It's late 1944, and the Allied armies are confident they'll win the World War II and be home in time for Christmas. What's needed, says British general Bernard Law Montgomery, is a knockout punch, a bold strike through Holland, where German troops are spread thin, that will put the Allies into Germany. Paratroops led by British major general Robert Urquhart (Sean Connery) and American brigadier general James Gavin (Ryan O'Neal) will seize a thin road and five bridges through Holland into Germany, with paratroops led by Lieutenant Col. John Frost (Sir Anthony Hopkins) holding the most critical bridge at a small town called Arnhem. Over this road shall pass combined forces led by British Lieutenant Gen. Brian Horrocks (Edward Fox) and British Lieutenant Col. Joe Vandeleur (Michael Caine). The plan requires precise timing, so much so that one planner tells Lieutenant Gen. Frederick Browning (Dirk Bogarde), "Sir, I think we may be going a bridge too far." The plan also has one critical flaw: Instead of a smattering of German soldiers, the area around Arnhem is loaded with crack SS troops. Disaster ensues. Based on a book by historian Cornelius Ryan, A Bridge Too Far is reminiscent of another movie based on a Ryan book, The Longest Day. Like that movie, it is loaded with more than 15 international stars, including Sir Laurence Olivier, Robert Redford, Hardy Krueger, Gene Hackman, Maximilian Schell, and Liv Ullman. ~ Nick Sambides, Jr., Rovi

War

Great Battles

Tense, Forceful, Gritty, Sweeping

DVD Features

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• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Geoffrey Unsworth-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Robin O'Donoghue-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Peter Horrocks-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Gerry Humphreys-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, John Addison-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Leslie Wiggins-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Richard Attenborough-Nominee
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Simon Kaye-Winner
• 1977--British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Edward Fox-Winner

Review

Screenwriter William Goldman called this movie his generation's answer to The Longest Day (1962), and it's a fairly apt analogy. A Bridge Too Far was, like Day, based on a book by historian Cornelius Ryan, and has a galaxy of stars, including Sir Laurence Olivier, Robert Redford, Sean Connery, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Hardy Krueger, Michael Caine, Gene Hackman, Maximilian Schell, James Caan, Elliott Gould, and Liv Ullman. It also reflects the 1970s in that it is a far darker, less patriotic film (it examines the disastrous battle of Arnhem, in which a division of British paratroopers was nearly wiped out) than the almost jingoistic Day, which trumpeted the Allies' successful D-Day landing. Yet, as directed by Sir Richard Attenborough and lensed by cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth, the film is far superior to The Longest Day. The film is gorgeous, and the Oscar-winning Goldman handles the plot's necessary exposition far more deftly than did Ryan, who wrote The Longest Day. That's the film's primary improvement on Day and it's significant. The film is also bloodier, which makes the battle scenes more realistic. A Bridge Too Far is a good movie that tells a terrible story of a military disaster. It's long, it's detailed, it won't cheer you up, but it may engross you. ~ Nick Sambides, Jr., Rovi