The 1962 Second World War drama The Password is Courage, starring Dirk Bogarde, Maria Perschy, and Alfred Lynch, will be available to stream on BBC iPlayer from Sunday, June 21, following its broadcast on BBC Two. The film, which has drawn comparisons to the 1963 classic The Great Escape, is adapted from a book about Sergeant Major Charles Coward, a prisoner of war who led escape attempts from a German camp.
Plot and Historical Basis
According to a BBC synopsis, Sergeant Major Coward "was captured at Dunkirk in 1940 and dedicated his time in captivity to acts of sabotage and escape." The film debuted in 1962 to widespread critical acclaim and proved a hit with cinema audiences, as reported by the Express.
Fan and Critical Reception
Dubbing it the "real Great Escape," one fan wrote on IMDb: "This is truly a classic black and white British film and for those that claim it is just a poor version or copy of The Great Escape, maybe people should consider that the film was made and released a year before The Great Escape. And is in fact more factual than the more popular Hollywood version."
Further reviews on Rotten Tomatoes describe the film as "underrated" and "worth a watch." "Almost forgotten but absolutely brilliant," remarked one viewer. "I would recommend it to anyone!" added another impressed fan. One viewer noted: "I thought this movie was very well paced. Just when I thought I might get bored, something unexpected would happen. It kept me entertained."
Comparison to The Great Escape
"This is one of my favourite World War II movies," added another fan. A further viewer observed: "For a film that was done on a low budget, I thoroughly enjoyed this. The realism must have been helped by the fact that Dirk Bogarde was a real life veteran. The film was a real story (probably with the occasional embellishment). All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed it."
The Great Escape, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough, tells the tale of prisoners of war attempting to break free from a German camp. The Password is Courage will be available on BBC iPlayer from June 21.
