SpecialsTarget Disturbing yet enthralling

HomeyTao For having a relatively low budget, the film's style and overall art direction are immensely impressive.

Humbersi The first must-see film of the year.

Mandeep Tyson The acting in this movie is really good.

Richard Chatten With North Korea unfortunately still generating headlines today, 'Time Limit' is a salutary reminder of just how long this eccentric little dictatorship has been exercising the concern of the West, who during the fifties it made very anxious at the conjoined issues of collaboration and the brainwashing of prisoners. Andrew Marton made an interesting drama in 1954 called 'Prisoner of War' which touched upon the apparent 'turning' of prisoners, while the presence of Khigh Dhiegh (here billed as Kaie Deei) as the beaming Colonel Kim is not the only element in this film that anticipates 'The Manchurian Candidate'.Karl Malden's only credit as a director is gripping, well-acted and keeps you watching to find out were this is all leading; the conclusion when it comes is a somewhat grandiloquently expressed, but satisfying.

Robert J. Maxwell In the aftermath of the Korean War, the period in which this filmed play takes place, a lot of our soldiers "went over" to the communist enemy. Too many. It generated a great deal of interest in what was called brainwashing. Was it some mystical process that perverted our sense of what was good and bad? The academic psychologists were called in and they didn't find anything extraordinary. The prisoners were already in a one-down position and used to obeying authority figures. It wasn't the Inquisition. Reward and punishment were used but the punishment, while typically brutal, wasn't extravagant or particularly painful. One effective technique was simply tying the captive's hands behind his back so that someone else had to feed him or unfasten his trousers when he needed to use the bathroom. We ripped off at least one technique -- the good cop/ bad cop routine.I don't know why I got into that, because we see nothing of it in the movie. It's just that the perceived number of converts was dismayingly high and was a matter of some concern at the time, as reflected in the movies -- "The Rack," "The Manchurian Candidate," and some others I forget. An Army major, Richard Basehart, is undergoing interrogation by an investigator, Richard Widmark, whose duty is to see if a Court Martial for treason should be recommended. There is plenty of evidence against Basehart -- signed confessions, recorded propaganda broadcasts, and the testimony of more than a dozen of his fellow POWs. On top of that, Basehart admits his guilt freely. But there are enough minor discrepancies and contradictions in the record that Widmark is hesitant to proceed with a trial until all the facts are in.It was directed in a more or less pedestrian manner by Karl Malden. But he didn't have that much to work with. It's a weak play. Arguments and intrigue and command pressure add up without much in the way of increment until the final explosion of sobs and speeches wracked with guilt and self justification. Malden allows some over acting. Rip Torn in an important role isn't especially convincing as a guilt-ridden murderer. He could be splendid as a tobacco-chewing red-necked sheriff when he was a little older. Martin Balsam does his best -- which is pretty good -- in the stereotyped role of the impudent and outspoken Master Sergeant. The musical score is by Frank Steiner, who must have listened repeatedly to Bernard Herrmann's score for "Citizen Kane." Aside from the salaries for Widmark and some of the secondary leads, it must not have cost much to produce. There are few shots on location, but then that's the nature of plays.

blanche-2 Richard Widmark, Richard Basehart, Rip Torn and Carl Benton Reid star in "Time Limit," a 1957 drama directed by Karl Malden. It's a small drama, based on a play, and very well done. During the Korean War, a military investigator, Colonel Edwards (Widmark) is assigned the case of Major Cargill (Basehart), who was a POW and is accused of treason. Edwards believes Cargill to be innocent of the charges, even though Cargill admits that the charges are correct.This story is really about making a humane decision rather than following military rules. Since as I write this we are still at war in Iraq, this film remains relevant. The scenes at the prisoner of war camp are excellent and really give one the feel for what these soldiers suffered.Widmark, Torn and Basehart are especially good - Widmark is a man looking for the answer and striving to be both humane and fair, and Torn is a witness to what occurred - both give terrific performances. Basehart is effective as the accused, who just wants to plead guilty and not explain his actions.A very thought-provoking drama, certainly a topic that's been covered in bigger films, but still worth seeing.

whpratt1 Karl Malden directed this story about a POW in North Korea and Col. William Edwards, (Richard Widmark) is assigned to the investigation of sixteen POW soldiers. Major Harry Cargill, (Richard Basehart) is accused of being brainwashed and the fact that he broke down and gave out important secret material. June Lockhart, (Mrs. Cargil) gave an outstanding supporting role as the wife to Harry Cargill. William Edwards had a hard time trying to get the truth about what really went on in this POW camp and Edwards acted like he wanted to be accused of this crime and even admitted to the treason against the United States. Do not recommend viewing this film, it is rather boring and seems to repeat itself over and over again.