This star-laden real-life tale of teamwork and derring-do is a trifle flabby at nearly three hours, but there is no denying that this is one of the best loved of all Second World War films.

| Dec 27, 2023

Steve McQueen turns his movie-star glint to maximum as the swaggering American Cooler King...

| Sep 19, 2022

Even though the filmmakers make changes to benefit an American audience, the memory of the 50 executed airmen will never be forgotten.

| Original Score: 5/5 | May 29, 2022

Somehow, The Great Escape manages to mourn the dead and uphold a unified sense of defiance in the same movement.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Feb 17, 2022

There is something undeniably quaint about John Sturges' sprawling 1963 World War II epic...

| Mar 3, 2021

The courageous, booming march by Elmer Bernstein that opens the picture is instantly one of the most memorable and notable pieces of music in cinema history.

| Original Score: 9/10 | Aug 24, 2020

McQueen's thrilling motorcycle ride has long been the stuff of cinematic legend, but the movie is packed with countless memorable episodes of this caliber.

| Original Score: 4/4 | May 16, 2020

For all its missteps, when it comes to escapism, intrigue, and indulgence, you could do a whole lot worse than The Great Escape. Just watch it with an open eye.

| Feb 21, 2019

This is a Boys' Own Tale, and, as boys, we wanted it, cleansed of horrors, for ourselves.

| Apr 23, 2014

This is one of the all-time great war movies, a PoW adventure from director John Sturges that celebrates the indomitable spirit of the Allied forces even when their backs were to the wall.

| Apr 23, 2014

Watching the starry cast is always entertaining, and while The Great Escape has little new to say about war, this is really not a criticism.

| Apr 23, 2014

Even if you feel you know every scene backwards, there are still manifold pleasures here beyond nostalgia.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Apr 23, 2014

The Great Escape is simply great escapism.

| Feb 6, 2014

While it's a definite classic in the Steve McQueen gallery, it's also a masterpiece of the action genre...

| Aug 22, 2013

a slow burn which allows you to watch wildly different characters work together and form a team in spite of their differences

| Original Score: 4/5 | Jun 9, 2013

Each group of characters get their own riveting planning sequences, all skillfully told. This is one "heist" film where knowing the details of how the escape is supposed to go down before it happens only strengthens the suspense further.

| Original Score: 3/4 | May 23, 2013

Boasting an all-star cast, headed by a terrific Steve McQueen, Great Escape is one of the greatest, most enjoyable WWII adventures Hollywood has made.

| Original Score: A- | Apr 13, 2011

A consummate work of nuts 'n bolts filmmaking devoted to the single end of creating something that is compulsively, endlessly watchable and re-watchable.

| Original Score: 9/10 | Mar 16, 2011

An exceptional story about teamwork.

| Original Score: 5/5 | Dec 28, 2010

Producer-director John Sturges has fashioned a motion picture that entertains, captivates, thrills and stirs.

| Mar 26, 2009