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The Bridge on the River Kwai
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Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 9780767853699
Format: Color, Dolby, NTSC
ISBN: 0767853695
Label: Sony Pictures
Languages: English (Original Language), AnalogJapanese (Original Language), AnalogThai (Original Language), Analog
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Sony Pictures
Release Date: November 21, 2000
Running Time: 166 minutes
Studio: Sony Pictures
Theatrical Release Date: 1957
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Editorial Review:
Director David Lean's masterful 1957 realization of Pierre Boulle's novel remains a benchmark for war films, and a deeply absorbing movie by any standard--like most of Lean's canon, The Bridge on the River Kwai achieves a richness in theme, narrative, and characterization that transcends genre.
The story centers on a Japanese prison camp isolated deep in the jungles of Southeast Asia, where the remorseless Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa) has been charged with building a vitally important railway bridge. His clash of wills with a British prisoner, the charismatic Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness), escalates into a duel of honor, Nicholson defying his captor's demands to win concessions for his troops. How the two officers reach a compromise, and Nicholson becomes obsessed with building that bridge, provides the story's thematic spine; the parallel movement of a team of commandos dispatched to stop the project, led by a British major (Jack Hawkins) and guided by an American escapee (William Holden), supplies the story's suspense and forward momentum.
Shot on location in Sri Lanka, Kwai moves with a careful, even deliberate pace that survivors of latter-day, high-concept blockbusters might find lulling--Lean doesn't pander to attention deficit disorders with an explosion every 15 minutes. Instead, he guides us toward the intersection of the two plots, accruing remarkable character details through extraordinary performances. Hayakawa's cruel camp commander is gradually revealed as a victim of his own sense of honor, Holden's callow opportunist proves heroic without softening his nihilistic edge, and Guinness (who won a Best Actor Oscar, one of the production's seven wins) disappears as only he can into Nicholson's brittle, duty-driven, delusional psychosis. His final glimpse of self-knowledge remains an astonishing moment--story, character, and image coalescing with explosive impact.
Like Lean's Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai has been beautifully restored and released in a highly recommended widescreen version that preserves its original aspect ratio. --Sam Sutherland
Director David Lean's masterful 1957 realization of Pierre Boulle's novel remains a benchmark for war films, and a deeply absorbing movie by any standard--like most of Lean's canon, The Bridge on the River Kwai achieves a richness in theme, narrative, and characterization that transcends genre. The story centers on a Japanese prison camp isolated deep in the jungles of Southeast Asia, where the remorseless Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa) has been charged with building a vitally important railway bridge. His clash of wills with a British prisoner, the charismatic Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness), escalates into a duel of honor, Nicholson defying his captor's demands to win concessions for his troops. How the two officers reach a compromise, and Nicholson becomes obsessed with building that bridge, provides the story's thematic spine; the parallel movement of a team of commandos dispatched to stop the project, led by a British major (Jack Hawkins) and guided by an American escapee (William Holden), supplies the story's suspense and forward momentum. Shot on location in Sri Lanka, Kwai moves with a careful, even deliberate pace that survivors of latter-day, high-concept blockbusters might find lulling--Lean doesn't pander to attention deficit disorders with an explosion every 15 minutes. Instead, he guides us toward the intersection of the two plots, accruing remarkable character details through extraordinary performances. Hayakawa's cruel camp commander is gradually revealed as a victim of his own sense of honor, Holden's callow opportunist proves heroic without softening his nihilistic edge, and Guinness (who won a Best Actor Oscar, one of the production's seven wins) disappears as only he can into Nicholson's brittle, duty-driven, delusional psychosis. His final glimpse of self-knowledge remains an astonishing moment--story, character, and image coalescing with explosive impact. Like Lean's Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai has been beautifully restored and released in a highly recommended widescreen version that preserves its original aspect ratio. --Sam Sutherland
Stills from The Bridge on the River Kwai (click for larger image)
Beyond The Bridge on the River Kwai 
The David Lean Collection | 
WWII 60th Anniversary Collection | 
The True Story of the Bridge on the River Kwai (History Channel) |
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - "Whistle While You Work. . ."
"Bridge On the River Kwai" is one of those masterpiece movies. Sir Alec Guiness is a standout, as is the Japanese commander. The tension builds artfully throughout the duration of the movie as cruelties escalate and the prisoners try to outsmart their captors. Perserverence is the name of the game and William Holden perserveres and injects his own dramatic style into the bargaining. We finally get the pay off and it is a doozie. BOTRK deserves all of its academy awards and more.
Rating: - The bridge...
An excellent movie. It gives all aspects of the war;those who are gung-ho,those that didn't care for the war, the captured, the japanese,and those tortured. It is a movie that makes you think and just be entertained. I can recommend this movie for everyone. There is a bit of violence but it is done with taste.
Ps.There is a book called Ship of Ghosts. It is the true story of this movie.
Rating:  - Unhappy with video shaking
The movie is just fantastic.
I have bought several DVD's released by Columbia. All classic movies seem to have the same problem this DVD has. The picture has a soft shake.
The movie is great but I just wish the DVD had been mastered properly.
Rating: - Excellent Movie, Excellent DVD
First of all, this is a fantastic movie about British POWs building a bridge in 1940s Burma for the Japanese. The dvd is an excellent anamorphic transfer of the movie in its original 2.55:1 format, and the picture is incredibly clear. The price now stands on Amazon $5.00 more expensive than when I bought it, but I would still recommend purchasing it if you are a fan of classic movies.
Rating: - Wrong river but great story
This is one of those movies worth re-watching. All the things you expect from the British when they are captured by the Japanese and forced to build a bridge.
This movie was shot in Sri Lanka as it best fit the story. However the real river was not the Kwai. That just happened to be a better name for the river. And the real bridge was not wooden.
My favorite character was William Holden as Shears, The only pragmatic charter in the movie. Shears did not have to keep a stiff ... Read More
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