Simply A Masterpiece

Great Film overall

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

Blistering performances.

I looked into this show after seeing Secret Army, everyone's old favorite. Colditz was actually made before Secret Army though. Many of the same actors make appearances. They come up with great stories with lots of nerve-wracking suspense, just like S.A. did.Also like S.A., it's interesting how the good guys and bad guys are not so clear. Sometimes fellow prisoners are the villain; sometimes the Germans end up being unlikely saviors. The Germans even have enemies of their own in the SS, who are itching to get their hands on the camp and run it their own brutal way. The Germans are actual well-rounded characters, as well. They are as much a part of the story as the prisoners. They are not portrayed as just generic goons thwarted at every turn.I agree with one other reviewer (although not quite as strongly) that the series wasn't quite as good in the second season. The first season finale with Carrington and Grant's big home run was the pinnacle, and it left me very excited to see what happened in the second season, but unfortunately I was a little disappointed. Still worth watching, but perhaps they set the bar a little too high for themselves in the first season.I'd say my favorite episodes were Tweedledum, Gone Away (parts I and II) Odd Man In, and Chameleon (just because I laughed out loud when Mohn was trying to buddy up to the prisoners to save his own sorry butt) A couple things I didn't really like: - Lt. Dick Player is inexplicably absent from the final few episodes... Kind of sucks because he was easily one of the most interesting characters.Some of the Americans who show up towards the end have awful accents. I looked it up and I think Phil Carrington might be the only American character played by an American actor.I found the ending rather... Anticlimactic. I'm not sure if it's because I accidentally read the synopsis of the last episode on Wikipedia, and thus the suspense was ruined for me, but I think it could have been done a little better.Overall, good show. I'll probably watch it again in a few months.

This is the sort of series where you get invested in the plots and characters and if you watch one episode, you want to see the next until you've gone through the series! It focuses mainly on British soldiers plotting to escape from the almost escape-proof Colditz prison in Germany in WW 2. I've seen Series 1 which seems to be 1940-1941. The United States has not yet entered the war (to my shame) at the time the story is unfolding. Maybe in Series 2 I'll hear about the Yanks joining in.....anyway, it is riveting. How on earth can these men keep coming up with new plans, new devices, new tools for escape? But they do. And you mostly want them to escape, yet if your favorite characters DO escape, they will not show up in the next episodes so you have mixed feelings! There is one American who has joined the RAF, and he's played very well by Robert Wagner. I thought he was an average actor, but with the right director he can be really good.Aside from the plots, the different personality types that coexist in a prison environment make for great psychological drama. One of the best episodes has British actor Michael Bryant feigning madness in order to be sent back to England. It's the "Tweedledum" episode and it is haunting. I think it is hard to find this series on Region 1 DVD but I found a copy so maybe others can. You won't be sorry!

I watched this on T.V. as a Kid, IN PARTICULAR i liked the character played by Bernard Hepton as the commandant and can remember as if it was yesterday this unique part, right down to the frequent clearing of the throat and his general manner, i can never recall missing an episode and used to look forward to it being screened every week, needless to say i was very disappointed when the Series came to an end and would love to own the whole series, Anyone out there know if this was ever released on Video or D.V.D. and if so where it can be obtained OR WHEN IT MAY BE RE-SCREENED IN THE FUTURE ?Please let me know if any one notices it popping up on the History Channel again in the future, Gary@ichthus88.force9.co.uk, Thanks in advance Cheers - Gary

This outstanding series is the kind of psychological drama at which the British excell. Set almost entirely within a reconstruction of the now-famous castle-fortress prisoner-of-war camp during WWII, there is little in the way of physical action. Instead we're treated to some of the best form of "mind games" and psychological manoeuvring and competition you can hope to see on TV, as the two sides constantly strive to get one over on the other. The Allied prisoners are determined not to be beaten mentally by their surroundings and look for every possible means of escape, while the Germans are always on their toes, looking for clues about possible break-outs and ways in which the Allied prisoners are trying to outsmart them. I couldn't tear myself away from the series when it first came out in Britain, and I was pleased to see how little it had aged when it was reshown on the History Channel a couple of years ago. Excellent acting and strong story lines make this a must-see for me. Out of 10, I'd rank it about 13.6!!