We very much enjoyed this recent film being shown tonight on Sky/Now.
The Great Escaper (2023)
Sky/Now
The screen greats Michael Caine and Glenda Jackson show the kids how it’s done in this real-life tale about war guilt and the quiet compensations of lifelong companionship. Caine plays the stoic Bernard Jordan, a Second World War veteran who fled his care home in 2014 to attend the 70th anniversary commemorations of the D-Day landings. Jackson plays his wheelchair-using wife. This was her final screen appearance and, typically, she almost steals the movie. She has certainly nabbed the sharpest lines from the screenplay by William Ivory, allowing her to play Irene as whip-smart and defiant, and someone who greets her physical limitations with caustic zingers. It’s an exemplary pairing. (96min) Kevin Maher
The Great Escaper (2023)
Sky/Now
The screen greats Michael Caine and Glenda Jackson show the kids how it’s done in this real-life tale about war guilt and the quiet compensations of lifelong companionship. Caine plays the stoic Bernard Jordan, a Second World War veteran who fled his care home in 2014 to attend the 70th anniversary commemorations of the D-Day landings. Jackson plays his wheelchair-using wife. This was her final screen appearance and, typically, she almost steals the movie. She has certainly nabbed the sharpest lines from the screenplay by William Ivory, allowing her to play Irene as whip-smart and defiant, and someone who greets her physical limitations with caustic zingers. It’s an exemplary pairing. (96min) Kevin Maher