Review of Stalag 17 (1953) by Jennifer A — 10 May 2008

[b]Stalag 17 (1953) - 8.0/10[/b].

Director - Billy Wilder.

Starring - William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Sig Ruman, Robert Strauss, Harvey Lembeck, Peter Graves.

Set in a German prison camp during WWII, [i]Stalag 17 [/i]stars William Holden as the cynical yet opportunistic Sefton. Sefton, something of an entrepenuer, trades with German guards and devises ways to earn goods from his fellow captives. Most of the men simply try to pass time enertaining themselves. However they want to get out too, so when an escape attempt leaves two men dead the men suspect Sefton may have tipped the guards. The suspicion gains momentum when Lt. Dunbar (Don Taylor) who is being temporarily houses at the barracks, is interrogated by the Nazis for blowing up an ammunition train, information they could have only gained through a whistle-blower in the barracks. Sefton is now the lone suspect and is severely beaten for leaking the information about Dunbar, but he maintains his innocence and is determined to find the real culprit who he suspects has been planted by the Germans.

This comedy/drama is an obvious blueprint for the 1960's sitcom [i]Hogan's[/i] [i]Heroes [/i]as well as influencing a number of wartime dramas to come. No longer was war a subject that could only be explored in the most serious of tones. Credit goes to Billy Wilder for writing such a clever script and managing to keep the film interesting despite most of the drama taking place inside the barracks. A couple of his characters are obvious stereotypes, written for laughs, but for the most part the humor flows and isn't forced. William Holden won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Sefton, and he's quite good. Worth seeing.