The Bridge on The River Kwai (1957)

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Written by Pierre Boulle, Mickey Wilson, Carl Foreman

Directed by David Lean

Running Time: 180 minutes (approx)

Production Year: 1957

Rating: PG Certificate

Production Country: UK/USA

Filmed in Colour

One of the stand-out films in David Lean's glittering canon, The Bridge on the River Kwai gave Alec Guinness an Oscar for Best Actor. Not surprising really, as Guinness turns in a stand-out, tour-de-force performance as stiff upper-lipped Colonel Nicholson, who complies with the Japanese in the Second World War to build a jungle railroad bridge, using his own troops as forced labour.

Nicholson - who may or may not be going completely off his chump in the heat of the jungle - views the back-breaking project as a useful exercise in keeping up his troops' morale, seemingly oblivious to the fact that the bridge is vital to the Japanese war effort. Unknown to Nicholson, escaped American Shears (William Holden) returns to blow up the bridge.

While the last few scenes lack focus, and the climax is a little confusing, the film, released in 1957, stands proud as a true classic.

Cast

William HoldenShears
Image for Jack HawkinsJack HawkinsMaj. Warden
Image for Alec GuinnessAlec GuinnessCol. Nicholson
Sessue HayakawaCol. Saito
James DonaldMaj. Clipton
Geoffrey HorneLt. Joyce
André MorellCol. Green
Image for Peter WilliamsPeter WilliamsCapt. Reeves
John BoxerMaj. Hughes
Percy HerbertPvt. Grogan
Harold GoodwinPvt. Baker Sick List Volunteer
Ann SearsNurse at Ceylon hospital
Heihachiro OkawaCapt. Kanematsu
Keiichiro KatsumotoLt. Miura
M.R.B. ChakrabandhuYai
Vilaiwan SeeboonreaungSiamese girl
Ngamta SuphaphongsSiamese girl
Javanart PunynchotiSiamese girl
Kannikar DowkleeSiamese girl

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