Man, I know this thing is a classic and my dad used to mention it from time to time, but my main knowledge that this was a real doozy was from Higgins in Magnum P.I. In one episode he actually builds the bridge out of balsa wood or something and Magnum breaks it (I think). Maybe Higgins does, on accident, of course, because that would actually track with the movie.
Anyway, this was great. It’s not fast, but that’s fine. It has a lot of moral speechifying, which is fine. It has some classic characters, led by Alec Guinness and William Holden. Both are magnificent—Guinness as the efficient, ethical, and hard working British Army Colonel whose unit is captured and used to build the bridge, and Holden as the American who escapes the work camp only to reluctantly return with a squad of British commandos to blow the bridge up.
Throughout we get monologues from different characters as to why they do what they do. Alec Guinness’s Colonel Nicholson holds duty and honor above all else and offers to lead the bridge construction because his unit is capable of building the bridge better than it was being done, and they’re POWs, so they have to work. He insists the bridge be constructed to the best of the unit’s abilities, and even catches and fixes instances of sabotage the British soldiers build into the bridge. Honor. He forces the captors to follow the Geneva Convention rules that officers are not to be forced to work, which seems super weaselly, but is correct. This allows him to oversee the bridge construction and make sure it’s as solid as possible for the train coming in a few weeks.
Meanwhile, William Holden’s Commander Shears is part of the group that is already captured at the camp. He’s American and in the sick bay, where he plots an escape with a couple other men. When he reaches safety, he is essentially forced to go back to help find and blow up the bridge. As it turns out, he’s essentially Don Draper here, having been a lower ranked soldier who took the uniform and identification of an officer who died near him. The British know this and have let the Americans know, and the Americans, for their part, are happy to lend Shears to the British for this mission as a result. So Shears is in.
The small commandos make the dangerous trek and set the charges on the bridge. From there, all the wheels are in motion. The train whistle is blowing as the train nears. The ribbon is cut to honor the opening of the bridge. All this happens while the charges are set on the bridge and the team waits for the train to detonate. Things happen from there, and the climax is set as Nicholson eventually realizes that he’s helped the Japanese in their efforts to defeat the British, but it’s too late, as he’s held up Lieutenant Joyce, who is supposed to detonate the bridge. Joyce is killed, but as the Japanese keep shooting, they also hit Nicholson, who dramatically dies falling onto the detonation plunger thing and blows the bridge to smithereens along with the train which was crossing at that moment.
It was a tremendous finish. I think the explosion could have been bigger, but this was 1957! It was rad. It took the train with it, which was awesome. That had to be a tremendous set piece in real life. I can only imagine the things from this movie that permeate other movies and television shows. I’m not good at catching things, but I mentioned two in this post alone. I was surprised by Guinness’s direct source material for Magnum P.I.‘s Higgins. Maybe I’ll be taken in by other British officers in other movies. I haven’t seen many depictions quite yet. But this seemed so spot on, and the building of the bridge in that one episode can’t be a coincidence. I loved that as I love Magnum P.I.
This is a movie you could put on in the background and always come in at a point where it’s interesting. This should be a regular watch from time to time in our house.