Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1543 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-12-04
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Box set, Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, French
• Subtitled in: English, German, French, Hindi, Turkish, Danish, Icelandic, Bulgarian, Swedish, Hungarian, Polish, Arabic, Dutch, Finnish, Czech, Greek
• Dubbed in: French, German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 155 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Based on the true story of the building of a bridge on the Burma railway by British prisoners-of-war held under a savage Japanese regime in World War II, The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) is one of the greatest war films ever made. The film received seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Director, Performance (Alex Guinness), for Sir Malcolm Arnold's superb music, and for the screenplay from the novel by Pierre Boulle (who also wrote Monkey Planet, the inspiration for Planet of the Apes). The story does take considerable liberties with history, including the addition of an American saboteur played by William Holden, and an entirely fictitious but superbly constructed and thrilling finale. Made on a vast scale, the film reinvented the war movie as something truly epic, establishing the cinematic beachhead for The Longest Day (1962), Patton (1970) and A Bridge Too Far (1977). It also proved a turning-point in director David Lean's career. Before he made such classic but conventionally scaled films as In Which We Serve (1942) and Hobson's Choice (1953). Afterwards there would only be four more films, but their names are Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Dr Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970) and A Passage to India (1984).

On the DVD: Too often the best extras come attached to films that don't really warrant them. Not so here, where a truly great film has been given the attention it deserves. The first disc presents the film in the original extra-wide CinemaScope ratio of 2.55:1, in an anamorphically enhanced transfer which does maximum justice to the film's superb cinematography. The sound has been transferred from the original six-track magnetic elements into 5.1 Dolby Digital and far surpasses what many would expect from a 1950s' feature. The main bonus on the first disc is an isolated presentation of Malcolm Arnold's great Oscar-winning music score, in addition to which there is a trivia game, and maps and historical information linked to appropriate clips.

The second disc contains a new, specially produced 53-minute "making of" documentary featuring many of those involved in the production of the movie. This gives a rich insight into the physical problems of making such a complex epic on location in Ceylon. Also included are the original trailer and two short promotional films from the time of release, one of which is narrated by star William Holden. Finally there is an "appreciation" by director John Milius, an extensive archive of movie posters and artwork, and a booklet that reproduces the text of the film's original 1957 brochure. --Gary S Dalkin

Video Description
DVD Special Features

The "Making Of" Bridge on the River Kwai (60 minutes)
Three Featurettes
Photo Gallery
"Build The Bridge" Set-top Game
Set-top Map and History of Events
Isolated Soundtrack
Screensavers
Original Theatrical Trailer

Synopsis
One of the all-time great war films, THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI is yet another classic from the marvelous David Lean (LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, DR. ZHIVAGO). The film is an outstanding, psychologically complex adaptation of Pierre Boulle's 1952 novel, a classic story of English POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. British and American intelligence officers conspire to blow up the structure, but Col. Nicholson (a fabulous Alec Guinness), the commander who supervised the bridge's construction, has acquired a sense of pride in his creation and tries to foil their plans. Although credited to screenwriter Carl Foreman, the script was actually written by blacklisted writer Michael Wilson. The film garnered seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Guinness). The climax is one of the great finales in film history.

Customer Reviews

Praise, glory, admiration, adoration, and honour forever!!!!
This is simply THE BEST MOTION PICTURE EVER MADE. It is the example that all directors should seek to adhere to. Its complex characters, outstanding screenplay and cinematography make this film PERFECT. Alec Guiness is so good that there are no words to describe him. Moreover, thanks to the producers of this excellent DVD, "Bridge" has never looked and sounded better. The image quality is absolutely STUNNING! The documentary on disc two is very interesting, and it's a delight to be able to watch the original 1957 trailer. Very charming how they promoted films 44 years ago. Don't worry about the fact that it's a WW II drama. It focusses on characters and story, not action scenes, and could therefore be set in any period or location. It deserves the 7 Oscars it got in 1958, and it's really a DVD you will want to have in your collection. But don't put it together with your other DVDs, put it somewhere where it's well stored and where people can see it. It'll make YOU look good!

Still my favourite
I can't name my favourite book - there are too many. But my favourite film has to be this. Principally I am attached to its depiction of Sri Lanka including waterfalls, rivers and a sense of jungle even if some of the film was filmed in pretend jungle in botanic gardens. I think this film is so incredibly well packaged and the script is so good and the visuals are stunning - that I can return to it again and again.

The criticism is that this film does not relate any reality. Those who want to know about the real Bridge can go to Thailand and do their own research.

This is principally an entertaining "war" film all about face, principles, the British Empire, life in the army with a not unsympathetic portrayal of the Japanese general who in reality would have represented a more brutal oppressor.

Everything about this film resonates with something you can connect with in daily life:

"Without rules commander there would be no civilisation"

"We're under the heel of a man who'll stop at nothing to get his way"

"As for me, I'm just a slave, a living slave"

"someone deserves a medal sir!"

Some excellent speeches and a panoramic look at Life and Sri Lanka, captured at a time a little more pristine than at present. Extraordinary climax at end with tremendous camera shots for a 50s film. Brilliant!

A Savage, Biting and Cruel Satire
Not all satire is funny - this isn't. The film is a masterpiece by a master film maker. Other reviewers will tell you how good it is. That said, I should imagine if you were a Japanese prisoner of war who worked on the Death Railway and saw this film in 1957, you possibly found it to be extremely offensive.

The author of the book Pierre Boulle realised that the juxtaposition of British Upper-class stiff upper lip and the Japanese Bashido sense of honour were two sides of the same coin. Both the book and this film exploit this. For a start, both postulate the fact that the Japanese were poor engineers and even worse bridge builders. Neither of these facts were true.

The first half of the film deals with the stand off brought about by the two entrenched positions just described. Eventually, though sheer pluck and dogged determination, the British have their way and effectively take control over the building of the bridge themselves - thus aiding the Japanese war effort! In fact, they make such a good job of building the bridge that the allies, lead by William Holden, then have to mount an expedition to destroy it. It is this premise that returning P.O.W.'s might have found so offensive.

The Japanese did not sign the Hague Convention on Human Rights. Their code of honour stipulated that the defeated enemy should act honourably and commit suicide. The fact that the British surrendered instead meant they were seen as beneath contempt in Japanese eyes who treated them accordingly - 16,000 died making this railway. Think about that as yiou watch the film. Enjoy it by all means - it is a great film, but it is also a travesty of what actually happened.