Verdict
Summary
Incorrectly marketed as a war film with lots of action, Sergeant Ryker is a courtroom procedural through and through. While compelling, it still feels like we were cheated of seeing Ryker’s story from the frontlines rather than by hearsay.
Plot:
A sergeant in the Korean War is found guilty and sentenced to death for treason, and a military prosecutor sees flaws in his conviction and fights for a new trial.
Review:
With only days before he is to be executed for treason and aiding the enemy during the Korean War, Sergeant Ryker (Lee Marvin) sits in a cell awaiting his fate, despite insisting that he’s innocent and was only carrying out orders from a commander who is not only now dead, but whose body is missing from his grave, with possible proof of Ryker’s innocence on his body. Held in custody by a military that despises him, Ryker has no hope of redemption until his very own prosecutor – Captain David Young (Bradford Dillman) realizes that there were some inconsistencies in the prosecution. Knowing he only has a very limited time before it’s too late to do something about it, Young begins investigating again and comes to the conclusion that justice can’t be served unless Ryker’s case is reexamined, which means he’ll have to go to the General in order to get a stay of execution and possibly be granted a new trial. But things are complicated: Young has been sleeping with Ryker’s wife (Vera Miles), which could potentially throw everything out of whack.
Incorrectly marketed as a war film with lots of action, Sergeant Ryker is a courtroom procedural through and through. While compelling, it still feels like we were cheated of seeing Ryker’s story from the frontlines rather than by hearsay. The entire movie was shot on soundstages at Universal Studios Hollywood, and the film does indeed have a boxed staginess to it, but as a character study of the film’s focal point – with Marvin’s explosive Sergeant who has a great monologue towards the end – the film does succeed. From director Buzz Kulik.
Kino Lorber’s recent Blu-ray release of Sergeant Ryker is presented in a new 2K master with a new audio commentary by a film historian, and the trailer.
