It’s April 1942, and the Japanese are finishing a three month death campaign to overtake the final stronghold in South East Asia. Royal British Air Force Wing Commander James Wright (Scott Adkins, John Wick: Chapter 4, Ip Man 4: The Finale, Undisputed) is sent on a support mission to the Bataan Peninsula in The Philippines with 9 other soldiers to back up the Allies’ last stand. However, their plane is shot down and he appears to be the only survivor. It isn’t long before he is caught and taken as a prisoner of war by Lt. Col. Benjiro Ito (Peter Shinkoda, Marvel’s Daredevil). At this POW camp, Ito trains his soldiers, and makes the prisoners fight them to the death on a mat in the center of the camp, which the other prisoners refer to as Times Square. While Ito’s second in command, Captain Endo (Masanori Mimoto), sees the danger that Wright poses and wants to execute him immediately, Ito wants to keep him alive, constantly (and emptily) threatening Wright with the fact that he will die the following day. Ito is impressed by Wright’s fighting skills, and is particularly intrigued when he sees him perform a strictly forbidden deadly move that he must have learned somewhere in Japan, and is eager to learn more.

Among the other POWs in Wright’s barracks are several soldiers from the U.S. Army, including Captain Collins (Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone, Cobra Kai), Sgt. Gabriel Villanueva (Michael Copon, Power Rangers: Time Force), The Beard (Michael Rene Walton), Jonesy (Gary Cairns), and The Greek (Fitim Krasniqi). The men inform Wright that in a few days Ito plans to have the men go on a 60-mile death march to a new camp, and that they will likely not survive the trip. With more and more prisoners being executed or killed in the fighting ring each day, and Ito growing more and more paranoid and unhinged, time is running out and the prisoners must devise a plan to escape and/or be rescued. Assisting them in this effort is nurse Theresa (Gabbi Garcia, Ero), who is also being kept at the camp against her will.

Prisoner of War is a solid action film directed by Louis Mandylor (3 Days in Malay, Operation Blood Hunt), and with action sequences by Alvin Hsing (Bullet Train, Dr. Strange) and stunt coordinator Stephen Renney (Renfield, Osiris). While the crux of the film takes place in 1943 in this POW camp, there is also an opening/closing framing sequence set in 1950 in Tokyo, as Wright makes his way to the dojo owned by Ito’s son Shunsuke (Kansuke Asano) in search of something. This framing mechanism ultimately feels a bit pointless, and also eliminates any stakes when it comes to Wright in the POW camp—you already know he’s going to survive anything that happens there. However, it does allow the film to immediately jump right into the action, with star Scott Adkins taking on a whole dojo full of students all at once. This really sets the tone for the rest of the feature.

Adkins is truly the star of this movie, and is constantly given the opportunity to showcase his martial arts skills, taking on any number of attackers single-handedly. His hands and feet are often his only weapons, but he wields them expertly, using his fists and feet to take down enemies, and flipping through the air and using a flying kick to send them across the room. And when he does manage to get ahold of a weapon, it is often utilizing a knife in close hand-to-hand combat to dispatch of an attacker. All of the action sequences are well-choreographed, but in a way that still feels exciting, spontaneous and natural. The film is also interestingly shot, combining close camera work to put the viewer right in the middle of the action, but also utilizing some more artistic overhead shots. In addition to the action, the film also has this ongoing drama as the men bond and plot their escape plan, and in the tension that builds between Ito and Wright.

Well Go has released Prisoner of War on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital. We were sent a copy of the Blu-ray release for review. The Blu-ray presentation looks phenomenal, with a nearly immaculate-looking picture, with an amazing level of detail, especially in close-ups of faces. I can’t imagine a 4K release looking that much better. The audio track is also well done, providing an immersive feel during the action sequences, with bombs an explosions and gunfire coming from every direction.

Unfortunately the Blu-ray release is pretty barebones in regards to bonus material, just including the film’s trailer and some previews for three other Well Go releases, The disc comes packed in a locking HD keepcase, and doesn’t contain a digital copy. Our review copy did include a cardboard slipcover.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:52:53)

Blu-ray:
• 1080p / Widescreen 2.39:1
• Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English Stereo
• Subtitles: English SDH, French

Extras:

• Trailer (1:59)
• Previews
  • Beast of War (1:53)
  • Shaman (2:07)
  • Affinity (1:44)

Final Thoughts:

Prisoner of War is an exciting, action-packed POW drama. Scott Adkins fans will surely be pleased as the actor is given so many opportunities to showcase his particular set of skills. However, the film doesn’t feel like just an excuse for fight scene after fight scene. There is actually an interesting story and character development at the core. The only thing that didn’t quite work for me was the framing device, which felt a bit unnecessary. Well Go’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds amazing, but unfortunately lacks any bonus material. That said, the release is still worth checking out based on the film itself. It’s an easy recommendation for Adkins fans and those looking for a wartime action film.