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| Stalag 17 (Special Collector's Edition) | 
 enlarge | Director: Billy Wilder
Actors: William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Robert Strauss, Harvey Lembeck
Studio: Paramount
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.99
Buy New: $11.94
You Save: $8.05 (40%)
New (35) Used (10) Collectible (2) from $9.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  95 reviews
Sales Rank: 16898
Format: Black & White, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), German (Original Language), English (Subtitled)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 120
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: 041204
UPC: 097360412048
EAN: 0097360412048
ASIN: B000CNESN0
Theatrical Release Date: 1953
Release Date: March 21, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: BRAND NEW sealed shipped daily. International Shipping via Air Mail.
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Amazon.com essential video
Black comedy and suspenseful action inside a German POW camp during World War II--a setting that was later borrowed for the TV sitcom Hogan's Heroes. The great director Billy Wilder adapted the hit stage play, applying his own wicked sense of humor to the apparently bleak subject matter. William Holden plays an antisocial grouse amid a gang of wisecracking though indomitable American prisoners. Because of his bitter cynicism, Holden is suspected by the others of being an informer to the Germans, an accusation he must deal with in his own crafty way. Holden, who had delivered a brilliant performance for Wilder in Sunset Boulevard, won the 1953 Best Actor Oscar for Stalag 17. Very much his equal, however, is Otto Preminger, an accomplished director himself, who plays the strict, sneering camp commandant. --Robert Horton
Product Description
Set in a German POW Camp for enlisted American airmen a spy is discovered to be living in one of the prison barracks after an escape attempt fails resulting in the deaths of two inmates. The prisoners at once suspect Septon an unscrupulous inside dealer who trades almost anything with the Germans for extra privileges. After Septon is beaten up he himself determines to find the real spy and the result is a mixture of intrigue and betrayal leading to a surprise ending.System Requirements:Running Time: 120 MinFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: NR UPC: 097360412048 Manufacturer No: 041204
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| Customer Reviews: Read 90 more reviews...
 Good entertainment September 7, 2008
Does what the older movies always do. Entertain and hold our attention without all the gore. In others ways this has actual acting in it.
Excellent acting August 30, 2008
One of William Holden's best, though he seldom gave a poor performance anyway. The richness of the other actors and excellent camera angles and editing make this an excellent movie to enjoy over and over again.
Stalag 17 (Special Collector's Edition) August 3, 2008
"Did they beat you?" asked the Red Cross Man.
"I was playing Pinochle," Sefton replied. "It's a rough game."
ESSENTIAL MOVIE!!! Stalag 17 stars William Holden & is directed by the great Billy Wilder (nominated for Best Director), who also produced & co-wrote the script. Nominated for three Academy Awards & winner of one, Stalag 17 tells the gripping story of a P.O.W. camp during late WWII. Though a drama, Stalag 17 offers many comedic moments that out does many so called comedies.
Sefton (William Holden, winner of the Best Actor Academy Award) is a hustler extraordinaire, trading with the Germans for special favors. He's one of the most unpopular men (& a very unsympathetic character, no less) in Stalag 17. Everything has an angle & the bottom line is his profit. This so rules his life that only Cookie (Gil Stratton) will tolerate him. Cookie is Sefton's assistant & lackey in his profit making schemes.
Stalag 17 is full of dynamic characters. Col. Von Scherbach (Otto Preminger) is the camp kommandant, ruthless & uncaring. His scenes are some of the highlights of the movie. His acting (remember, he was really a director) is so over the top that they become quite humorous. The scene where he is addressing the prisoners in the compound is classic, he eases his coat open with his arms, places his arms on his hips, all the while condescending. The scene where he calls his superiors in Berlin is classi, also. He's in full uniform except for his boots, pacing in white socks, finally, he sits, his servant assists him in putting on his jack-boots, he places the call to Berlin, clicks his heels together multiple times during the call, then when the call is completed Von Scherbach has his servant remove the boots. Classic Billy Wilder!
The show stealer is Animal (Robert Strauss, nominated for Best Supporting Actor), a not-too-bright sergeant who's not very good looking either. He has a crush on Betty Grable that figures prominently in a scene later in the movie. Harry Shapiro (Harvey Lembeck) is his buddy, their scenes are some of the funniest in the movie. Near the end, when the Betty Grable angle comes in, has Animal & Shapiro dancing together (along with all the other men in the barracks), Animal is confessing his love to Shapiro, who Animal thinks is Grable. This was a very daring scene for 1950, a scene that Hollywood censors did not want in the movie.
Hoffy (Richard Erdman) is the barracks chief for the Americans. Erdman had done mostly comedies up to this point in his career, this is a rare "straight" role for him.
The story is basically this: Sefton is the hustler & trades too much with the Germans, the P.O.W.s don't like him. An escape attempt is made by two Americans & they are shot outside the compound. There's a stoolie in the barracks but no one knows who, since Sefton is so despicable he's the one that gets blamed. Of course they're wrong. In one of Hollywood's best scenes of retribution Sefton comes out on top & becomes a hero, albeit an unsavory one.
The film has Neville Brand (Duke), Don Taylor (Lt. Dunbar), Peter Graves (Price, a pivotal role) & Sig Rugman as Sgt. Schulz (might have been Rugman's best role). If some of this sounds familiar it's very possible, the television sitcom, Hogan's Heroes, was based on this movie.
The film is beautifully restored & there are bonus features; "Stalag 17: From Reality to Screen" & "The Real Heroes of Stalag XVIIB". The latter has interviews with veterans that had been imprisoned at Stalag 17. It's a very moving featurette. There's also a commentary soundtrack in the film, photo gallery * movie trailer. This is one of Hollywood's greatest efforts.
best prisoner of war movie ever made. July 9, 2008
The plot is good and kept me watching every second of the movie. Its a psychological drama and it doesn't get much better then this.
It's a Classic June 16, 2008
For you younger people that have never heard of this movie or have flipped by the thing because it's in black and white, boy, are you in for a treat! If you don't like this movie, then, you don't like movies. It is a classic that needs to be in everyone's collection. It is on the top 50 list of all time. If you liked "Independence Day" or other similar movies, you won't like this because this has a plot and character development.
William Holden's character is in a German WWII prison camp that has someone else in the prison camp passing information to the Germans. Since Holden's character is a wheeler-dealer and openly trades with the Germans, the other prisoners put two and two together and get four only, as Holden's character says "it ain't four!"
Even after all the times I've seen this film, once I start watching the thing I can't stop and always end up watching it until the end. This is one of those rare movies you can actually call a classic.
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