What is the message of The Bridge on the River Kwai?
When you come right down to it, The Bridge on the River Kwai is only a war melodrama. Its only valid “meaning” is as a glorification of human courage. Its primary appeal is not to the understanding or the esthetic sense, but to whatever in us is receptive to sheer physical action.
What is special about the bridge on the river?
The Bridge on the River Kwai is a 1957 epic war film directed by David Lean and based on the 1952 novel written by Pierre Boulle. The film uses the historical setting of the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942–1943. It has been included on the American Film Institute’s list of best American films ever made.
What happens at the end of the bridge over the River Kwai?
Joyce. Honour and duty drove both Nicholson and Saito to madness, Saito realising that his honour has been destroyed as Nicholson nails a wooden plaque to the bridge stating that it was built by the English, and Nicholson realising the folly of his ways in that amazing final scene.
Does the bridge over the River Kwai still exist?
Although the film was shot in Sri Lanka, the Bridge on the River Kwai is real, and is still used by local passenger trains from Bangkok to Nam Tok. For anyone interested in 20th century history, a visit to Kanchanaburi and the infamous Death Railway is a must.
Who blew up The Bridge on the River Kwai?
By May 1945 the British and American air forces had destroyed both bridges over the River Khwae-Noi (or Kwai as it is popularly known). The Japanese army’s vital supply line between Burma and Malaya had been cut, but by then the atomic bomb had made surrender inevitable.
Where is the River Kwai?
western Thailand
The River Kwai, more correctly ‘Khwae Noi’ (Thai: แควน้อย, English small tributary) or Khwae Sai Yok (แควไทรโยค), is a river in western Thailand, near, but not over the border with Myanmar.
Why is the bridge over the River Kwai famous?
It is almost a symbol of the province and is a recommended place in Kanchanaburi travel guide. The history of the bridge is well known, as it was part of the railway lines in World War II and had seen its share of conflict and bloodshed.
Who built the River Kwai?
the Japanese
About Kwai River Bridge The Kwai River Bridge was part of the meter-gauge railway constructed by the Japanese during World War Two. It is famously known as the setting for the a 1957 World War Two epic Bridge over the River Kwai.
Who built the River Kwai bridge?
Spanning the River Kwae Yai in Kanchanaburi, the bridge was built in 1942–43 by British prisoners of war based at Tha Markam. It consisted of eleven steel spans on concrete pillars. Materials were sourced from Java and this was the only steel bridge built by the Japanese in Thailand.
Is The Bridge on the River Kwai based on a true story?
Although the film uses the historical setting of the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942–1943, the plot and characters of Boulle’s novel and the screenplay are almost entirely fictional.
Is bridge on River Kwai a true story?
The film “The Bridge on the River Kwai” dramatized the WWII story of the Thailand-Burma Railway, yet it was largely fictional. Over 65,000 Allied P.O.W.s battled torture, starvation, and disease to hack the 255-mile railway out of harsh jungle for the Japanese.
Is the River Kwai real?
The River Kwai, more correctly ‘Khwae Noi’ (Thai: แควน้อย, English small tributary) or Khwae Sai Yok (แควไทรโยค), is a river in western Thailand, near, but not over the border with Myanmar.
What is the real name of the River Kwai?
Is the bridge based on a true story?
Last year, the FX program “The Bridge” won a Peabody Award for “raising awareness of border issues,” and many of the plotlines were based on the realities of life in El Paso and its violence-stricken Mexican sister city a bridge away, Ciudad Juárez.
What is the history of the bridge over the River Kwai?
The River Kwai railroad bridge in 2017. The arched sections are original (constructed by Japan during WWII); the two sections with trapezoidal trusses were built by Japan after the war as war reparations, replacing sections destroyed by Allied aircraft.
Where is Kwai?
Western Thailand
The River Kwai, or Khwae Noi as it’s more correctly known, is located in Western Thailand. Near but not crossing over the border of Myanmar, the river begins at the confluence of Ranti, Songkalia and Bikhli Rivers, and merges with the Khwae Yai River at Kanchanaburi, a town located 180 kms west of Bangkok.
Who built bridge on River Kwai?
‘The Bridge on the River Kwai’ is now the best-known site on the Burma-Thailand railway but its fame is due more to a fictional film than its significance in World War II. Spanning the River Kwae Yai in Kanchanaburi, the bridge was built in 1942–43 by British prisoners of war based at Tha Markam.
How many soldiers died building the bridge over the River Kwai?
Forced labour was used in its construction. More than 180,000 Asian civilian labourers and 60,000 Allied prisoners of war worked on the railway. About 90,000 civilians and 12,621 Allied POWs died during the construction, includeing 6,904 British, 2,802 Australians, 2,782 Dutch, and 133 Americans.
Who built bridge over River Kwai?
Japanese
The bridge was erected by Allied pris oners during the Japanese occupation of Thailand in World War II. Nearby are two huge cemeteries that bear wit ness to the human toll the construction exacted.
Why did The Bridge End?
The cable network is known for giving its shows every possible chance to grow, so it stuck with the remake of the Scandinavian drama for another 13 episodes. The series didn’t improve in the ratings or critical reception, leading to today’s cancellation.
Is the bridge over the River Kwai a true story?
The Bridge over the River Kwai ( French: Le Pont de la rivière Kwaï) is a novel by the French novelist Pierre Boulle, published in French in 1952 and English translation by Xan Fielding in 1954. The story is fictional but uses the construction of the Burma Railway, in 1942–1943, as its historical setting,…
Was’the bridge on the River Kwai’a communist film?
Neither of them got credit, though, as The Bridge on the River Kwai was released during the three-year period when people who’d ever been Communists (or who refused to answer questions about it before Congress) were ineligible for Academy Awards.
Who are the actors in the bridge on the River Kwai?
The Bridge on the River Kwai Starring William Holden Alec Guinness Jack Hawkin Music by Malcolm Arnold Cinematography Jack Hildyard Edited by Peter Taylor
Is bridge on the River Wye based on a true story?
In 1962, Spike Milligan and Peter Sellers, with Peter Cook and Jonathan Miller, released the LP record Bridge on the River Wye (Parlophone LP PMC 1190, PCS 3036 (November 1962)). This spoof of the film was based on the script for the 1957 Goon Show episode “An African Incident”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mxx7lxoRQG8