Review of Stalag 17 (1953) by Xgary X — 28 Mar 2013
Just watched Billy Wilder's gritty, tense WWII POW drama "Stalag 17" (made in 1953). William Holden, Peter Graves, Harvey Lembeck, Robert Strauss, Don Taylor, and Neville Brand are all brilliant.
Lembeck and Strauss bring a lot of humour that both lightens and underlines the drama and tension. Wilder casts fellow director Otto Preminger in an acting role as the Camp Commandant. It's the story of a group of American prisoners in Stalag 17 as they come to realise that one of their number is an informant.
Everyone suspects Sefton (William Holden) because he has a lot of sweet deals with the camp commanders, wheeling and dealing to get privileges. The tension builds around whether he really is the informant and if not then who it is.
Once you find out who it is, the tension shifts to what Sefton will do and how he can expose the informant or whether the informant will continue to get away with reporting his information to the Nazis.
Interesting to compare this to the tv series "Hogan's Heroes" which was set around a group of allied prisoners in Stalag 13, and which also featured a somewhat bumbling German Sergeant named Schultz.
(Everyone involved in "Hogan's Heroes" has always denied that there was any direct influence between the film and the sitcom). Stalag 17 is a brilliant film that shifts from humour to tension and drama and the finale is a little edge of the seat.
This review of Stalag 17 (1953) was written by Xgary X on 28 Mar 2013.
Stalag 17 has generally received very positive reviews.
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