Based on the 1956 book of the same name by Kendal Burt and James Leasor, this is a rather mediocre and pedestrian World War II film. It tells the story of Oberleutnant Franz von Werra, a Luftwaffe pilot who was shot down during the Battle of Britain and secured himself a place in history by becoming the only German POW captured by the British who escaped to Germany. After his first three escapes failed, he was sent to Canada and from there managed to cross the American border before making his way to Mexico. He eventually returned to his native country in April 1941 but did not live to see the end of the war or even the year as he was killed in a plane crash the following October. Von Werra's escape is a great story with which I was somewhat familiar before watching the film. However, the script by Howard Clewes does not do it justice even though I think that it is generally historically accurate. The various escape attempts should be very exciting but they aren't, in large part because the script is not very well structured. Roy Ward Baker is a very talented director and does the best that it can with the material but it's not his best work, I'm afraid.
The film stars Hardy Krüger in a great performance as the supremely self-confident von Werra. He brings a great deal of intelligence and charisma to the role but von Werra comes across as rather two- dimensional. He doesn't have much of a personality beyond being clever and self-confident. The only things that we learn about his personal life is that he owns a lion cub named Simba and he seemingly has a girlfriend or fiancée since he carries a photograph of a young women with him. This is nevertheless the closest thing that anyone gets to character development in the film. Otherwise, I would think that Clewes was worried about presenting a German pilot in too positive a light a mere 12 years after the war ended. There is certainly a sense of mutual respect between von Werra and some of the British officers but this is a something that I have seen done much more effectively in other films.
Krüger himself could probably relate to von Werra quite a bit. In December 1944, he was drafted into the Wehrmacht at the age of 16 before being drafted into the 38th SS Division Nibelungen the following March. He was captured by the American forces at the end of the war and made three escape attempts himself. On the last occasion, his efforts met with success. However, Krüger always hated the Nazis. During the filming of "A Bridge Too Far", he wore a top coat over his SS costume between takes so as not to remind himself of either his childhood or his experiences in the war. As such, I imagine that it was a source of frustration to him that he was typically cast as Nazis in the English speaking film world. The fact that he was tall and handsome with blond hair and blue eyes was perhaps more of a hindrance rather than a help in this respect.
The film is not without its problems but it has a very good supporting cast (in roles of varying size) including Michael Goodliffe, Colin Gordon, Jack Gwillim, the future Labour MP Andrew Faulds, Colin Gordon, Alec McCowen, Terence Alexander, John Van Eyssen, Glyn Houston, Stratford Johns, Cyril Chamberlain and Hammer stalwart Michael Ripper.
Overall, this is by no means a bad film but it is a pretty forgettable and disappointing one. Krüger's performance is certainly the best thing about it.
The film stars Hardy Krüger in a great performance as the supremely self-confident von Werra. He brings a great deal of intelligence and charisma to the role but von Werra comes across as rather two- dimensional. He doesn't have much of a personality beyond being clever and self-confident. The only things that we learn about his personal life is that he owns a lion cub named Simba and he seemingly has a girlfriend or fiancée since he carries a photograph of a young women with him. This is nevertheless the closest thing that anyone gets to character development in the film. Otherwise, I would think that Clewes was worried about presenting a German pilot in too positive a light a mere 12 years after the war ended. There is certainly a sense of mutual respect between von Werra and some of the British officers but this is a something that I have seen done much more effectively in other films.
Krüger himself could probably relate to von Werra quite a bit. In December 1944, he was drafted into the Wehrmacht at the age of 16 before being drafted into the 38th SS Division Nibelungen the following March. He was captured by the American forces at the end of the war and made three escape attempts himself. On the last occasion, his efforts met with success. However, Krüger always hated the Nazis. During the filming of "A Bridge Too Far", he wore a top coat over his SS costume between takes so as not to remind himself of either his childhood or his experiences in the war. As such, I imagine that it was a source of frustration to him that he was typically cast as Nazis in the English speaking film world. The fact that he was tall and handsome with blond hair and blue eyes was perhaps more of a hindrance rather than a help in this respect.
The film is not without its problems but it has a very good supporting cast (in roles of varying size) including Michael Goodliffe, Colin Gordon, Jack Gwillim, the future Labour MP Andrew Faulds, Colin Gordon, Alec McCowen, Terence Alexander, John Van Eyssen, Glyn Houston, Stratford Johns, Cyril Chamberlain and Hammer stalwart Michael Ripper.
Overall, this is by no means a bad film but it is a pretty forgettable and disappointing one. Krüger's performance is certainly the best thing about it.