Okay, the film gets an automatic 3 points for the soccer, I mean "football" scenes--especially since they got Pelé for the film. But, aside from some nifty play during the big match, the film is about as realistic and inspiring as an episode of HOGAN'S HEROES. I mean, who would have ever thought to do a movie where the prisoners in a German POW camp play a German team in front of a crowd of 100,000,015 French and German fans would be a good idea?! Especially, since the Germans were a little bit preoccupied with other things to undertake such a meaningless match (such as taking over Europe, conducting the Holocaust, hiding from Allied bombings, etc.). What a brainless idea and a sick way of dismissing the evil that was WWII. I wasn't surprised that Sylvester Stallone did such a movie (after all, he made OVER THE TOP and RHINESTONE),but Michael Caine, Pelé and Max Von Sydow all agreed to make this mess?! Surely their agents agreed to do the film before anyone actually read the script!

I quite enjoyed Escape to Victory. It is not one of John Huston's best, and it is not a perfect movie. It can get silly and implausible, the plot has its predictabilities and there is the odd cliché every now and then. That said, it was very enjoyable. The film looks good, and coming from a non-sports fan the football scenes are great fun to watch. John Huston's direction is memorable, the script was snappy and while the characters have their clichéd moments they are also somewhat credible. The acting is fine too, the cast do give it their all here and it shows. Sylvester Stallone surprised me in a good way and Michael Caine is always good value. All in all, an enjoyable and fun movie even with its problems. 7/10 Bethany Cox

This was a strange project that John Huston chose late in his career for a film. Victory is a weird combination of The Longest Yard, The Great Escape and Bridge On The River Kwai when it comes to Michael Caine's concern for his man overriding all.

Not that the Germans were treating the POWs like the Japanese were. The German brutality was reserved for concentration camp inmates. Still when German commandant Max Von Sydow sees a pickup soccer game, he suggests a match between the prisoners and the German Army. Of course the German Army has some really good pre-war soccer players, but among the prisoners there are some good ones as well, including one of the best ones ever in Pele. The rest of the cast also includes some first class soccer players of 1981 playing roles.

Michael Caine sees a way away from labor camps and the Germans see good propaganda value in a match where the Nazis play with brutality like they do everything else.

Playing the Steve McQueen role of the non-conformist is Sylvester Stallone who has escape uppermost in his mind. Still Caine and Stallone do come to an accommodation of sorts and you have to see the film to see how it all plays out.

Victory is not going to rank with The Maltese Falcon or Moulin Rouge two of Huston's greatest films in my humble opinion. Still it's a nice male camaraderie film with a wartime setting though it is way too far-fetched for me.