Best Picture: "The Bridge on the River Kwai," 1957

Movie Stats:

Released 1957 (UK a couple months before USA)

American & British, in English (some non-translated Japanese & Thai)

Director – David Lean

Actors – William Holden, Alec Guinness, Sessue Hayakawa

Plot Summary:

When British Colonel Nicholson (Guinness) clashes wills with the man running his POW camp during WWII, Colonel Saito (Hayakawa), he eventually wins out. However, once he and his men begin the task they’ve been assigned – building a bridge across the River Kwai in Thailand – it soon becomes clear that, rather than subtly working against the Japanese, Nicholson is determined to build the best damn bridge that a British regiment can build. In the meantime, American Commander Shears (Holden), who previously escaped the POW camp, returns with a small force to blow up the bridge.

Bad Stuff:

I spent a large portion of the movie feeling confused. Am I supposed to admire Nicholson? I thought. He kind of seems like an asshole. Seriously, while I understood his motivation in the beginning, I felt that he was being headstrong and foolish, risking lives for principles. I actually felt sorry for Saito. I thought, Damn, the guy just wants to get his bridge built so he doesn’t have to kill himself.

As the movie went on, and Saito caved to Nicholson’s will, essentially letting him take over operations, it became increasingly clear that I was feeling was what I was supposed to be feeling. Nicholson is not the hero of this story. But I sort of wish that had been clearer from the start.

From what I read online, the book, and subsequently this movie, is based on real-life events. However, the real man on whom Nicholson is based did not collaborate with the Japanese. Apparently, he and the men who survived the actual camp were deeply offended by how he was portrayed. I think it’s reprehensible to slander a hero like that (fortunately, his name was changed for the book & movie) and it makes me like the movie less.

Good Stuff:

Really, really great performances all around from everybody. All of the major players were great, especially Guinness, but I also want to give a shout-out to Jack Hawkins (as Major Warden) and James Donald (as Major Clipton). I thought both of them gave performances that were vital to the film’s success.

I admire the film’s ability to evoke strong emotions. While I may have felt confused for a long time, I enjoyed the complexity of the Nicholson character. He was one of the “good guys” and yet, in the end, he really wasn’t. I also enjoyed that the Shears character wasn’t all gung-ho, rah-rah, war-is-so-awesome. He wants to get the heck out of there, preferably alive. That’s a guy I can relate to.

While this film came out twelve years after the end of WWII, it still surprised me that, more than once, it showed the Japanese in a sympathetic light. I thought that people were still a little sore about the Japanese at that time (heck, I know people who still hate the Vietnamese, even though the Vietnam War ended 38 years ago). So I liked that the movie showed a little sympathy. I think that took some guts.

The Verdict:

I’ve really struggled with how I want to rate this film. On the one hand, I don’t like the changes they made to the real story. I also felt that it was much longer than was necessary. The petty side of me wants to down rate it simply for the fact of how many times I shouted, “Just blow up the damn bridge already!” at the screen. On the other hand, the performances are really stellar. Also, it evoked strong emotions in me, and I’m not talking about “Oh god, I hate this movie!” emotions.

So I went back and forth, hemming and hawing over a quarter of a star. In the end, I decided to give the movie 4 stars.