Stalag 17
During World War II, a group of G.I.'s are thrown together in the notorious German prison camp Stalag 17. For the most part, they spend their time scheming ways to help each other escape. But when two prisoners are killed in an escape attempt, it becomes obvious that there is a spy among them. William Holden was awarded an Oscar for his performance as a cynical, sharp-tongued soldier who spends his time scheming up rackets and trading with the Germans for special privileges.
Member Reviews
C'est ce qui s'appelle un GRAND film! - Gladiator
Un chef d'oeuvre absolu! Wilder signe ici l'un de ses plus grands films. Tout est absolument remarquable ici, que ce soit le contexte de la guerre, ou encore les différentes relations entre les soldats, qui sont particulièrement captivantes. L'ambiguité régnant durant tout le film est elle aussi particulièrement bien rendu, et il est vrai que Wilder, à travers la personnalité de quelques personnages, nous offre un immense moment de cinéma. De plus, William Holden est absolument formidable dans le rôle principal.Pretty Good POW Camp Mystery - revsdd
There's a good mystery right from the beginning. Two POWs attempt to escape from Stalag 17. POW Sefton (played by William Holden, in a role for which he won an Oscar) bets the others that they won't make it. They don't. Everyone suspects that there's a "stoolie" passing information to the Germans. Sefton trades with the guards, and gets a lot of extra privileges from them, so he becomes the prime suspect. From the viewer's point of view, it's pretty obvious that Sefton isn't the guy. First, it would have been way too obvious, and, second, if he had been the Germans wouldn't have made him such an obvious target. So the mystery revolves around who the stoolie actually is, and director Billy Wilder does a pretty good job of keeping us guessing. There's nothing that really gives it away until that mystery is finally revealed a little more than halfway through the movie with a rather devious question from Sefton (who's committed himself to finding out who the stoolie is) about Pearl Harbor, but the solution to one mystery leads to another - what are the POWs going to do with the real stoolie?
This is a decent movie. With few exceptions, it's not especially exciting, but the mystery is well developed and keeps you watching all the way through. It does have a lot of unnecessary material. Animal's obsession with Betty Grable is funny for a while, but gets tired eventually, and the Christmas Party in the Barracks goes on a bit too long. The idea of female Russian prisoners in a separate compound of the same camp (who looked - shall we say - pretty healthy!) was also a real stretch to the credibility of the movie. This is perhaps a bit over-rated, although the story is generally good, as are the performances - Holden's, I thought (while good) being somewhat understated for a Lead Actor win.Seminal - Kubla_Conde
what's sort of interesting about Stalag 17 is that Wilder uses two clowns (Animal and the other guy) in the midst of what is otherwise a prison drama. It echoes the genre-mixing devices he used in Some Like it Hot (combining romantic comedy with gangster with cross-dressing hijinks).
It's not his best, but it is quite good.
Member Reviews
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C'est ce qui s'appelle un GRAND film! - Gladiator
Un chef d'oeuvre absolu! Wilder signe ici l'un de ses plus grands films. Tout est absolument remarquable ici, que ce soit le contexte de la guerre, ou encore les différentes relations entre les soldats, qui sont particulièrement captivantes. L'ambiguité régnant ...Pretty Good POW Camp Mystery - revsdd
There's a good mystery right from the beginning. Two POWs attempt to escape from Stalag 17. POW Sefton (played by William Holden, in a role for which he won an Oscar) bets the others that they won't make it. They don't. Everyone suspects that there's a "stoolie" ...Seminal - Kubla_Conde
what's sort of interesting about Stalag 17 is that Wilder uses two clowns (Animal and the other guy) in the midst of what is otherwise a prison drama. It echoes the genre-mixing devices he used in Some Like it Hot (combining romantic comedy with gangster with ...