Prisoner of War (film)

Prisoner of War
1954 Theatrical Poster
Directed byAndrew Marton
Written byAllen Rivkin
Produced byHenry Berman
Starring
CinematographyRobert Planck
Edited byJames Newcom
Music byJeff Alexander (Uncredited)
Production
company
Distributed byLoews, Inc.
Release date
  • May 4, 1954 (1954-05-04)
Running time
81 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$569,000[1]
Box office$1,077,000[1]

Prisoner of War is a 1954 American war–drama film directed by Andrew Marton and starring Ronald Reagan, Steve Forrest, Dewey Martin and Oskar Homolka.[2][3]

Plot

An American officer volunteers to be captured in order to investigate claims of torture against American POWs in North Korean camps during the Korean War.

Cast

Production notes

Release of the film created a minor controversy. The U.S. Army had assisted production and made edits in the script, but approval was abruptly reversed on the eve of release. The depiction of mistreatment and torture of prisoners of war complicated the courts martial of POW collaborators that were proceeding at the time.[4]

The brainwashing and abuse of American prisoners of war during the Korean War was also dramatized in P.O.W. (1953), The Bamboo Prison (1954), and The Manchurian Candidate (1962, starring Frank Sinatra).

Reception

According to MGM records the film made $785,000 in the US and Canada and $292,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $111,000.[1]

Historical accuracy

Author Robert J. Lentz of the book Korean War Filmography: 91 English Language Features through 2000 states that the film was "undeniably overstated".[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
  2. ^ "Prisoner of War". Turner Classic Movies. Atlanta: Turner Broadcasting System (Time Warner). Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  3. ^ a b Lentz 2003, p. 284.
  4. ^ Young 2017, pp. 163–66.

Sources