Hängt den Verräter

After Lee Marvin won his Oscar for Cat Ballou and had great critical and popular success also with Ship of Fools and The Dirty Dozen, this former two part television episode from the Kraft Suspense Theater was edited together for release as a feature film. Sergeant Ryker casts Lee Marvin in the role of a soldier who was convicted of treason during the Korean War and sentenced to hang.

Sergeant Ryker could have been a whole lot better though. It has the look and feel of a made for television film, but more important than that, the editing probably left a lot out.

We come into the story with Bradford Dillman who has just successfully prosecuted Marvin now having doubts about what he did. The military more than most organizations does not like to admit mistakes and Dillman's doubts are raising all kinds of problems for him and for the United States Army.

Dillman has other problems as well, he's falling for Marvin's wife Vera Miles and she him. Still he persists in the quest and does get Marvin a new trial, courtesy of General Lloyd Nolan.

Marvin says he was given a confidential assignment to defect and gather intelligence. Problem is that the officer who allegedly gave him that assignment was killed and no record of it was found.

The trial takes an interesting turn and Dillman does a skillful job for his client. Yet the end of the movie will leave the viewer with a lot of unanswered questions.

Look also for good performances from Norman Fell as the sergeant who gives Dillman some key evidence, Murray Hamilton as Dillman's good drinking buddy and prosecutor Peter Graves.

The Korean War has been dubbed Americas's forgotten war. So many unanswered questions were buried along with the 50 thousand men who died there. Occasionally, we are treated to a play or movie which deals with that far-off, ghostly frozen graveyard. Here is perhaps one of the finest. It's called " Sergeant Ryker. " The story is of an American soldier named Sgt. Paul Ryker (Lee Marvin) who is selected for a top secret mission by his commanding officer. His task is to defect to the North Koreans and offer his services against United Nations forces. So successful is his cover, he proves invaluable to the enemy and given the rank of Major. However, he is thereafter captured by the Americans, put on trial as a traitor and spy. Stating he was ordered to defect, he sadly learns his commanding officer has been killed and has no evidence or proof of his innocence. He is convicted and sentenced to hang. However, his conviction is doubted by Capt. Young (Bradford Dillman), his prosecutor. Convincing commanding Gen. Amos Baily, (Lloyd Nolan) of his doubts, he is granted a new trial and if found guilty will be executed. The courtroom drama is top notch as is the cast which includes Peter Graves, Murray Hamilton and Norman Fell as Sgt. Max Winkler. Korea was a far off place but the possibility of convicting a Communist and hanging him hit very close to home in the 1950's. Due to its superior script and powerful message, this drama has become a courtroom Classic. Excellent viewing and recommended to all. ****

Originally, "Sergeant Ryker" was a two-part installment of "Kraft Suspense Theatre" and it was shown on TV. For some reason, they repackaged the movie and released it in theaters several years later. It also served as a pilot for a TV series, "Court Martial".

This production has a very impressive cast: Bradford Dillman, Lee Marvin, Peter Graves, Lloyd Nolan, Murray Hamilton and quite a few other stars. The story concerns a sergeant (Marvin) who is up on charges of treason and desertion. You learn the Sergeant was behind enemy lines and in a North Korean uniform. He says he was on an undercover mission and the Colonel can substantiate it. However, the Colonel is now dead and left no papers indicating the man was on any mission. The assumption is that he defected and the military folks seem to be in a hurry to execute him. It's up to his lawyer (Dillman) to do his best to extricate him--but the harder he fights, the more his commanding officers imply he'll be sorry!

This film is VERY slow and initially it didn't hold my interest. Fortunately, the trial towards the finale ended up being very exciting and made watching worth the effort. So, when you find your attention waning, just keep watching--it WILL improve!

The Korean War was a tragedy for its participants. There were more collaborators and deserters in this war than ALL other American wars COMBINED. Why? Because the American leadership that got the US involved in a non-winnable war in the first place, failed all the honorable thousands of men under their command in the Korean theater of war. Only Douglas McArthur was able to salvage a tie through his military expertise.

This war was Truman's biggest failure, the Pentagon's biggest failure, and the State Department's biggest failure up to that point in time of American History. Sergeant Ryker (well-played by Lee Marvin) is an American soldier convicted of collaborating with the enemy. The film goes on to describe his circumstances and trials, with Brad Dillman as his defense attorney. Dillman is also very good in the film.

The film shows military justice for what is really is in real life; extraordinarily mediocre. Military justice is to justice as military music is to music; mediocre at best. The film has some things in common with "A Few Good Men", but not overwhelmingly so. What is very clear is that this conflict was a great tragedy for all that served in it.

Sergeant Ryker is accused of being a traitor during the Korean War, a hanging offense. A long drawn out court-marshal ensues during which time the Sgt. must remain in a military jail. After much investigation the defense attorney attempts to exonerate the doomed non-com with an eleventh hour ploy. Very good picture.