Movie: The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
“The film deals with the situation of British prisoners of war during World War II who are ordered to build a bridge to accommodate the Burma-Siam railway. Their instinct is to sabotage the bridge but, under the leadership of Colonel Nicholson, they are persuaded that the bridge should be constructed as a symbol of British morale, spirit and dignity in adverse circumstances. At first, the prisoners admire Nicholson when he bravely endures torture rather than compromise his principles for the benefit of the Japanese commandant Saito. He is an honorable but arrogant man, who is slowly revealed to be a deluded obsessive. He convinces himself that the bridge is a monument to British character, but actually is a monument to himself, and his insistence on its construction becomes a subtle form of collaboration with the enemy. Unknown to him, the Allies have sent a mission into the jungle, led by Warden and an American, Shears, to blow up the bridge. Written by alfiehitchie”
- Director: David Lean
- Release Date: 2 October 1957 (UK)
- Run Time: 161 min
- Country: UK , USA
- Genre: Adventure , Drama , War
- MPAA: Rated PG for mild war violence. (1991 reissue)
Tagline: It spans a whole new world of entertainment!
Trivia: Alec Guinness was always the first choice to play Colonel Nicholson, although he actually turned the part down when first offered it as he disliked the character and thought Pierre Boulle’s original novel to be anti-British. Charles Laughton, James Mason, Ralph Richardson, Noel Coward and Anthony Quayle were all approached. It was only after Jack Hawkins had been cast in the part of Major Warden that Guinness reconsidered his position, largely at Hawkins’ instigation.
Goofs: Continuity: When Shears leaves the village he is sent off in a boat with a driver. The next few scenes show him running out of supplies. But there is no driver, Shears is by himself.