El Traidor esta entre Nosotros

This is one of my favourite POW films. But in fact 'Danger Within' is not just a POW film as such, it also falls into the Britfilm murder mystery genre.

The source for the story is a Michael Gilbert mystery 'Death in Captivity'published in the mid 1950's. It,s a cracking read and compliments the film as some narrative elements had to be changed for filmed purposes. The play within the story is different, and motivation of hero and villain is slightly more efficiently. It also gives you a glimpse into what happened after the mass escape.

For the Buff, spot Michael Caines first screen appearance, note the film's technical relationship to 'The League of Gentlemen', made in 1960 and watch the two on the same bill for a rewarding afternoon viewing.

To my mind this film also lifted Terrance Alexander from the rather predicable comedy character roles he was playing to top notch light drama actor. And Bernard Lee once again proved how dependable and useful he was in films filled with better known faces.

It never ceases to amaze me the truly wonderful films that you find if you venture from the mainstream. This is one of the greatest finds I have come across in a while.

A classic cast of Richard Todd, Richard Attenborough, Bernard Lee, Vincent Ball and Dennis Price are holed up in a Prisoner of War camp in Italy. They struggle against a sadistic camp Capitano (Peter Arne), the impending threat of a German takeover of the camp, internal personal clashes and a traitor in their midst as they try to escape. It sounds like heavy going but with a tight, often witty script and magnificent performances this is simply rivetting viewing. Richard Todd and Richard Attenborough (both underrated actors) especially shine out for their performances.

And there is the bonus of seeing a frighteningly young and skinny Michael Caine in a bit part!

This virtually forgotten British WW2 POW thriller is set in Italy in 1943. An officer's camp of around four-hundred men is under the command of a sadistic Italian general, who delights in discovering the breakout plans of the Allied POWs through his informants, as it allows him to wait for the escape that gives him the excuse to kill the men, rather than stopping it at source. This thriller moves along at a nice pace. It suffers from being a tad lifeless, in the cinematography and directing, but the performances are stellar, as is the writing and character development. A very young Michael Caine makes an appearance towards the end.

Interesting thriller set in a POW camp in Italy, with discreet yet well-executed cinematography throughout. The exceptionally chosen cast, including the presence of a young Michael Caine in a minor role, is very believable and performs superbly through a simple yet well-narrated storyline. The good, classically styled cinematography, well-structured dialogues with a good dose of English humor, precise camera work without technical showing-off, make this movie a classic in its genre and a delight for enthusiasts of war themes.

Perhaps life in the POW camp has been overly idealized, and the movie doesn't faithfully depict how harsh life has been for many prisoners in these camps. It might slightly trivialize the daily struggles the internees had to endure. However, it's worth noting that this is a comedy, not a documentary. Especially considering that at the time of filming, the relationships between countries-Italy, the United Kingdom, and partially France-were already of allied nations closely collaborating within NATO.

As is often the case in British productions, Italians don't come off entirely well. Even though in this film, they haven't been entirely ridiculed in their manners, undoubtedly, the highly successful ending with the escape of an entire camp isn't something that can be considered a fair portrayal of Italians, especially considering this is a historical fiction, and such an escape never occurred in any Italian camp under those circumstances.

This is an absorbing, exciting and thoroughly entertaining British POW drama which has a cast that reads like a veritable who's who of British character actors. Not one of them disappoints either, and there are especially sterling performances from Richard Todd, Bernard Lee and Richard Attenborough. In fact, it's a perfectly casted film which holds attention throughout, and has a plot which moves along nicely to a clever and quite novel conclusion. Although there are scores of similar films made on the subject, this is definitely one of the very best and, anyone who has not yet seen it will not be disappointed. Highly recommended!