The Rack (1956)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Arnold Laven

Writers:

Rod Serling (teleplay)
Stewart Stern (screenplay)

Release Date:

2 November 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

All the drama, the suspense, the power of "The Caine Mutiny"!

Plot:

Captain Edward Hall returns to the USA after two years in a prison camp in the korean war. In the camp...

Plot Keywords:

Prison Camp | Captain | Korean War | Father Son Relationship | Traitor

Cast

Paul Newman	...	Capt. Edward W. Hall Jr.
Wendell Corey	...	Maj. Sam Moulton
Walter Pidgeon	...	Col. Edward W. Hall Sr.
Edmond O'Brien	...	Lt. Col. Frank Wasnick
Anne Francis	...	Aggie Hall
Lee Marvin	...	Capt. John R. Miller
Cloris Leachman	...	Caroline
Robert Burton	...	Col. Ira Hansen
Robert F. Simon	...	Law Officer (as Robert Simon)
Trevor Bardette	...	Court President
Adam Williams	...	Sgt. Otto Pahnke
James Best	...	Millard Chilson Cassidy
Fay Roope	...	Col. Dudley Smith
Barry Atwater	...	Maj. Byron Phillips

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Oscar winning Art Director Cedric Gibbons' last feature film.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The two soldiers who load Captain Hall's stretcher into the medical vehicle at the airport have no rank insignia, ribbons, or shoulder patches on their uniforms.

Quotes:

Captain Edward W. Hall Jr.: Do you know what's the matter with me?
Aggie Hall: No.
Captain Edward W. Hall Jr.: My mother wasn't in the army so I'm a half-breed.

Movie Connections:

Remake of "The United States Steel Hour: The Rack (#2.16)" (1955)

Excellent and Superb

I'm always shocked that so few people know or have seen this film. This is an excellent movie by any standard: story by Rod Serling, cast with Ann Francis, Paul Newman, Lee Marvin, Wendell Corey, Walter Pigeon, Edmund O'Brian and others. The setting is the Korean and this a court martial trial of an officer that capitulated with the enemy while a prisoner-of-war. The drama is tense, the acting superb and the depth of feelings portrayed in a (then) controversial subject is intense. This film is one of my favorites of all time. I'm shocked there is no video or DVD and that it has appeared only rarely on the late shows.