| The Great Escape
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|
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| Country
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 United States
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| Directed by
|
John Sturges
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| Release Date
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July 4, 1963
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| Language
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English
German
French
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| Studio
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The Mirisch Company
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| Distributor
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United Artists
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|
|
The Great Escape is the classic 1963 World War II escape thriller directed by John Sturges and was based on the true story of one of the largest escape attempts made by Allied prisoners from a German POW camp during the war. The all-star cast included Steve McQueen, James Garner, Richard Attenborough, James Coburn, Donald Pleasence, Charles Bronson, and David McCallum.
The following weapons were used in the film The Great Escape:
WARNING! THIS PAGE CONTAINS SPOILERS!
Rifles
Karabiner 98k
Luftwaffe soldiers at the camp are seen armed with Karabiner 98k rifles. Flight Lt. Hendly (James Garner) commandeers one from an airfield guard.
Karabiner 98k - 7.92x57mm Mauser
A Luftwaffe soldier armed with a Karabiner 98k holds back a mob trying to watch a fake fight between two POWs, intended to distract the guards from other POWs escaping in the trucks. Note the center man pushing the gun barrel into a POW's stomach with his finger on the trigger. Also, his Karabiner is equipped with a late-war welded barrel band.
Two Luftwaffe soldiers escort Archie Ives (Angus Lennie) and Virgil Hilts (
Steve McQueen) to the cooler. The right soldier's Kar98k has a hooded front sight.
A
Flieger (Airman Basic) with a Karabiner 98k puts Capt. Hilts into one of the prison cells of the cooler, hence his name "The Cooler King".
An
Obergefreiter (Airman First Class) and the
Flieger with Kar98ks put Hilts in the cooler once again for another escape attempt. Both Kar98ks have unhooded front sights.
Flight Lt. Hendley "The Scrounger" (
James Garner) helps guide the blind Flight Lt. Colin Blythe "The Forger" (
Donald Pleasence) to one of the German planes in an airfield, armed with captured Kar98k taken from a sentry. The planes in the airfield are American AT-6 Texan trainers mocked up with German paint, although the plane they steal is an authentic German Bucker Bu 181 "Bestmann" (however, the Luftwaffe actually did have AT-6s captured from Belgium).
Wehrmacht soldiers armed with Kar98k rifles capture Hendley after the plane crashes and Blythe is shot. Notice how the rifle closest to the camera lacks hooded sights and cleaning rod, which usually indicates Russian captures.
A Spanish tracker guides Sedgewick from France to Spain with a Kar98k slung over his back.
A Luftwaffe soldier locks Hilts in the cooler at the end of the film with a KAr98k slung on his back. This gun has a straight bolt, which isn't correct for the era as the German-issued models had turned bolts. This implies this is a Kar98k stock and barrel with an older 1920s straight bolt action receiver.
Mauser Karabiner 98AZ
Some German soldiers are seen with Mauser 98AZ Artillery Carbines.
Karabiner 98AZ - 7.92x57mm Mauser
The soldier to the far right holds his Kar98AZ while escorting Soviet PoWs. Note the grasping groove.
A soldier stands guard at the camp gate. The longer barrel and protected front sight can be seen.
Mauser Competition Rifle
A Wehrmacht soldier is seen using an unknown sniper rifle to shoot Flight Lt. Colin Blythe "The Forger" (Donald Pleasence). It would appear to be a sporterized Kar98k with a scope, although an actually Kar98k sniper rifle issued at the time was not sporterized.
A Wehrmacht soldier with his sniper rifle.
The Wehrmacht soldier shoots Blythe with his sniper rifle.
Submachine Guns
MP 40
The MP 40 is seen in the hands of NCOs and several camp guards, who would just as likely be issued an MP 40 as a Kar98k.
MP 40 - 9x19mm Parabellum
Luftwaffe guards armed with MP 40s.
More guards prepare to round up the newly arrived Allied prisoners.
Another view of different guards as the trucks' tarpaulins are opened. Note the non-ribbed magazine well which is a feature of an early variant.
A
Flieger holds his MP 40 on Capt. Hilts when he pays his last respects to a deceased prisoner, snapping under the pressure when the Germans find their tunnel "Tom".
Oberfeldwebel (Master Sergeant) Strachwitz (
Harry Riebauer) holds his MP 40 on the POWs after the escape gets interrupted midway with 79 escapes.
Wehrmacht
Soldaten (Privates) point their MP 40s at Hilts after they shoot his Motorcycle and he skids into barbed wire. Without the bolts cocked back, the guns are rather useless.
A French resistance fighter with an MP 40 hands Sedgewick over to a Spanish guide.
Machine Guns
MG 42
Luftwaffe guards man MG 42 machine guns in the camp perimeter towers. A group of French Resistance fighters use an MG 42 to mow down German officers during a drive-by shooting. The Waffen SS are seen using an MG 42 near the film's end (in reality, what was done to the escaped POWs was spread out over several instances).
MG 42 with bipod extended - 7.92x57mm Mauser
An
Obergefreiter in a tower next to an MG 42. However, his white
V sleeve insignia is from a
Gefreiter (Airman), an
Obergefreiter would have another smaller V ontop.
A Luftwaffe guard fires his MG 42 at Hilts when he crossed the perimeter wire to "fetch his ball".
Another tower guard fires his MG 42 at a prisoner.
The searchlight illuminated an MG 42 on another tower.
A member of the French resistance guns down German officers at a street bar with an MG 42.
An SS-
Schütze (Private) deploys an MG 42 on a motorcycle's sidecar.
Handguns
Luger P08
All high-ranking officers and soldiers at the camp keep Luger P08s as their sidearms. After the escape, Cpt. Hilts (Steve McQueen) plants clear wire on a road way and causes a German soldier on a bike (secretivly played by Steve McQueen) to crash. He steals the soldier's uniform and Luger before eventually being captured.
Luger P08 - 9x19mm Parabellum
Cpt. Hilts talks with
Oberst (Colonel) von Luger (Hannes Messemer) who has a P08 in his
Walther PP holster; note the pistol's grip. On the other hand,
Hauptmann (Captain) Posen (Robert Freitag) standing next to von Luger also has a Walther holster which contains a Walther PP. It is worth mentioning that Kramer (Heinz Weiss) to the far right has a Luger holster.
Oberfeldwebel Strachwitz with his drawn Luger when discovering the reason for the prisoners' tummult.
After
Obergefreiter Frick (Til Kiwe) catches the POWs climbing out of the tunnel. Hilts runs out and yells "Don't shoot!". It's so nice how the soldier's reaction is to whip around and fire his Luger P08 at him.
He then turns around to another prisoner.
Hilts takes aim with a stolen Luger P08.
One of the Wehrmacht soldiers that captures Lt. Hendley (
James Garner) is seen with a Luger P08.
Walther PP
Gestapo agents are seen carrying Walther PPs.
Gestapo agent Kuhn (Hans Reiser) tries to draw his Walther PP while struggling with Lt. Cmdr. Eric Ashley-Pitt "Dispersal" (
David McCallum).
Ashley-Pitt forces Kuhn to shoot himself. Note that when the gun is "fired", the slide doesn't move and no round is ejected, indicating that the gun is a harmless flashpaper replica (firing actual blanks at such close range to an actor is extremely dangerous).
A Gestapo agent brandishes his Walther PP.
Another view of the same scene as Bartlett puts his hands up.
Mauser Model 1934
An Oberleutnant (First Lieutenant) stops Squadron Leader Roger Bartlett "Big X" (Richard Attenborough) on the street and holds a 1934 Mauser Pocket Pistol "Humpback" pistol on him before being convinced he is a citizen by his fluent German and authentic papers. While it could be a Mauser 1910 or 1914, it is likely a 1934 since this is a WWII film.
Mauser Taschenpistole Modell 1934 - 7.65x17mmSR
The
Oberleutnant holds his Mauser 1934 on Bartlett.
Bartlett approaches the officer.
After Bartlett has convinced the officer with his very good knowledge of German, the officer gets back into his car. Apart from the distance, this image offers a good view of the pistol's shape.
Arminius HW-10
What appears to be an anachronistic Arminius HW-10 is seen in the film being used by some SS officers.
Arminius HW-10 - 9mm blank firing
An SS-
Hauptsturmführer (Captain) at the train station takes aim with an Arminius HW-10. The SS-
Untersturmführer seen right next to him holds a
Walther PP.
Closeup of the Arminius HW-10.
Hand Grenades
Model 24 Stielhandgranate
A Luftwaffe guard has two Model 24 Stielhandgranates tucked into his belt.
Stielhandgranate Modell 24
The
Feldwebel (Technical Sergeant) in the background with the Stielhandgranates tucked into his belt.
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WARNING! THIS PAGE CONTAINS SPOILERS!
