The Great Escaper
Inspiring British drama starring Michael Caine as a war veteran who escapes from a care home at the age of 89 to attend the 70th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy.
In the summer of 2014, octogenarian Bernie Jordan made global headlines. He’d staged a ‘great escape’ from his care home to join fellow war veterans on a beach in Normandy, commemorating their fallen comrades. It was a story that captured the imagination of the world – Bernie seemed to embody the defiant, ‘can-do’ spirit of a generation that was fast disappearing. But of course, it wasn’t the whole story. It was the story we all tell ourselves to make war and old age bearable. The bitter-sweet script of THE GREAT ESCAPER explores the reality with wit and a very big heart.
Bernie’s adventure, spanning a mere 48 hours, also marked the culmination of his 60-year marriage to Irene – the story celebrates their love without sentimentality and with an eye to the lessons we can all learn from the Greatest Generation.