John Sturges

Directing

John Sturges

Born — Died

1910-01-03 — 1992-08-18

Place of birth

Oak Park, Illinois, USA

Known for

Directing

Credits

43 titles

John Eliot Sturges was an American film director. His movies include Bad Day at Black Rock (1955), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), The Magnificent Seven (1960), The Great Escape (1963) and Ice Station Zebra (1968).

Known for

The Great Escape poster
7.9

The Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to sit out the remainder of the war. Undaunted, the prisoners plan one of the most ambitious escape attempts of World War II. Based on a true story.

The Great Escape

1963

The Magnificent Seven poster
7.5

An oppressed Mexican peasant village hires seven gunfighters to help defend their homes.

The Magnificent Seven

1960

Bad Day at Black Rock poster
7.3

One-armed war veteran John J. Macreedy steps off a train at the sleepy little town of Black Rock. Once there, he begins to unravel a web of lies, secrecy, and murder.

Bad Day at Black Rock

1955

Ice Station Zebra poster
6.4

A top-secret Soviet spy satellite -- using stolen Western technology -- malfunctions and then goes into a descent that lands it near an isolated Arctic research encampment called Ice Station Zebra, belonging to the British, which starts sending out distress signals before falling silent. The atomic submarine Tigerfish, commanded by Cmdr. James Ferraday, is dispatched to save them.

Ice Station Zebra

1968

The Eagle Has Landed poster
6.6

When the Nazi high command learns in late 1943 that Winston Churchill will be spending time at a country estate in Norfolk, it hatches an audacious scheme to kidnap the prime minister and spirit him to Germany for enforced negotiations with Hitler.

The Eagle Has Landed

1976

The Satan Bug poster
6.1

A US government germ warfare lab has had an accident. The first theory is that one of the germs has been released and killed several scientists. The big fear is that a more virulent strain, named The Satan Bug because all life can be killed off by it should it escape, may have been stolen.

The Satan Bug

1965

Film credits

Behind the camera

The Great Escape poster
7.9

The Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to sit out the remainder of the war. Undaunted, the prisoners plan one of the most ambitious escape attempts of World War II. Based on a true story.

The Great Escape

1963

The Great Escape poster
7.9

The Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to sit out the remainder of the war. Undaunted, the prisoners plan one of the most ambitious escape attempts of World War II. Based on a true story.

The Great Escape

1963

The Magnificent Seven poster
7.5

An oppressed Mexican peasant village hires seven gunfighters to help defend their homes.

The Magnificent Seven

1960

The Magnificent Seven poster
7.5

An oppressed Mexican peasant village hires seven gunfighters to help defend their homes.

The Magnificent Seven

1960

Bad Day at Black Rock poster
7.3

One-armed war veteran John J. Macreedy steps off a train at the sleepy little town of Black Rock. Once there, he begins to unravel a web of lies, secrecy, and murder.

Bad Day at Black Rock

1955

Ice Station Zebra poster
6.4

A top-secret Soviet spy satellite -- using stolen Western technology -- malfunctions and then goes into a descent that lands it near an isolated Arctic research encampment called Ice Station Zebra, belonging to the British, which starts sending out distress signals before falling silent. The atomic submarine Tigerfish, commanded by Cmdr. James Ferraday, is dispatched to save them.

Ice Station Zebra

1968

The Eagle Has Landed poster
6.6

When the Nazi high command learns in late 1943 that Winston Churchill will be spending time at a country estate in Norfolk, it hatches an audacious scheme to kidnap the prime minister and spirit him to Germany for enforced negotiations with Hitler.

The Eagle Has Landed

1976

The Satan Bug poster
6.1

A US government germ warfare lab has had an accident. The first theory is that one of the germs has been released and killed several scientists. The big fear is that a more virulent strain, named The Satan Bug because all life can be killed off by it should it escape, may have been stolen.

The Satan Bug

1965

The Satan Bug poster
6.1

A US government germ warfare lab has had an accident. The first theory is that one of the germs has been released and killed several scientists. The big fear is that a more virulent strain, named The Satan Bug because all life can be killed off by it should it escape, may have been stolen.

The Satan Bug

1965

Last Train from Gun Hill poster
7.1

A marshal tries to bring the son of an old friend, an autocratic cattle baron, to justice for the rape and murder of his wife.

Last Train from Gun Hill

1959

The Hallelujah Trail poster
6.1

A wagon train heads for Denver with a cargo of whisky for the miners. Chaos ensues as the Temperance League, the US cavalry, the miners and the local Indians all try to take control of the valuable cargo.

The Hallelujah Trail

1965

The Hallelujah Trail poster
6.1

A wagon train heads for Denver with a cargo of whisky for the miners. Chaos ensues as the Temperance League, the US cavalry, the miners and the local Indians all try to take control of the valuable cargo.

The Hallelujah Trail

1965

McQ poster
6.1

Police Lieutenant Lon McQ investigates the killing of his best friend and uncovers corrupt elements of the police department dealing in confiscated drugs.

McQ

1974

Hour of the Gun poster
6.5

Marshal Wyatt Earp kills a couple of men of the Clanton-gang in a fight. In revenge Clanton's thugs kill the marshal's brother. Thus, Wyatt Earp starts to chase the killers together with his friend Doc Holliday.

Hour of the Gun

1967

Hour of the Gun poster
6.5

Marshal Wyatt Earp kills a couple of men of the Clanton-gang in a fight. In revenge Clanton's thugs kill the marshal's brother. Thus, Wyatt Earp starts to chase the killers together with his friend Doc Holliday.

Hour of the Gun

1967

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral poster
7.0

Lawman Wyatt Earp and outlaw Doc Holliday form an unlikely alliance which culminates in their participation in the legendary Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

1957

Joe Kidd poster
6.4

A band of Mexicans find their U. S. land claims denied and all the records destroyed in a courthouse fire. Their leader, Louis Chama, encourages them to use force to regain their land. A wealthy landowner wanting the same decides to hire a gang of killers with Joe Kidd to track Chama.

Joe Kidd

1972

The Law and Jake Wade poster
6.6

Jake Wade breaks Clint Hollister out of jail to pay off an old debt, though it's clear there is some pretty deep hostility between them. They part, and Jake returns to his small-town marshal's job and his fiancée only to find he has been tracked there by Hollister. It seems they were once in a gang together and Jake knows where the proceeds of a bank hold-up are hidden. Hollister and his sidekicks make off into the hills, taking along the trussed-up marshal and his kidnapped bride-to-be to force the lawman to show them where the loot is.

The Law and Jake Wade

1958

Jeopardy poster
6.7

A woman is kidnapped when she goes to get help for her husband who is trapped on a beach with the tide coming in to surely drown him.

Jeopardy

1953

The Old Man and the Sea poster
6.5

Santiago is an aging, down-on-his-luck, Cuban fisherman who, after catching nothing for nearly 3 months, hooks a huge Marlin and struggles to land it far out in the Gulf Stream.

The Old Man and the Sea

1958

Never So Few poster
5.5

A U.S. military troop takes command of a band of Burmese guerillas during World War II.

Never So Few

1959

Escape from Fort Bravo poster
6.3

A Southern belle frees a Rebel officer and his men from a Union captain's Arizona fort.

Escape from Fort Bravo

1953

The People Against O'Hara poster
5.8

A defense attorney jeopardizes his career to save his client.

The People Against O'Hara

1951

Marooned poster
5.9

After spending several months in an orbiting lab, three astronauts prepare to return to Earth only to find their de-orbit thrusters won't activate. After initially thinking they might have to abandon them in orbit, NASA decides to launch a daring rescue. Their plans are complicated by a hurricane headed towards the launch site—and a shrinking air supply in the astronauts' capsule.

Marooned

1969

The Valdez Horses poster
5.6

Chino Valdez is a loner horse breeder living in the old west. Partly a loner by choice, and partly because, being a 'half-breed', he finds himself unwelcome almost everywhere he goes. One day, a young runaway named Jimmy shows up at his door looking for work and a roof over his head. Reluctantly, Chino agrees to take him in and teach him the art of raising, breaking and breeding horses, until the pair finally begin to accept each other.

The Valdez Horses

1973

The Valdez Horses poster
5.6

Chino Valdez is a loner horse breeder living in the old west. Partly a loner by choice, and partly because, being a 'half-breed', he finds himself unwelcome almost everywhere he goes. One day, a young runaway named Jimmy shows up at his door looking for work and a roof over his head. Reluctantly, Chino agrees to take him in and teach him the art of raising, breaking and breeding horses, until the pair finally begin to accept each other.

The Valdez Horses

1973

Kind Lady poster
7.0

Mary Herries has a passion for art and fine furniture. Even though she is getting on in years, she enjoys being around these priceless articles. One day she meets a strange young painter named Elcott, who uses his painting skill to enter into her life. Little does she expect that his only interest in Mary is to covet everything she has.

Kind Lady

1951

The Scarlet Coat poster
6.6

An American officer goes undercover to unmask a Revolutionary War traitor.

The Scarlet Coat

1955

It's a Big Country poster
5.9

Comprised of eight unrelated episodes of inconsistent quality, this anthology piece of American propaganda features some of MGM Studios' best directors, screenwriters and actors; it is narrated by Louis Calhern. Stories are framed by the lecture of a university professor. In one tale a Boston resident becomes angry when the census forgets to record her presence. Another sketch chronicles the achievements of African Americans while still another pays tongue-in-cheek tribute to Texas.

It's a Big Country

1951

The Walking Hills poster
6.0

A study in greed in which treasure hunters seek a shipment of gold buried in Death Valley.

The Walking Hills

1949

Right Cross poster
7.3

Prizewinning boxer Johnny Monterez is mad at the world, feeling persecuted because of his Mexican heritage. Worse yet, his right hand is damaged from years of fighting. Then Johnny falls in love with Pat O'Malley, his manager's pretty daughter, even though his best friend, Rick Gavery, is already besotted with her. Everything is on the line when Johnny, against Rick's wishes, agrees to a match with a fearsome opponent.

Right Cross

1950

The Magnificent Yankee poster
5.9

Biography of celebrated American jurist Oliver Wendell Holmes.

The Magnificent Yankee

1950

The Girl in White poster
7.1

The first female doctor in New York City comes up against prejudice from male counterparts who feel threatened by her skills. Eventually, though, they come to respect her and romance blossoms between her and the head doctor.

The Girl in White

1952

Backlash poster
6.5

Jim Slater's father (whom he never knew) died in the Apache ambush at Gila Valley, and Jim is searching for the one survivor, who supposedly went for help but disappeared with a lot of gold. In the process, he gets several people gunning for him, and he keeps meeting liberated woman Karyl Orton, who may be on a similar mission. Renewed Apache hostilities and an impending range war provide complications.

Backlash

1956

By Love Possessed poster
5.2

An unhappily married woman engages in an affair with her husband's law partner.

By Love Possessed

1961

Underwater! poster
5.5

Two scuba divers find a shipwreck which may contain undiscovered treasure, however, their attempt to salvage it is threatened by scavengers.

Underwater!

1955

Thunderbolt poster
6.2

Documentary about the U.S. Air Force's P-47 Thunderbolt bomber's role in the Italian Campaign during WW2.

Thunderbolt

1947

A Girl Named Tamiko poster
5.8

A photographer based in Tokyo, who's in love with local beauty Tamiko, begins to court an embassy official so she can help him gain entry into the United States.

A Girl Named Tamiko

1962

Sergeants 3 poster
5.8

Mike, Chip, and Larry are three lusty, brawling U. S. Cavalry sergeants stationed in Indian Territory in 1870.

Sergeants 3

1962

Mystery Street poster
6.8

When a young woman's skeletal remains turn up on a Massachusetts beach, Barnstable cop Peter Moralas teams with Boston police and uses forensics, with the help of a Harvard professor, to determine the woman's identity, how she died, and who killed her.

Mystery Street

1950