When Col. William McNamara is stripped of his freedom in a German POW camp, he's determined to keep on fighting even from behind enemy lines. Enlisting the help of a young lieutenant in a brilliant plot against his captors, McNamara risks everything on a mission to free his men and change the outcome of the war.
Acting
Terrence Howard's dignified rage anchors the film's moral center.
Production
Freezing Czech locations sell the POW misery authentically.
Writing
Tight courtroom structure hides a clever escape thriller underneath.
Director
Gregory Hoblit
Bruce Willis
Col. William A. McNamara
Colin Farrell
Lt. Thomas W. Hart
Terrence Howard
Lt. Lincoln A. Scott
Marcel Iureș
Col. Werner Visser
Cole Hauser
Staff Sgt. Vic W. Bedford
Linus Roache
Capt. Peter A. Ross
Vicellous Shannon
Lt. Lamar T. Archer
Rory Cochrane
Sgt. Carl S. Webb
Joe Spano
Col. J.M. Lange
Michael Weston
Pfc. W. Roy Potts
Adrian Grenier
Pvt. Daniel E. Abrams
Jonathan Brandis
Pvt. Lewis P. Wakely
Maury Sterling
Pfc. Dennis A. Gerber
Sam Jaeger
Capt. R.G. Sisk
Scott Michael Campbell
Cpl. Joe S. Cromin
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Colin Farrell gained 20 pounds to look appropriately soft for a Harvard Law student thrust into combat.
The film deliberately echoes 'Stalag 17' and 'The Great Escape' but swaps macho heroism for legal maneuvering—reflecting 2002's post-9/11 interrogation anxieties.
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