The Bridge on the River Kwai review

Number 131 on the top 1000 films of all time is the film that earned Alec Guiness, the Best Actor Oscar: The Bridge on the River Kwai.

Set in a WW2 Japanese POW camp, Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guiness) is the leader of a group of British prisoners.  When the camp commandant, Colonel Saito, (Sessue Hayakama) orders the British to build a strategically important bridge, the British slack and sabotage the project.  That is, until Colonel Nicholson tells them to start building the bridge properly, so that the completed bridge can serve as a symbol of British superiority. 

Meanwhile, the American, Major Shears (William Holden) escapes the same POW camp only to stumble upon a British squadron tasked with destroying the very bridge that Colonel Nicholson is building.

I really enjoyed this film, I found it very watchable.  It was interesting, as I felt that it focussed on a section of WW2, which is often overlooked: the war in Japan.  Of all of the WW2 films I have seen since I began this challenge: Saving Private Ryan, Downfall and Das Boot, only focussed on Nazi Germany.  I found it engaging to watch a film on a subject that I don't know all that much about.

Alec Guiness was great as Colonel Nicholson - a man whose greatest flaw is his commitment to his ideals.  When Colonel Saito orders Nicholson's men to build the bridge, he also orders Nicholson's officers to join the workforce.  However, as Nicholson points out doing so is a direct infraction of the Geneva convention.  Nicholson so staunchly defies Saito's orders that he is prepared to be beaten and imprisoned in an airless, metal shack.

But then as Nicholson becomes more obsessed with completing the bridge, he is prepared to use whatever resources necessary.  This includes his officers and even those men recovering in hospital.  To some extent, he could be considered more villainous than Saito, as at least the latter remains loyal to himself.  However, Nicholson is prepared to compromise his principles in favour of his pride.  But this is what made him a complicated character and therefore an interesting and compelling one.

Less compelling was the narrative following Major Shears.  While this raised the same questions about morality, for example, sacrificing one man for the group, I didn't find it as interesting.  I was so engrossed in the Nicholson storyline that everytime it jumped to Shears, I was taken out of the film.  I did enjoy this narrative and I thought Holden gave a good performance as reluctant hero Shears, but I just didn't find it as entertaining as the Nicholson narrative.

Lastly, the cinematography was just superb.  Filmed in Sri Lanka, the film had an appropriate feel  Some of the landscape shots of the river were just gorgeous.

Ultimately, despite my gripes about the Shears subplot, I did really enjoy this film.  Alec Guiness was great, it was mostly compelling throughout, and despite being 2 and a half hours long, the narrative never dragged.  And best of all, it's prompted me to start learning more about the Pacific theatre of WW2.  And when a film leaves you wanting more, you know it's doing something right.