‘Prisoner of War’: A WWII Action Movie That Almost Doesn’t Work

In spite of an under-written caricature of a villain, this action thriller squeaks by.

Prisoner of war James Wright (Scott Adkins) faces prison camp commander Lt. Col. Ito (Peter Shinkoda), in "Prisoner of War." Well Go USA

 R | 1h 50m | Drama, Thriller, Action, War | 2025

For its first 30 minutes or so, “Prisoner of War” is a well-told, brutally realistic period piece taking place in 1942 during the Battle of Bataan. English actor and martial artist Scott Adkins stars as James Wright, a wing commander for the Royal Air Force whose plane has just crashed on the island of Luzon in the Philippines.

Although he’s able to fend off nearly a dozen Japanese soldiers, Wright is eventually contained. He soon has his first of many testy face-offs with prison camp commander Lt. Col. Ito (Peter Shinkoda). This is where the movie starts slipping.

Wing Cmdr. James Wright (Scott Adkins) finds himself imprisoned in a Japanese POW camp during WWII, in "Prisoner of War." Well Go USA

Whether because of sheer boredom, a severe Napoleon complex, or garden variety sadism, Ito correctly surmises Wright will prove to be a worthy adversary. Not so much for Ito, but rather a seemingly endless supply of unlucky soldiers and prisoners are forced go toe to toe with Wright in a makeshift fighting ring; these always end with broken bones or death.

Help Wanted: A Good Bad Villain

Wing Commander James Wright (Scott Adkins, L) faces guards, in "Prisoner of War." Well Go USA

A favorite industry adage, “a movie is only as good as its villain,” has apropos application here. Ito isn’t a worthy opponent. He’s a sniveling weasel whose faux bravado exists because he’s surrounded by gun toting goons, and Wright remains unarmed most of the time.

At best, Ito is beyond-embarrassing. He’s a second rate Bond villain who gloms on to a tired, B-film grade one-liner like a dog with a new chew toy. At least six times, as punctuation to their many interchangeable tongue-waggings, Ito tells Wright to enjoy his last evening because “tomorrow you will die.”

Nothing is worse than a villain without bite and one with empty threats. By the time Ito says it the last time, Wright interrupts him and says, “Yeah, I know, tomorrow I will die.” Without, perhaps, realizing it, screenwriter Marc Clebanoff (based on a story by Adkins) is more than a bit aware this supposed ominous warning has devolved into a knowing self-parody.

Canadian Born Actor

Topping off all of the Ito stuff is Shinkoda’s insistence (likely with Mandylor’s approval) on speaking broken English with a very bad Japanese accent. There’s a good reason for this. Shinkoda was born and raised in Montreal. If he has any accent at all, it would be French-Canadian. Faking an inferior Japanese accent wasn’t the way to go and it borders on insulting.

Sgt. Gabriel Villanueva (Michael Copon, L) and Wing Cmdr. James Wright (Scott Adkins), in "Prisoner of War." Well Go USA

At this point, you might be asking yourself: Why bother with this movie? There are more than a few good reasons to do so.

First, there’s Adkins. He looks like a ripped and shredded version of Jon Hamm or 1960s action star Clint Walker (“The Dirty Dozen”). Adkins brings to mind Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme during their respective heydays. None of them will ever be accused of being great actors, but all of them know their limitations, and all lean into their strengths.

Since his start in 2001, Adkins has completed 73 movies, including four this year and four more expected in 2026. While many have been direct-to-video titles, Adkins has also had roles in the “John Wick,” “Deadpool,” “Expendables,” “X-Men,” and “Jason Bourne” franchises. This movie could be the one that gives Adkins the career boost he’s more than earned.

Amid fallen guards, Wing Cmdr. James Wright (Scott Adkins, L) faces Lt. Col. Ito (Peter Shinkoda), in "Prisoner of War." Well Go USA

There are also many colorful supporting performances in the film, notably Michael Copon as the American prisoner of war Villanueva and Gabbi Garcia as Filipino nurse Theresa. Initially suggested to be a romantic interest for the Wright character, Theresa thankfully is not, but she’s is given a substantial role in the final act.

Copycatting

If copycatting isn’t an issue for you, “Prisoner of War” has a great deal to offer. At various points, it pinches from “Stalag 17,” “The Bridge on the River Kwai,” “Spartacus,” “Gladiator,” and “Kill Bill,” among many others.

It’s said that imitation is the greatest form of flattery but for some reason I don’t think that was the intent here.

I’ve said it before and will likely say it again: Movies about World War II will never go out of fashion. For over 80 years, that four-year event has provided the inspiration for some of the greatest movies ever made. I have no doubt many more phenomenal movies not yet conceived will follow.

“Prisoner of War” isn’t great by any stretch, but neither is it a complete bust. Whatever doesn’t work about it is surpassed by what does. Sometimes that’s enough.

The movie is presented in English with frequent subtitled Japanese and Filipino and opens in theaters and on demand on September 19.

‘Prisoner of War’ Director: Louis Mandylor Stars: Scott Adkins, Peter Shinkoda, Michael Copon, Gabbi Garcia Running Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes MPAA Rating: R Release Date: Sept. 19, 2025 Rating: 3 stars out of 5

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