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The Bridge on the River Kwai
1957 Adventure / Drama / War
Review
This classic film was based on a novel by Frenchman Pierre Boulle, who
also wrote the novel that inspired the Planet of the Apes franchise.
Boulle, himself a prisoner in south-east Asia during the war, has been
criticized for showing an anti-British attitude, but it has been
suggested that Nicholson is actually based on French officers who
collaborated with the Japanese under the Vichy regime.The real Senior British Officer at the River Kwai was Lieutenant-Colonel Philip Toosey who, unlike Nicholson, encouraged his men to sabotage and delay progress, though the bridge was finally completed – with efficient Japanese engineers still running the show. Former prisoners expressed outrage at both the book and the film, claiming that a man like Nicholson, who is nothing short of a collaborator, would have been quietly disposed of. As the stiff-upper lipped but somewhat demented Nicholson, Guinness puts on a brilliant performance. In the hands of a lesser actor, the character would come across as an idiotic Colonel Blimp whose by-the-book mentality, which discourages initiative, would be a hindrance to the Allied war effort, while he argues that it is a means of maintaining a civilised society. He even forbids escape attempts on the grounds that he and his men where instructed to surrender by their superiors and thus defying the Japanese would be an offence punishable by court-martial(!) Guinness however manages to portray Nicholson as a man whose suffering and ability to overcome it makes him more worthy of sympathy and it is hard to feel enmity towards him even when he goes a bit far in his working relationship with the Japs. His character is even allowed to redeem himself at the end when the reality of the situation finally comes down on him. This multi-award winning film was part of director David Lean’s epic period which included Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago. Like many of the better war movies, however, the action and drama does not overshadow a distinct anti-war message. This is particularly emphasized in William Holden’s Commander Shears whose nervous, almost coward-like behaviour is contrasted with the fact that he simply wants to survive the war and avoid death. What is better: fighting for one’s country or living the life of Riley? Lean actually appears to go for the latter and this is highlighted in the scene where Shears’ expresses amazement at the fact that a young soldier has volunteered for a dangerous mission as opposed to a safe desk job. The final nail is delivered by James Donald who, watching the death and destruction around him, simply mutters: "Madness! Madness!"
© Mark Treuthardt (London) 2009
The first of David Lean’s great epic films, The Bridge on the River Kwai is a highly complex and spectacular portrayal of the folly of war, and is widely regarded as one of the best British war films. Although the story is fictitious, based on a novel by the French writer Pierre Boulle, it is inspired by real events, including the construction of one of the bridges along the Burmese Railway in 1943. The well-crafted screenplay was written by Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson, although both writers were on the Hollywood blacklist and were not credited on the film’s original titles. (They were not even allowed to collect the Oscar that was awarded for the screenplay – that honour went to Pierre Boulle, whose only contribution was the novel on which it was based). The film was a great commercial and critical success, and won seven Oscars, with awards for the Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Alec Guinness), Best Screenplay, Best Music, Best Editing and Best Cinematography. For director David Lean, the film was a major turning point, establishing his international reputation and ensuring that all of his subsequent films would be similar blockbuster epics. With its sumptuous location photography and authentic recreation of a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp, The Bridge on the River Kwai is one of the most visually stunning war films ever made. The film has been criticised for not showing the true horror of what many captured soldiers experienced at the hands of the Japanese, but greater realism might well have undermined the film’s ironic, tongue-in-cheek slant and possibly weakened its impact. This is close to being a black comedy, and there is certainly plenty of humour near to or just beneath the surface, reminding us again and again that, in the final analysis, war is just a game played by idiots. The film’s two standout performances are provided by Alec Guinness and Sessue Hayakawa, who each skilfully portrays a highly complex individual that is far from the usual stereotypical depiction of a British or Japanese officer. Colonel Nicholson’s tacit determination to play things by the book and to make the bridge’s construction a success emphasise the absurdity of the military mind. By using the project as a means of boosting his men’s morale, Nicholson is implicitly collaborating with the enemy and ultimately seems not to know what his real purpose is. Meanwhile, his opposite number, Saito, is effectively neutered by Nicholson’s stubbornness and having lost his authority (after threats and persuasion have failed) he becomes little more than an impatient onlooker. Both characters fail to live up to their responsibilities and must ultimately pay the price. The destruction of the bridge and those who built it is a potent reminder that war is the ultimate in human folly. © James Travers 2009 Write a review for this film... User Comments
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Director:
David Lean
Starring: William Holden, Jack Hawkins, Alec Guinness, Sessue Hayakawa, James Donald Synopsis
During WWII, a contingent of British prisoners march into a Japanese
camp run by the ruthless Colonel Saito, who intends using them to
construct a railway bridge across the River Kwai. The bridge is
vital to the Japanese war effort, since it will enable men and supplies
to be transported between military centres in Bangkok and
Rangoon. The most senior of the British soldiers, Colonel
Nicholson, is appalled when Saito tells him that all of the men, irrespective of
rank, will undertake manual work on the bridge’s construction.
Citing the Geneva Convention, Nicholson insists that his officers will
only work in an administrative capacity and refuses to back down even
when Saito threatens to have them all shot. Eventually, Saito has
no choice but to accede to Nicholson’s wishes – if the bridge is not
completed on time, his Japanese superiors will expect him to commit
ritual suicide. To lift the morale of his men, Nicholson
organises them into teams with the objective of building a monument to
British ingenuity and discipline. What he doesn’t know is that
one of the camp’s prisoners, an American named Shears, has escaped and
has been recruited by Allied Forces to return and destroy the bridge...
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