#58: THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI (1957)

THRILL SCALE 1-10

10

HAVE I SEEN IT BEFORE?

No, first time

BEST SEQUENCE

The last 15 minutes

BEST LINE

"One day the war will be over, and I hope the people who use this bridge in years to come will remember how it was built, and who built it"

ROTTEN TOMATOES SCORE

96%

ROTTEN TOMATOES CRITICS CONSENSUS

"This complex war epic asks hard questions, resists easy answers, and boasts career-defining work from star Alec Guinness and director David Lean."

IMDB SYNOPSIS

"British POWs are forced to build a railway bridge across the river Kwai for their Japanese captors in occupied Burma, not knowing that the allied forces are planning a daring commando raid through the jungle to destroy it."

DIRECTOR

David Lean

MAIN CAST

Alec Guinness, William Holden, Sessue Hayakawa, Jack Hawkins

THOUGHTS

• This film is impeccable. It was already sitting around a 9.5 for most of its runtime, and then the climax just clinched it. This is the highest rating I've given a war movie so far, and it's also the first 10/10 I've given to a movie I haven't seen before, a fact that's very exciting for me and probably less so for anyone reading this
• And I'll admit, I wasn't even looking forward to it, somewhat scared off by its long runtime (2 hours and 41 minutes). However, I was captivated from start to finish. I even stopped it with an hour left, planning on finishing it the next day, but then I changed my mind. I had to see how it ended. Side note, and a little peek behind the curtain, you can tell how much I liked this movie because I just watched it last night and I'm already writing this review. When I'm not that excited to write about a movie, I tend to drag my feet a little more
• The word that kept coming to mind was "nuanced". Every single character in this movie has depth and shades of grey to their actions and their motivations. Even the camp commandant, Colonel Saito played by Sessue Hayakawa. We don't necessarily go so far as feeling sympathy towards him, but we do come to understand his situation
• Alec Guinness is perfect in this as Colonel Nicholson, the commanding officer of the British POWs. Early in the movie I thought it might be more clichéd than it is, more focused on Nicholson's utter Britishness, stiff upper lip and all that, but Guinness's performance is, again, incredibly nuanced. His battle of wills with Saito makes for a gripping first part of the movie, and it's important that we see how much he's willing to suffer to stand by his principles. For most people these days Guinness would be most associated with Obi-Wan Kenobi, an iconic role, to be sure, but I think I'm going to most associate him with River Kwai from now on. It's a remarkable role, and a marvellous performance
• At the risk of sounding hackneyed, so much of this movie's impact comes from the fact that it's not really about the bridge, but it's about what the bridge represents. As just a bridge, a way to get from one side of the river to the other, it can't be denied that Nicholson is collaborating with the enemy. However, it's not just a bridge to Nicholson. It's a statement. It's a way of making an impact on the world. It's a reason to continue to survive in the hellish conditions of the camp. It's this complexity that makes the climax so powerful
• I might be giving short shrift to William Holden, the actual top-billed actor (I adjusted the cast order based on my opinion of importance), but Holden is also very good and he does come more into prominence in the second half of the movie. Guinness is the real standout, however, and the Academy felt the same way - Guinness won the Oscar for Best Actor, Holden wasn't even nominated
• River Kwai won seven Oscars out of eight nominations - Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, and Best Original Score. The last nomination was for Best Supporting Actor for Sessue Hayakawa, and it's a shame he didn't win as well, because I thought he was excellent
• There are some definite similarities between this movie and The Great Escape, one of my favourites, and the AFI's 19th most thrilling movie of all time. Both movies are set in WWII POW camps, with the prisoners as the protagonists, and they even have a shared cast member - James Donald has a prominent role in both. Admittedly, the war movies I've seen have all been from a Western point of view. I'd be curious to hear any recommendations for war movies without American or British protagonists
• It may not have the most thrilling moments of any movie I've watched, and some people might even think I'm being generous with the 10/10, but the complexity of the characters and the layers of motivation mean that all of the events in this movie really, really matter to not just us, but also the characters in the film. All of the action that transpires has a huge impact and gravity in a way that more gunfights, or more violence simply wouldn't improve
• Finally, the score is great, but musically this movie is probably best known for the whistled refrain of the "Colonel Bogey March". Coincidentally, two reviews in a row, we now turn to The Simpsons. This won't be a regular feature, especially since I don't want to crib from an excellent movie podcast, Unspooled, which includes talk of Simpsons references, but you might recognize the "Colonel Bogey March" a little better if we add some lyrics: "Lisa, her teeth are big and green!"
  
  

Up next: All the President's Men, from 1976. It's time for some political intrigue