In this film based on a true story,
Burt Lancaster plays Robert Stroud, a withdrawn prison inmate who cures a sick bird that flies into his cell and eventually becomes a world-renowned ornithologist -- all while serving a life sentence. An overbearing warden (
Karl Malden) eventually transfers Stroud to the notoriously brutal prison on Alcatraz, but he is able to continue his research, abort a riot, start a romance, and eventually get his story out through a determined reporter (
Edmond O'Brien). Directed with his usual solid craftsmanship by
John Frankenheimer, Birdman Of Alcatraz tells a quietly moving tale for which Lancaster,
Telly Savalas (as one of Stroud's fellow inmates), and
Thelma Ritter (as Stroud's mother) all received Oscar nominations. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide