senior British officer Eric Portman and Scot's Guard Christopher Rhodes. Rhodes had an interesting career, he and Stanley Baker probably were up for a lot of the same parts in British cinema. He played some very rough characters on film, some outright villains. Here he's just an incorrigible prisoner who's very rebelliousness endangers the escape plans of many. His is the best performance in The Colditz Story.

Made over 50 years ago, The Colditz Story holds up very well for today's audience. No flamboyant heroics like in The Great Escape, but some real situations in a story told simply and well.

A really great film which shows the British fighting spirit at their best,the humour is first rate without losing the drama.well acted ,a remake is long over due.John Mills is superb as the escape officer and one must mention Lionel Jefferies and Ian Carmichael make their parts effective.Watch and enjoy

Shot in stunning B&W Colditz is exactly what you'd want from a 1950s British war film - horrible conditions, very stiff upper lips, and lots of self-deprecation and self-deprecating humour.

THe surprise is how well it is directed and the acting - all of which are classic for its genre. Now overshadowed by bigger productions like the fictional Guns Of Navarone, Colditz is actually probably one of the truest to its source material, and is a rewarding view.

For this viewer it is notable because it is at times an uncomfortable watch - it really did try to understand what being in Colditz meant - and yet it is exciting, human, and full of wonderful moments.

Highly recommended.

I don't think The Colditz Story is the best of the PoW films, but it is still a very well done film all the same. I don't think the film is flawless, I think it could have been longer to give more depth to the characters(though there is evidence of that) and the film could have focused a bit more on the psychology of imprisonment like the TV series did.

Any faults aside, what I did love about The Colditz Story was the action. The Colditz Story has a carefully-constructed story about the daring escapes of the prisoners, and the action that forms this story is very well played, with a perfect balance of being tense in some scenes and music-hall jolly in others. The dialogue is thoughtful and quite literate, while Guy Hamilton who went on to greater projects since(primarily Goldfinger, my personal favourite of the Bond films) does a solid job directing.

The Colditz Story is beautifully shot and has the suitably foreboding German prison of the title to add to any authenticity, and there is a stirring and evocative music score too and the pacing ensures that there is very rare a dull moment. The acting is very strong, John Mills is perfectly cast, and Eric Portman also gives a performance worth of note. Ian Carmichael, Bryan Forbes and Lionel Jeffries successfully portray their heroic prison inmate characters too.

All in all, a very well-done film that despite any small imperfections deserves to be better known. 8/10 Bethany Cox