Movie Review: a Bridge too Far

A Bridge too Far (1977, PG): ***

Don’t get me wrong: I could name a lot more flaws in a Bridge too Far to possibly lower my star rating of this film to ** ½.  For some reason though, I have always been an admirer of this WWII epic, and when I compare it to other WWII films of the 60s and the 70s, a Bridge too Far actually works just fine as a war film, and in my opinion, is almost, if not exactly, as impressively staged as the 1962 WWII epic the Longest Day.  Clocking in close to three hours and boasting an ensemble, international cast, the film is an adaptation of Cornelius Ryan’s book of the same name, which I have read twice and is one of my favorite accounts of any battle in World War II.  Both the book and the film recount Operation Market Garden, the only major defeat sustained by the Allied Forces on the Western Front of 1944-1945 in World War II.  The operation took much longer than initially planned and lead to the casualties of 17,000 American, British and Polish troops against about 10,000 German losses.  From the very beginning, we know that the battle will turn against the Allies, but we get a look at how devastating war really is.  The battle scenes featured in a Bridge too Far are very authentic, bloody (too bloody for a PG film), and at times, disturbing.  But that’s just what war is.  Sad, bloody and haunting, but all too real.  The parachute drop scene alone is a sight to see and the film’s best highlight.  However, there are numerous other scenes that drag, and at times, the actors can feel very rehearsed and run through, so that quite a few of the performances come off rather bland and/or ordinary.  But what mainly keeps a Bridge too Far from being a cinematic achievement is that it adds practically nothing to the war film genre.  When I say nothing, I mean nothing.  Even so, for history buffs (like myself), a Bridge too Far is definitely worth seeing.  While it’s by no means a definitive war movie, it is a very good one that realistically recounts one of the most troublesome defeats in military history.  Directed by Richard Attenborough.