Just so...so bad

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

This was made in 1959 as a training aid for British soldiers. It is a re-staging of how captured British soldiers were treated by the People's Army of China during the Korean War. It is very austere but they use real actors and not people who have used make up to look more Chinese etc and this adds to the authenticity.At 64 minutes it is quite short but it is very intense. It was also 'restricted' viewing and only allowed to be shown to designated military personnel. As such it is remarkably realistic. There are depictions of torture throughout and aspects of brain washing. It is not overly violent though but it still has a lot of impact.It is also in black and white and has very few persons that you will have heard of. However, those who are eagle eyed may spot and early role for Wilfred Bramble before he became Steptoe. This is a great watch for anyone interested in film and or military history and I have to say I found it fascinating.