The Password Is Courage

United Kingdom

1962

116 Min

Black and White

2.00:1

English, German

Currently 4.5/5 Stars.
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PROD Andrew L. Stone, Virginia L. Stone, Sydney Streeter

SCR Andrew L. Stone, John Castle

CAST Dirk Bogarde, Maria Perschy, Alfred Lynch, Nigel Stock, Reginald Beckwith, Richard Marner, Ed Devereaux, Lewis Fiander, George Mikell, Richard Carpenter, Bernard Archard, Ferdy Mayne, George Pravda, Olaf Pooley, Michael Mellinger, Colin Blakely, Margaret Whiting, Charles Durning

MUSIC Derek New, Tommy Reilly, Christopher L. Stone, Virginia L. Stone

Synopsis

The Password is Courage is a factually based account of the wartime exploits of Sgt Major Charles Coward, this film’s light-hearted narrative might have benefited from a more dramatic retelling of his fascinating story. Dirk Bogarde is somewhat miscast as the war hero Coward, a cocky British officer locked up in the notorious German POW camp Stalag 8B. Coward spends most of his time encouraging his fellow inmates to escape, whilst also humiliating his German guards when the opportunity arises. His first effort involves lying with wounded German soldiers as he’s being marched to the POW camp, he’s taken to hospital, but his true identity is revealed. He also digs a tunnel and manages to get maps with the aid of the Polish Resistance, he escapes with Pope, but both men are recaptured. After that failure, the two men hatch an audacious plan to escape using a fire engine, and drive it to freedom. —Britmovie.co.uk

Director

Andrew L. Stone

Andrew L. Stone (July 16, 1902, Oakland, California – June 9, 1999, Los Angeles, California) was an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Best known for his hard hitting, realistic films, Stone frequently collaborated with his wife, editor and producer Virginia Lively Stone (credited as Virginia L. Stone).

Though few of his films achieved mainstream success, Stone was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for his 1956 thriller Julie. —Wikipedia