The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

Director:

David Lean

Writer (WGA):

Pierre Boulle (novel)
(more)

Release Date:

14 December 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

It spans a whole new world of entertainment!

Plot:

After settling his differences with a Japanese PoW camp commander, a British colonel co-operates to oversee his men's construction of a railway bridge for their captors - while oblivious to a plan by the Allies to destroy it.

Plot Keywords:

Bridge | Japanese | Jungle | River | Torture

Awards:

Won 7 Oscars. Another 24 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

William Holden	...	Shears
Alec Guinness	...	Colonel Nicholson
Jack Hawkins	...	Major Warden
Sessue Hayakawa	...	Colonel Saito
James Donald	...	Major Clipton
Geoffrey Horne	...	Lieutenant Joyce
André Morell	...	Colonel Green (as Andre Morell)
Peter Williams	...	Captain Reeves
John Boxer	...	Major Hughes
Percy Herbert	...	Grogan
Harold Goodwin	...	Baker
Ann Sears	...	Nurse
Heihachirô Ôkawa	...	Captain Kanematsu (as Henry Okawa)
Keiichirô Katsumoto	...	Lieutenant Miura (also as K. Katsumoto) (as Keiichiro Katsumoto)
M.R.B. Chakrabandhu	...	Yai (in opening credits) (as M.R.B. Chakrabandhu {Col. Broome})
Vilaiwan Seeboonreaung	...	Siamese Girl
Ngamta Suphaphongs	...	Siamese Girl
Javanart Punynchoti	...	Siamese Girl
Kannikar Dowklee	...	Siamese Girl

Directed by
David Lean

Writing credits (WGA)
Michael Wilson		(screenplay) originally uncredited and
Carl Foreman		(screenplay) originally uncredited
Pierre Boulle		(novel "Le pont de la rivière Kwaï")

Produced by
Sam Spiegel	....	producer

Original Music by
Malcolm Arnold

Cinematography by
Jack Hildyard		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Peter Taylor		(chief editor)

Art Direction by
Donald M. Ashton

Makeup Department
Stuart Freeborn	....	makeup artist
George Partleton	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Cecil F. Ford	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gus Agosti	....	assistant director
Ted Sturgis	....	assistant director
John Kerrison	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Geoffrey Drake	....	assistant art director
Peter Dukelow	....	construction manager

Sound Department
Pam Bosworth	....	additional sound editor
Eric Boyd-Perkins	....	additional sound editor
Fred Burnley	....	additional sound editor
Rusty Coppleman	....	additional sound editor
John Cox	....	sound
Teddy Darvas	....	additional sound editor
Janet Davidson	....	additional sound editor
Norma Hawkes	....	additional sound editor
Peter Miller	....	additional sound editor
John W. Mitchell	....	sound (as John Mitchell)
Winston Ryder	....	chief sound editor
Peter Davies	....	post-synchronisation (uncredited)

Stunts
Nosher Powell	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Archie Dansie	....	chief electrician
Peter Newbrook	....	camera operator
Ron Drinkwater	....	clapper loader (uncredited)
Gerry Fisher	....	additional camera operator (uncredited)
Gerry Fisher	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Robert Merry	....	lighting technician (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
John Wilson-Apperson	....	wardrobe (as John Apperson)

Editorial Department
George Hively	....	editor (restoration)
William Pine	....	color timer (restoration) (as Bill Pine)
Sati Tooray	....	colorist (uncredited)

Music Department
Malcolm Arnold	....	conductor (uncredited)
Charles Camilleri	....	additional orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Angela Martelli	....	continuity
L.E.M. Perowne	....	technical adviser (as Major-Gen. L.E.M. Perowne C.B. C.B.)
William Harrigan Jr.	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Robert Haslam	....	consultant: explosives (uncredited)
Robert Haslam	....	technical advisor (uncredited)
Grady Johnson	....	publicist (uncredited)
Maurice Landsberger	....	cashier (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Columbia Pictures Corporation (presents)
• Horizon Pictures (II) (as A Horizon Picture)

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1957) (USA) (theatrical) (as A Columbia Pictures Release) (Released through Columbia Pictures Corporation also)
• Warner Bros. (1957) (France) (theatrical)
• Columbia Film-Verleih (1958) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Columbia Pictures (1963) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release) (as A Columbia Pictures Release) (Released through Columbia Pictures Corporation also)
• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1966) (USA) (TV)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (1992) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1993) (USA) (VHS) (digitally restored pan and scan)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1993) (USA) (VHS) (digitally restored/widescreen)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1994) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (1998) (USA) (VHS) (pan/scan)
• LK-TEL (1999) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2000) (Netherlands) (DVD) (rental)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD) (retail)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Nothing's New Video (2005) (USA) (VHS)
• Columbia Film (1958) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Columbia Films (1958) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Warner-Columbia Films (1972) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2005) (UK) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (19??) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Egmont Entertainment (2000) (Finland) (DVD)
• Egmont Film (1996) (Sweden) (VHS)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1988) (1995) (Finland) (TV)
• Nelonen (2000) (2005) (Finland) (TV)
• Nordisk Film (2000) (Sweden) (DVD)
• R-Video (1980s) (Finland) (VHS)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2010) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2010) (USA) (DVD) (Blu-ray)
• Universal Pictures Nordic (2004) (Sweden) (DVD)
• VTC-Video (1980s) (Finland) (VHS)
• Videosonic Arts (1985) (Greece) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1998) (Finland) (TV)

Other Companies

• Columbia Pictures  is the author of this film (motion picture) for the purpose of copyright and other laws
• Equipment and Construction Co.  bridge constructed by (as Equipment and Construction Co. Ceylon)
• Government of Ceylon  the producers gratefully acknowledge the co-operation and help extended to them by the various departments of, during the course of the production of the film (as the Government of Ceylon)
• Husband & Co. of Sheffield  consulting engineers for the bridge
• OCS/Freeze Frame/Pixel Magic  negative restoration by (restoration) (as OCS/Freeze Frame)
• Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, The  music played by (as The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra)
• Sony Pictures Studios  sound services at (restoration) (as Sony Pictures Studios Culver City, California)
• Sunset Gower Studios  sound stages (uncredited)

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild war violence (re-rating) (1991)

Runtime:

161 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English | Japanese | Thai

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) (RCA Sound Recording) | Mono (35 mm prints) (RCA Sound Recording) | 4-Track Stereo (Linear PCM)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Spain:T | UK:PG (video rating) (1986) (1992) | West Germany:12 (w) | Sweden:15 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:12 | South Korea:12 | USA:Approved | USA:PG (re-rating) (1991) | Brazil:12 | Japan:G (2010) | USA:TV-PG (TV rating) | UK:PG (tv rating) | UK:U (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Ambepussa, Sri Lanka

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

During shooting, Alec Guinness continued to have doubts about his performance and the direction he was getting from David Lean. To put Guinness at ease, Lean decided to show the actor a rough cut of certain sequences. One night, Lean ran over an hour's worth of footage for Guinness with the actor's wife and son also attending. During the screening, nothing was said. At the end, the Guinness family thanked Lean and promptly walked out, leaving the director without a clue as to what to think of their reaction (or lack of). Later that night, Lean received a visit from his lead actor who told him that he and his family had decided that Nicholson was the best thing that Guinness had ever done.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: During the first two formations in front of Col Saito's office, the sun is behind the men, yet we can see some shadows in their foreground, caused by the movie lights behind or to the sides of the cameras.

Quotes:

Colonel Nicholson:[Recognizing Shears] You?
Major Shears:[Lunging at Nicholson] You!

Movie Connections:

References The General (1926)

Soundtrack:

Radio Dance Music

Ageless and all but perfect

Of all war movies this is the one with the best idea behind it. Think how easy it is to make a bad war movie. A group of people must blow up a bridge, and this is the story of their quest ... Actually, that DID serve as the premise for a film: it was called `Force Ten from Navarone', and it was dire. Or how about this one: we see close up the brutalities of war. (Then we see them again. Then we see some more of the brutalities of war. Then we see the credits.) Or how about this: a humble American soldier, with the pragmatism native to his breed, rejects his superiors' highfalutin talk of honour and glory and asserts his basic humanity in trying to stay alive. Or this one: we see English prisoners of war maintain their dignity in the face of Japanese brutality.

They're all present, in a sort of a way: but ALSO present is a magnificent, long, suspenseful, tight story, around which these apparent clichés wrap naturally. If the clichés don't wrap naturally then they, not the story, are bent out of shape. Just when we think that the American pragmatist will turn out to be the hero, we see him cut a rather shabby figure, and it seems that there really WAS something to that highfalutin talk of honour and glory, after all. But then we discover that he has standards of his own, and they appear to be better ones. But THEN it seems that ... I could go on indefinitely, since there are many people here with something to be said for them, and it requires some thought to see who has the most to be said for him in the end.

There's almost no need to mention the excellent performances, photography and music. The only thing one might have qualms about is historical accuracy. Nothing like this ever happened. Still, that makes the movie much less dishonest than those that base themselves on historical events, and then proceed to get them all wrong. You can only be misled by `The Bridge on the River Kwai' if you don't know that it's pure fiction. Well - you know now.