10 War Movie Moments You'll Never Forget

We have been blessed with some truly brilliant POW films over the years - the vast majority of which have thrown the spotlight on World War 2 and the various Allied soldiers and airmen who were interned in German camps over the course of the conflict. Billy Wilder crafted the inimitable William Holden-led Stalag 17, Guy Hamilton had The Colditz Story, and David Lean had the Bridge on the River Kwai. (Frank Sinatra also had a great, but slightly pulpier turn in the genre with all-timer Dad Movie classic, Von Ryan's Express.)

However, while I would argue that both Stalag and River Kwai are stronger films, there is no more iconic a POW war movie than John Sturges' The Great Escape.

Boasting one of the most legendary ensemble casts of all time, bringing together Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough, to name but a few, The Great Escape retold the daring Allied escape attempt from the Stalag Luft III POW camp in 1944. While much of the story was true, there were some embellishments, most famously the motorcycle chase depicted in the film, which saw McQueen's Virgil Hilts attempt to outrun his Nazi pursuers on a Triumph Trophy.

Although it wasn't based in reality, Hilts' escape attempt (requested to be done via motorcycle by McQueen) is one of the most iconic and kinetic sequences in movie history, and is a key reason why The Great Escape has been immortalised in quite the way it has.