$ 3 million (estimated) The Bridge on the River Kwai is a British 1957 movie from Columbia Pictures, based on Pierre Boulle 's 1952 book The Bridge over the River Kwai ( French: Le Pont de la Rivire Kwai ). Beijing Kwai Technology Co.'s app Kuaishou, or Kwai, is arranged for a photograph on a smartphone in Hong Kong, China, on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018.. The Bridge on the River Kwai was a smash hit on release. Or maybe you have a story for us or would like to work together. 7. Kanchanaburi is served by a rail service from Bangkok Noi . Toosey in fact did as much as possible to delay the building of the bridge. Major Warden of SOE invites Shears to join a commando mission to destroy the bridge just as it is completed. Image: British troops surrender at Singapore. Laughton would die (of cancer) five years later, at the age of 63. Lean had a lengthy row with Guinness over how to play the role of Nicholson; the actor wanted to play the part with a sense of humour and sympathy, while Lean thought Nicholson should be "a bore." [51] Time magazine praised Lean's directing, noting he demonstrates "a dazzlingly musical sense and control of the many and involving rhythms of a vast composition. TakeMeTour's Review. 14. Its a charming, idyllic spot, belying the intense horror and suffering the men who built it went through. Both writers had to work in secret, as they were on the Hollywood blacklist and had fled to England in order to continue working. Sessue Hayakawa edited his copy of the script to contain only his lines of dialog. Read more. This meant that some of the British prisoners were actually natives of the region wearing make-up to appear Caucasian. Journeying to the jungle where The Bridge On The River Kwai was filmed [19], Guinness later said that he subconsciously based his walk while emerging from "the Oven" on that of his eleven-year-old son Matthew,[20] who was recovering from polio at the time, a disease that left him temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. Bridge On The River Kwai is an Epic war-based film. As shown in the movie, Guinness played the scene without flinching. American casualties were repatriated back to the United States. The movie won seven Academy Awards, one for Best Picture. A make-up man was also badly injured in the same accident. Use our search tools to explore our records and find out about those we commemorate. This article is part of our Classic Film Throwback series - By Sam Hendrian - "Madness. Kwai's composer, Malcolm Arnold, wove the march into his Oscar-winning score so seamlessly that modern viewers may assume it was original to the film. Leadership Analysis: The Bridge On The River Kwai. The movie garnered seven Academy Awards, including that for best picture, as well as three Golden Globe Awards and four BAFTA awards. The movie was filmed in Ceylon, which is now Sri Lanka. These problems resulted in a number of anomalies that were very difficult to correct, like a ghosting effect in many scenes that resembles colour mis-registration, and a tick-like effect with the image jumping or jerking side-to-side. Shears, who is a British commando officer like Warden in the novel, became an American sailor who escapes from the POW camp. [26], A memorable feature of the film is the tune that is whistled by the POWsthe first strain of the "Colonel Bogey March"when they enter the camp. Colonel Saito, the camp commandant, informs the new prisoners they will all work, even officers, on the construction of a railway bridge over the River Kwai that will connect Bangkok and Rangoon. Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson have written the screenplay for this film. The Bridge on the River Kwai (Film) - TV Tropes [66] The original negative for the feature was scanned at 4k (four times the resolution in High Definition), and the colour correction and digital restoration were also completed at 4k. It was still highly unusual at that time for a television network to show such a long film in one evening; most films of that length were still generally split into two parts and shown over two evenings. [12], William Holden's deal was considered one of the best ever for an actor at the time, with him receiving $300,000 plus 10% of the film's gross receipts. 15. The key sites containing Thailand and Burma war graves related to Death Railway and the Bridge on the River Kwai are: Kanchanaburi War Cemetery is located a short distance from the former Kanburi POW camp. It begins with British troops being marched into the prison camp after their surrender to the Japanese at Singapore. The movie is based on the novel "Le Pont de la Riviere Kwai" by Pierre Boulle. Rather than start building at two ends and meet in the middle, as per normal railway construction, the Japanese created hundreds of camps across its lengths. Camps were set up at 100-metre intervals. Jun 7, 2011 - New on Blu 6-7-11: Studios unload nearly 70 titles. comment. The Bridge on the River Kwai: The explosive bridge (HD CLIP) He joined up in 1940 and served in the Middle East with the 2/2nd Pioneer Battalion before transferring back to the Dutch East Indies in early 1942. Bridge on the River Kwai - Thaizer [54] Slant magazine gave the film four out of five stars. Both bridges were used for two years, until they were destroyed by Allied bombing. 938 Bridge Over The River Kwai Premium High Res Photos - Getty Images He was listed as missing in action in June 1943. But in 1966, the film aired on American . The action of the movie takes place in a Japanese prisoner-of-war (POW) camp in . There's a stench of death about you. Alec Guiness, William Holden, and Jack Hawkins in front of bridge they built in a scene from the film 'The Bridge On The River Kwai', 1957. [9], The film was relatively faithful to the novel, with two major exceptions. The Bridge on the River Kwai is a classic 1957 British-American war film based upon the 1952 novel Le Pont de la Rivire Kwai by Pierre Boulle. The Bridge on the River Kwai. Explore the story of the CWGC, from our formation during the First World War to our work today. To learn more about the men behind the real story of the Bridge on the River Kwai, and to discover the casualties, please use our Find War Dead tool. The classic story of English POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. One of the biggest causes of ire was the treatment of Toosey. 19. Their taskmasters were relentless. Copyright 2020 Tons Of Facts. Omissions? Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. The Bridge on the River Kwai is a work of fiction, but borrows the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942 to 1943 for its historical setting. The British soldiers were slaves; they did not help the Japanese. The action of the movie takes place in a Japanese prisoner-of-war (POW) camp in Burma during World War II. At their head was Lieutenant-Colonel Phillip Toosey. Neither of them got credit, though, as The Bridge on the River Kwai was released during the three-year period when people who'd ever been Communists (or who refused to answer questions about it before Congress) were ineligible for Academy Awards. When, the next morning, Saito orders all the British prisoners to begin building the bridge under the command of a Japanese engineer, Nicholson and the other officers refuse, even when Saito threatens to kill them. The young soldier from Suffolk was dispatched to work on the bridge over the River Kwai, one of the railway's most daunting engineering projects. Bridges beyond the River Kwai | Michigan Today In fact, two bridges were built: a temporary wooden bridge and a permanent steel/concrete bridge a few months later. The conditions to which POW and civilian labourers were subjected were far worse than the film depicted. The cemetery was established by the Army Graves Service to hold casualties made along the railways southern Bangkok to Nieke section. Wrote Guinness: "I felt like turning around and getting back on the plane and paying my own fare home!" Victory over the Japanese navy at Midway in June 1942 had created a turning point in the Far East and Pacific. In 1984 the Academy Board of Governors voted posthumous Oscars to Foreman and Wilson, and their names were included on prints of the film beginning in the 1990s. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) - IMDb He described the music for The Bridge on the River Kwai as the "worst job I ever had in my life" from the point of view of time. Walk over the steel bridge at the River Kwai, one of the most famous rivers in the world, which gained international fame in the book and film, "Bridge on the River Kwai". John Coast, a young British officer who went on to become a successful filmmaker who spent three and half years as a Japanese POW, said: As nobody should ever have need telling, the picture is a load of high-toned codswallop.. This was an incorrect assumption. The building of Bridge 277, the eponymous bridge that gave Leans film its name, was overseen by 2,000 British and Dutch prisoners of war. But he'd never made anything on an epic scale, wasn't well known outside of England, and wouldn't have been considered for The Bridge on the River Kwai if it weren't for Katharine Hepburn, the star of his 1955 film Summertime. The region was seized by the Japanese in 1942, and they then set about making preparations . At all. The movie was mainly filmed in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and also in England. . Best time to visit Bridge Over The River Kwai (preferred time): 09:00 am - 01:00 pm. Check out where to stay in Kanchanaburi and book an accommodation of your choice. Two bridges were built; one was made of wood, one was made of concrete and steel. No visit to the Western Front is complete without a trip to The CWGC Visitor Centre. David Lean, director of such landmark epics as Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago, didn't always make giant movies. He succumbed to malaria, dysentery, and malnutrition at Camp Kilo 101 in Thailand. Some 5,000 Commonwealth World War Two casualties are buried or commemorated in Kanchanaburi. The steel bridge was repaired and is still in use today. ", Warden fires a mortar, killing Shears and Joyce and fatally wounding Nicholson. The Bridge on the River Kwai Movie Review | Common Sense Media The US was beginning to control the sea lanes, making it increasingly difficult for Japanese shipborne cargo to reach the army dotted across the Pacific. He is commemorated on the Labuan Memorial, Malaysia. And a bloke called George Siegatz[29] an expert whistlerbegan to whistle Colonel Bogey, and a hit was born.". By Barry Fox. [65], On 2 November 2010 Columbia Pictures released a newly restored The Bridge on the River Kwai for the first time on Blu-ray. Bridge On The River Kwai, The (original Version) - Trailer - YouTube The Bridge on the River Kwai - Wikipedia It was released in the US on December 14, 1957, taking in a reported $17M+, which made it the highest-grossing film of 1957. The Bridge On The River Kwai | Film Locations The Bridge Over The River Kwai: The Real Story - Travel Happy In 1957 the movie, The Bridge on the River Kwai, premiered in London and became the biggest grossing film of 1958, winning seven academy awards in the process, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Musical Score, Best Cinematography and Best Editing.Not bad for a movie that is largely a work of almost entirely fictional characters and a story which . Guinness had appeared in Lean's Dickens films but had since made a name for himself doing goofy comedies like The Lavender Hill Mob (1951). [16], Director David Lean clashed repeatedly with his cast members, particularly Guinness and James Donald, who thought the novel was anti-British. The Bridge on the River Kwai, British-American war film, released in 1957 and directed by David Lean, that was both a critical and popular success and became an enduring classic. Around 3,100 Commonwealth Burma war graves can be found at Thanbyuzayat, alongside roughly 620 Dutch burials. It is also known as the "River Kwai March". They felt none of the Bridge on the River Kwai cast could fully understand or represent what it was like to be there. One of the iconic war films of its time, the Bridge on the River Kwai has shone a spotlight on POWs suffering. Nicholson's obsession with the bridge eventually drives him to allow his officers to volunteer to engage in manual labor. Around the time that he was offered the movie, David Lean had little money, as he was in the middle of a financially ruinous divorce, and was very much in need of a new project. . In 1997, this film was deemed "culturally . Last survivor of the Bridge On The River Kwai Japanese railway Prisoners, including the sick, were marched to camps further along Death Railway. [40], The Bridge on the River Kwai was a massive commercial success. It was 425 feet long, 90 feet high, and cost $52,085 out of the film's $2 million budget. The real Bridge on the River Kwai. Moreover, Kanchanaburi has an annual "Bridge Over the River Kwai" week, which has a sound show to relive the moments of World War II. [34] According to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission: The notorious Burma-Siam railway, built by Commonwealth, Dutch and American prisoners of war, was a Japanese project driven by the need for improved communications to support the large Japanese army in Burma. Why visit the Bridge on the River Kwai | Audley Travel The Japanese Railway Regiment forced thousands of allied POWs and natives to build the . Also, in the novel, the bridge is not destroyed: the train plummets into the river from a secondary charge placed by Warden, but Nicholson (never realising "what have I done?") Starring Alec Guinness, it depicts the struggles and defiance of Japanese prisoners of war building the fictional Burma railway between 1943-44. You can also take a boat down the Kwai River . [61][62], In 1972, the movie was among the first selection of films released on the early Cartrivision video format, alongside classics such as The Jazz Singer and Sands of Iwo Jima. 11. Has no balls Put on your marching boots and whistle a jaunty tune as we investigate some behind-the-scenes facts about this enduring war film. It is a landmark of Kanchanaburi Province. Chandran Rutnam and William Holden while shooting The Bridge on the River Kwai. However, in 1943 a railway bridge was built by Allied POWs over the Mae Klong river renamed Khwae Yai in the 1960s as a result of the film at Tha Ma Kham, five kilometres from Kanchanaburi, Thailand. The railway route, which ran through Burma and Thailand, had been planned by the British. The screenplay was based on French author Pierre Boulle"s 1954 novel of the same name. In reality, Japanese engineers proved to be just as capable at construction efforts as their Allied counterparts.[58][59]. Contact us, Image: Rows of graves at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery, Image: Kanchanaburi Dutch Memorial commemorates Dutch POWs who died building Death Railway, Image: Chungkai War Cemetery's Cross of Sacrifice, Image: The Pavilion at Chungkai War Cemetery, Image: The cemetery's horticulture gives Chungkai a sense of serenity, Image: The Stone of Remembrance at Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery, Image: Headstones and horticulture at Thanbyuzayat, Get the latest CWGC news and see some of our recent work, Report of the Special Committee to review historical inequalities in Commemoration, Discover world war casualties who lived in your area, The True Story of the Bridge over the River Kwai, Why and how were restoring the Menin Gate: What you need to know about this amazing project, A push through the desert: How The Allies Captured Jericho in 1918, Visit Commonwealth war graves in Arras, France. 16. Sessue Hayakawa (1889-1973) was a Japanese-born actor who came to Hollywood in the very early days of cinemahis first short, The Typhoon, was made in 1914and quickly became a matinee idol, playing exotic villains and such. Sri Lanka Filming Locations: The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957) It was the highest-grossing film of 1957 in the United States and Canada and was also the most popular film at the British box office that year.