The Bridge on the River Kwai

This rather lengthy film depicting a deadly battle of wills and unconscious betrayal sparked my interest upon seeing a review in which the author states that the entire movie is based on madness. Frankly, I don't agree with this, but it was interesting nonetheless.

Directed by David Lean and starring William Holden and Alec Guinness, The Bridge on the River Kwai focuses on the story of the stubborn and honorable British prisoner of war, Colonel Nicholson. He is at first in disagreement with the Japanese commander of the labor camp, Colonel Saito, over the issue of violating the Geneva Convention and forcing officers to perform manual labor. After many near-death experiences, Nicholson refuses to give in and Saito allows him to take over construction of the bridge.

Determined to show the Japanese what British soldiers can do, Nicholson directs a better bridge than the Japanese could ever accomplish and unwittingly switches to the Japanese side. Eventually foiling a sabotage attempt by his countrymen, Colonel Nicholson is mortally wounded and, realizing his wrongs with the well-known quote, "What have I done!?", falls on the detonator, destroying the bridge and the Japanese supply train crossing it at the time. In the aftermath of the explosion, Nicholson's medic, Major Clipton, exclaims "Madness... Madness!", in one of the most famous film quotes of all time. The film ends with slow zooming out, several corpses in the river, and an ironic happy tune playing in the background, giving the movie a sense of irony and loose ends.

Colonel Nicholson's internal struggle is really what stood out in The Bridge on the River Kwai in that it pitted his military training and foolhardy courage against an equally stubborn yet violent man. This leads to him staring death in the face at several points in the movie, yet he does it unflinchingly. He is all too human around his men, but does not fear death like normal people do. However, he puts his men first and supports the enemy in order to prevent chaos and keep his soldiers occupied and productive.

However, while most commanders willingly create faulty projects for forced labor, Nicholson wants to show the Japanese up and create a perfect, sturdy bridge. This leads to him attempting to protect his mens' work and eventually siding with the enemy. He put his men first, yet betrayed them in the end, even leading to the deaths of several of his countrymen and allies.

David Lean directs The Bridge on the River Kwai with a sort of unique, silent mastery. Except for the movie's famed Colonel Bogey March, it is mostly quiet except for the sounds of dialogue and nature. This makes the explosions and gunshots all the more important and shocking in comparison to the general silence.

Overall, David Lean's classic, The Bridge on the River Kwai, is truly a masterpiece, combing internal struggle, betrayal, and even contrast of sounds to impact the audience. I can now understand why it rates in Roger Ebert's list of greatest movies of all time. I would rate The Bridge on the River Kwai to be an 88 out of 100.