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Review by Lizzie Guilfoyle
DVD SPECIAL FEATURES: Interview gallery; Deleted scenes;
Behind the scenes; Galleries.
THE NAME is familiar but if it's hard-hitting, all-male World
War II drama you're expecting, you're in for a surprise.
True, Colditz has it's share of suspense and
testosterone-fuelled acts of daring-do that makes it one for the
boys, but it has something else - an added ingredient that makes
it equally appealing to women: romance.
It is, in fact, the story of three men and a girl. The men -
Tom (Laurence Fox), Jack (Tom Hardy) and Nick (Damian Lewis) escape
together from a PoW camp but only Nick makes it across the border
to Switzerland.
However, before he does, the injured Jack begs him to find his
girlfriend, Lizzie (Sophia Myles) and tell her that he loves her.
That Jack loves her that is, not Nick, although
it isn't long before the latter is doing exactly that - the cad!
Meanwhile, Jack and Tom are languishing in Colditz - at least
Jack is. Tom is hell-bent on escaping and his attempts make for
some genuinely heart-stopping moments, as well as one that is
disgustingly claustrophobic.
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Eventually though, Jack is alerted
to Nick's treachery and propelled into action, makes good his
own escape. But the question remains - will he reach Lizzie before
it's too late?
The locations and sets of Colditz are lavish and give
it a genuine 1940's feel but the story itself has stirred anger
among former PoWs, who argue that it's historically inaccurate
and prone to insulting flights of fantasy.
Small compensation then, that the original title, From Colditz
with Love, was dropped in favour of the simpler, succinct Colditz.
Of the men, it's Lewis who shines as the dastardly Nick. Bad
as he is, it's difficult to resist his charms early on - after
all, all's fair in love and war, as the saying goes.
However, his final act of betrayal shows him for the nasty piece
of work he really is and ultimately, guarantees his downfall.
And Lewis plays it to the hilt.
Also worthy of note is Jason Priestley, almost unrecognizable
as morphine-addicted prisoner, Rhett Barker - a role so far removed
from the clean-cut Brandon Walsh of Beverly Hills 90210 that critics
who dismissed him as a teen-idol and nothing more, should think
again.
Colditz won't please everyone, that already clear but
it's a highly entertaining work of historical fiction that doesn't
in any way belittle or undermine the bravery of PoWs. If anything,
it's a timely reminder of all that they endured.
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