The Wooden Horse (1950)

True story of three British POWs and their attempt to escape from Nazi Germany.

Director:

Jack Lee

Writer:

Eric Williams (novel)

Stars:

Leo Genn, David Tomlinson, Anthony Steel

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leo Genn	...	Flt. Lt. Peter Howard
David Tomlinson	...	Phil Roe
Anthony Steel	...	Capt. John Clinton
David Greene	...	Nick Bennett
Peter Burton	...	Nigel
Patrick Waddington	...	Group Capt. Wardley (Senior British Officer)
Michael Goodliffe	...	Robbie
Anthony Dawson	...	Pomfret
Bryan Forbes	...	Paul
Dan Cunningham	...	David
Peter Finch	...	Australian in Hospital
Philip Dale	...	Bill White
Russell Waters	...	W / C 'Wings' Cameron
Ralph Ward	...	Adjutant
Franz Schafheitlin	...	Camp Commandant

Storyline

In a POW camp, the Nazis have placed the huts far from the boundary so that any escape tunnel would have to be a long one. One British officer has the idea of starting a daily gynmastics routine using a vaulting horse: they can place it near the boundary and start a tunnel from under it. He and two others do escape the camp by this means and plan to make for neutral Sweden. To do that, they'll not only have to move around without arousing any suspicions, but also find a stranger from a neutral or occupied country who'll be willing and able to help them.

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Plot Keywords:

prisoner of war | based on novel

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Genres:

Drama | History | War

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English German Danish French

Release Date:

16 October 1950 (UK)

Also Known As:

Campo 111

Filming Locations:

Denmark

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wessex Film Productions Ltd., British Lion Film Corporation, London Film Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The events on which the film is based took place at the same prisoner of war camp (Stalag Luft III) and at the same time as the events in the much better-known film of the same genre, The Great Escape. The escape committee of prisoners that was planning the latter decided that other escape activity had to be going on at the same time so that life in the camp would appear normal to the Germans. It was the Wooden Horse tunnel that fell into this category.

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Goofs

Whilst the escape is in progress there is a quick shot of a German guard near the compound fence. His rifle has a British pattern webbing sling,the upper brass buckle can be seen clearly.

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Quotes

[Doctor, visiting prisoners in hospital, hears they are listening to music by Beethoven]
Doctor: Ah, Beethoven. He is a good German.
Prisoner: [calls out from the background] Yes. He's dead.

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Crazy Credits

It is the constant hope of nearly every prisoner-of-war - if not, indeed, his duty - to escape and rejoin his unit. This film shows how three British officers carried out an actual escape from a German camp in the last war. It was made mostly in Germany and Denmark, with the help of the British War Office and Air Ministry and of Danish and German civilians.

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Connections

Referenced in Colors (1988)

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Soundtracks

"Nymphs and Shepherds"
(uncredited)
Composed by Henry Purcell

User Reviews

A tale of two halves, both equalling satisfaction.

Playing out as a sort of pre runner to The Great Escape some 13 years later, this smashing little British film plays it straight with no thrills and dare do well overkill. First part of the movie is the set up and subsequent escape of our protagonists, whilst the second part concentrates on their survival whilst on the run as they try to reach Sweden. The film relies on pure characters with simple, effective, and yes, believable dialogue to carry it thru, and it achieves its aims handsomely. No little amount of suspense keeps the film ticking along, and as an adventure story it works perfectly for the time frame it adheres to, so a big thumbs to the film that may well be the first of its type? 7/10