Absolutely Timeless

Rating: 10/10 (7 August 2002)

In more than one way, I can say The Bridge on the River Kwai is easily one os the greatest films ever made. The first thing that signals the fact that it's a great movie is Malcolm Arnold's adaptation of the WWI whistling tune "Colonel Bogey March".
The movie soon reveals a Japanese camp has taken the British soldiers as workers for a bridge that must be built so a Japanese cargo train may pass as scheduled. The work begins as though it were slave labour but after a Ghandi move of protest by Col. Nicholson (Alec Guinness) turns it to a morale exercise for his troopers. Maj. Shears (William Holden), on another note, knows about the bridge after escaping the place and is talked into helping a different British army by going on a mission to destroy the bridge. The story from there never lets down.
Once the movie was over, it was unclear to me who/what the antagonist was. I had to think about it for a long time. Many people settle for less by saying that it was the Japanese that were the antagonists, but I will have to disagree with that. My personal opinion is that it was the pride in the imprisoned British soldiers. This seems obvious to me when Col. Nicholson says "What have I done?" But truly the ending is one that can leave people thinking "Madness..."
David Lean did absolutely unbelievable direction, second only to maybe another epic of his, Lawrence of Arabia, however still unforgettable. Arnold's scoring, Guinness' performance, and Lean's direction all received Oscars. The movie also received Oscars for Film Editing, Cinematography, Screenplay, and, of course, Best Picture. However, William Holden was also excellent, and especially Sessue Hayakawa was excellent.
I will always testify that this film should not be missed. Even for those how don't particularly like war films, as it seems to be labeled, it can easily be enjoyed. The Bridge on the River Kwai is definitely timeless.