"The Bridge On The River Kwai"

This seven time academy award winner from 1957 is a timeless film that every fan of war films should see.  Even if you are not inclined to enjoying war films, "The Bridge on the River Kwai" is not a "Saving Private Ryan" type of film.  It is a story of defiance, endurance sacrifice, and courage, that rivals many of the great war films.

The film stars Alec Guinness (whom many of us know as Obi Wan Kenobi of Star Wars fame) as a British Colonel and POW of the Japanese.  This Colonel and his men are tasked with building a bridge over the river Kwai for the Japanese.  Without giving too much away, let us just say that they do indeed build a bridge, but in doing so, show defiance, and strength even in their captivity, (with a twist.)

"The Bridge on the River Kwai" is a film employing wonderful acting, a riveting story, and a top notch cast...all of which contribute to what is a great film that should be on everyone's watch list.

-David

Very interesting film. I'm having trouble gathering my thoughts, as I am a little perturbed by the ending. I won't say what happens, but I think I would have preferredd a different ending. Even so, this is a very well done movie with incredible acting by some folks you may know. First off, when I saw that William Holden stars in this film I was like, "I know the name Bill Holden, but from where?" Less than halfway through this movie it hit me! I love Lucy! He's in  one of my favorite episodes, where Bill Holden gets a pie in his face, thanks to Lucy, and then when she meets him again, events happen, and then she utters, "I kissed Bill Holden!" Anyway, a little bit of a tangent there, but that being said, it was fun to see William Holden in this movie. Another name you may know, Alec Guiness. Obi One anyone? Yes, we know him more famously so from Star Wars, but you can really see the scope of his acting ability in this film, he does an amazing job.

Things I liked about this film: Amazing solidarity within the British Troops that are captured, along with whistling and singing familiar tunes to keep up morale. There's also this really good looking soldier who shows up near the latter part of the movie, that's fun too. :)

Things I found interesting: Alec Guiness plays a character who is extremely stubborn, even more so than his Japanese captor. However, both men are so stubborn that at times I was like, "Just negotiate!" This does almost seem like a cautionary tale about being so caught up in yourself and what you are doing that you lose sight of what is right and humane.

This is a movie that makes you think. I would definitely recommend it.

-Bethany