★★★★★ One of the great classic adventure movies, hands down: an all-star cast for the epic story of a mass breakout from a Nazi concentration camp. Although based on a true story that ended tragically, the film manages to create moments of humor as a plan is hatched. where anything can go wrong. All the characters are lovable and one wants to be Garner’s thief, Coburn’s cynic, and ride a motorcycle like McQueen, in one of his most likeable characters. The interesting thing about John Sturges (an enormous craftsman who came from making The Magnificent Seven with part of the same cast) is that he never boasts of being a “filmmaker” but rather strictly follows the script and his creatures. The result is that the three hours of film fly by and one wants to be a boy again.
