STALAG 17

(July 1953, U.S.)

Billy Wilder's STALAG 17 is one of those rare classic films which I'm never quite sure how I feel about in the end. I struggle to find redeeming qualities about it as I'm watching it, and when it's over, I think I'm successful in doing so. The problem is I feel I have to patiently sit through elements of it that don't necessarily agree with me. The film is labeled as a war drama, when it's really anything but. While it attempts to push the serious side of a group of American prisoners of war inside a German World War II camp, the truth is that it's more or less a precursor to what would eventually become HOGAN'S HEROES on CBS. While it's likely not the intention of the film, it is the sad reality.

The members of Stalag 17 are a ragtag group of misfits who have come to experience life inside the prison camp as on ongoing joke. It's most "important" member is J.J. Sefton (played by William Holden) who has, through influence and bribery, come to make a very comfortable and privileged life for himself within the barracks among his fellow prison mates who seem to be suffering their own demons on a daily basis. However, even these "demons" are not meant to be taken seriously as they live a life of prison misery. One goofy man's obsession with Betty Grable back home and the fact that she's just married another man is hardly worth feeling any true sympathy for. To be perfectly honest, there's not a single character in STALAG 17 that we're ever meant to take seriously, not even the Nazi commandants (the leader in charge played by director Otto Preminger). Even Sefton, who I suppose is meant to represent a character of reason and stability, is viewed (at least by me, anyway) as a fool because the man simply doesn't know when to keep a low profile and his big mouth shut among his mates. He's perfectly comfortable flaunting the fact that he's privileged to eat an egg for breakfast (an item he obtained through bribery) while the rest of the men horrible eat potato soup, as well as his victory in claiming all of their precious cigarettes as a result of a gambling wager in which the lives of two men were lost while trying to escape. Honestly, the man ought to realize when that he's going to get his ass kicked to the curb if he doesn't learn to keep a lid on it!

So, while I speak all of this negativity and cynicism toward the film, you may very well ask why I'm bothering to write about it. The answer lies in my opening description of the redeeming qualities I'm ultimately able to find within its content, despite the ongoing silliness that surrounds it (I mean, really, how many times can you possibly listen to that guy with the high-pitched voice continuously shout, "At ease!"). At the heart of STALAG 17 is an intriguing mystery of the informant and traitor that lies within the group. All fingers point to Sefton who clearly has the goods in his foot locker to indicate that they've been awarded to him somehow, some way. The men's suspicions toward him are kept at bay through much of the film until the moment they conclude he must be the traitor and really lay into him and finally confiscate his stuff. His claim all along is that he's innocent and we somehow choose to believe him. For the life of us, we cannot imagine who the really informant is, and it's ultimately surprising to learn that it's not only a man we didn't suspect (spoiler alert - it's Peter Graves!), but that it's also a German pretending to be an American; a mole placed inside the barracks to learn their secrets and inform his superiors of all their diabolical schemes, including escape. It's actually quite interesting and ironic how the mole meets his doom in the end when the men literally throw him out into the night, only to be shot and killed by his own German comrades. It's these moments of mystery and intrigue that make STALAG 17 not only tolerable through its silliness and goofiness, but also a worthwhile black and white classic that represent a small piece of history that was World War II. It's also one of the earlier prison camp films to come along before more glorified future classics like THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI (also with William Holden) and THE GREAT ESCAPE. Anyway, I suppose if you were ever a fan of HOGAN'S HEROES (I never watched it), then STALAG 17 is an important film for you to know where the original inspiration very likely came from.

Favorite line or dialogue:

J.J. Sefton (questioning Price): "When was Pearl Harbor, Price, or don't you know that?"
Price: "December 7th, '41."
Sefton: "What time?"
Price: "Six o'clock. I was having dinner."
Sefton: "Six o'clock in Berlin. They were having lunch in Cleveland. Am I boring you boys?"
Hoffy: "Go on."
Sefton: He's a Nazi, Price is! For all I know his name is Preissinger or Preishoffer! Oh, sure, he lived in Cleveland! But when the war broke out, he came back to the Fatherland like a good little Bundist! He spoke our lingo, so they sent him to spy school and fixed him up with phony dog tags!"