The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

As the Allied armies close in, the Nazis decide to blow up the last Rhine bridge, trapping their own men on the wrong side. But will it happen?

Director:

John Guillermin

Writers:

Richard Yates (screenplay), William Roberts (screenplay),

Stars:

George Segal, Robert Vaughn, Ben Gazzara

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Segal	...	Lieutenant Phil Hartman
Robert Vaughn	...	Major Paul Kreuger
Ben Gazzara	...	Sgt. Angelo
Bradford Dillman	...	Major Barnes
E.G. Marshall	...	Brig. Gen. Shinner
Peter van Eyck	...	Gen. Von Brock (as Peter Van Eyck)
Hans Christian Blech	...	Capt. Carl Schmidt
Heinz Reincke	...	Holzgang
Joachim Hansen	...	Capt. Otto Baumann
Sonja Ziemann	...	Greta Holzgang
Anna Gaël	...	French Girl (as Anna Gael)
Vít Olmer	...	Lt. Zimring (as Vit Olmer)
Bo Hopkins	...	Corp. Grebs
Robert Logan	...	Pvt. Bissell
Matt Clark	...	Corp. Jellicoe

Storyline

In the last days of World War II, the Allied Army desperatly searched for a bridgehead across the impenetrable Rhein River, in order to launch a major assault into the center of Germany. "Bridge at Remagen" tells the true story of the battle for this last bridgehead, from both the German and American perspective.

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Plot Keywords:

bridge | rhine | army | battle | nazi | 

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Taglines:

Thus ended the last great German stand in the West.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | War

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Certificate:

M

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

23 October 1969 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

El puente de Remagen

Filming Locations:

Davle, Czech Republic

Company Credits

Production Co:

Wolper Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The name of the Second World War's mission to capture the Ludendorff Bridge aka The Bridge at Remagen was Operation Lumberjack. This mission was initiated by the US Army in March 1945 with an aim to capture German cities such as Cologne and to create a foothold in the Rhine region. The US 9th Armored Division entered the town of Remagen on 7 March 1945, arriving under fire in the afternoon at the Ludendorff Bridge at 3.50 pm. The capture of this bridge was critical and pivotal to the Allies invading Germany. It was the only bridge whereby the soldiers could accessibly cross over the River Rhine, 8,000 of them doing so. Adolf Hitler had German soldiers responsible for the bridge shot by firing squad.

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Goofs

The movie makes it look like the Rhine river near Remagen is floating through a steep sloped valley. The town of Remagen however is built on the flat bank of the river.

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Quotes

Major Paul Kreuger: [to General von Brock over the phone asking for reinforcements] Herr General, your regrets will not save the bridge. The two panzer battalions might.

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Connections

Referenced in Guns for Hire: The Making of 'The Magnificent Seven' (2000)

User Reviews

Intelligent War Movie

I remember seeing this movie in the late 1970s and liked it a lot and still watch it every time it's broadcast not infrequently on television . I was very disappointed that it didn't make the recent list of Channel 4 's 100 GREATEST WAR MOVIES list

What I like about THE BRIDGE AT REMAGEN is its cynical edge . You see in these type of movies the Yanks are invincible knights in shining armour while the Jerries are invariably goose stepping Nazi dumbkopfs and while there is an element to Uncle Sam winning the war single handed it's nowhere enough to drag the movie into mediocrity . When I say " cynical " the screenplay is very even handed - The Americans loot from the bodies of the dead and come close to fragging a senior officer at one point while German civilians bleat that they're not Nazis seconds after taking down prized portraits of Adolph Hitler

Of course much of the cynicism is helped because of the period setting . It's only a few weeks from the final end of the war in Europe and everyone knows what the outcome of the war is going to be but everyone still kills and dies regardless . There is something more poignant about this than say the battle of Stalingrad in 1942 or D Day in 1944 hence the obvious war weariness from the Americans . It's different for the Germans who are fighting the enemy in their own borders . It should also be pointed out that in reality they know the Nazi death camps have been found and someone will be paying a heavy price for these crimes against humanity hence the Germans are in no hurry to surrender

Being made in 1969 I wonder if the war in Vietnam was at the back of the producers minds ? The one major German character Kreuger is portrayed as just a soldier protecting his homeland while we see scenes of American bombers dropping ordnance on innocent civilians that include young children and woman in their eighties . Maybe it's just another example of cynicism ? but one things for sure - You won't be seeing something like this coming out of a Hollywood studio today

If you like war movies you'll like THE BRIDGE AT REMAGEN a lot . It's intelligent , cynical and contains a really great score from Elmer Bernstien