A decorated Korean War hero inexplicably collaborates with the enemy while interred in a POW camp and is court-martialed.
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Title: The Rack (1956)
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Cast
| Complete credited 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 | |
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Plot Summary
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Storyline
Captain Edward Hall returns to the USA after two years in a prison camp in the Korean war. In the camp he was brainwashed and helped the Chinese convince the other prisoners that they were fighting an unjust war. When he comes back he is charged for collaboration with the enemy. Where does loyalty end in a prison camp, when the camp is a living hell? Written by Mattias Thuresson
Plot Keywords:
prison camp | korean war | war hero | based on tv movie | brainwashing |Taglines:
Paul Newman, a wonderful new star! See more »Parents Guide:
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Capt. Edward W. Hall Jr.: [addressing the court martial one last time after the verdict has been read] This isn't going to be an extenuation, but I want to say it anyway. Capt. Miller came to my hotel this morning, just about dawn. He's the witness who was tortured. He said he'd read the papers and he'd seen my testimony there and he wanted to talk. So we sat down and we started talking about the men we knew who were prisoners over there... He said he thought that every man has a moment in his life when he ...
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(uncredited)
Music by Jerome Kern
Hummed by Walter Pidgeon
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Did You Know?
Goofs
Near the beginning of the film, Col. Hall, Sr., take a drink of water and then puts the paper cup down on the water cooler cabinet. In the next shot, as he is walking away, the paper cup is gone. See more »Quotes
[last lines]Capt. Edward W. Hall Jr.: [addressing the court martial one last time after the verdict has been read] This isn't going to be an extenuation, but I want to say it anyway. Capt. Miller came to my hotel this morning, just about dawn. He's the witness who was tortured. He said he'd read the papers and he'd seen my testimony there and he wanted to talk. So we sat down and we started talking about the men we knew who were prisoners over there... He said he thought that every man has a moment in his life when he ...
See more »
Alternate Versions
Exists in a computer-colorized version. See more »Soundtracks
The Last Time I Saw Paris(uncredited)
Music by Jerome Kern
Hummed by Walter Pidgeon
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Details
Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishRelease Date:
2 November 1956 (USA) See more »Also Known As:
The Rack See more »Filming Locations:
Letterman Army Hospital, Presidio, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, San Francisco, California, USA See more »Edit
Box Office
Budget:
$779,000 (estimated)Company Credits
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There lies a great film hidden in the depths of 'The Rack', one that honestly and unflinchingly dares pronounce its indictment of the American way of life, of a people uninformed about the democratic traditions of their country as well as of the exact nature of Communism.
But 'The Rack' is not quite that film, although in long stretches it is pretty good. Paul Newman in his second starring role plays Captain Ed Hall, being court martialed for betraying his country when he was a prisoner of war in Korea by collaborating with his captors. It turns out he was mentally tortured, brainwashed as it were, and there is an emotional forthrightness of the scenes concerning the captain's breakdown that are engaging, and the central between Newman and Walter Pidgeon as his staunch colonel father will draw tears, although Newman is not yet the acute and instinctively brilliant actor he would become.
So, see it by all means next time it is aired on TCM, it's not half bad. Only, it ought to have been better.