A Bridge Too Far (1977)

Really Surprised!

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Extremely bad plot. Ryan O'Neil is a full general at maybe 30 years old? Impossible to believe. No overview of the ultimate objective. The movie focuses on many lesser scenes--like Sean Connery running from a tank in an alley--that have nothing to do with the plot. Scenes that could be a part of any movie and do not relate to the objective of the bridges. Too many big-name stars that dilute their roles to supporting and nothing more. No coherence between the scenes. The plot is completely lost in all the small scenes and scenarios. Well acted by the stars, but I'm sure they knew it was a horrible script. It's just a disaster of a movie. If you like war scenes, you'll like it, but as a historical story of Montgomery's failed plan to capture these bridges and shorten the war, it completely misses the point. Also, where is Montgomery...the British general who thought up the operation? We need a foil to blame not only the failure of the operation on, but also the failure of the film. The film is as disastrous and expensive as the actual operation.

Besides perhaps Cross Of Iron the greatest WW2 movie ever made. It is tragic while almost certain of victory,the allies should suffer such a defeat,but it was inevitable with hindsight. The over confidence of all but the Polish general is well filmed,despite evidence of panzer divisions nearby. There is no Wayne like propaganda,just the suffering on both sides fairly portrayed. It was a big underestimation of the SS units they would be facing,battle hardened as they were. Fine performances in an all star cast,and capturing the futility and sheer blood letting of war make this an unforgettable classic. I think Sean Connery and Dirk Bogarde stood out,Bogarde all too willing to sacrifice his men.

A Bridge too Far (1977)A must for WWII fans, but dubious for people looking for a drama that happens to be a war drama.Here's why. First the upside. This was researched and choreographed in great detail. Some of the participants were at the original battle (or nearby). And there is a sense not of grandiose "The Longest Day" kind of drama, but of something that shows the nitty gritty of an important but not legendary battle toward the end of the war. There is a ton of action, very vivid and pyrotechnic, filmed with smooth precision, and edited down well even though the movie is still too long.The downside is partly that the movie is too long. They include too much. And frankly, as good as the action stuff is, there's too much of it. The ability to do this kind of thing really well isn't reason to do it too much. ("Saving Private Ryan" has the same dilemma, and I think faces it better, with the amazing filming of action at Normandy.)Furthermore, this is all action and all history. That's probably enough for people who are into it—and it's gripping, for sure, at its best. But the key missing ingredient is real characters. There's an attempt to give each of the stars and their colleagues enough for the audience to grasp, but it's never enough. The problems of the campaign and the personalities that pushed for it and doubted it are clear. But they aren't convincing.And one of the problems is there is just too much going on for such a short movie. That's no joke. It could have been a t.v. mini-series, and the characters could have been developed. Instead we get a few minutes screen time—at best —of most of the key players. And there are a lot of big names involved, each for a million to five million dollars each. And that's with Joseph Levine (the producer) pushing hard to save money. It never feels bloated, just superficial. Oh! There's Robert Redford, there's Michael Caine, there's Laurence Olivier, and so on, with their key but tiny appearances. Don't blink.So we end up back with the history, and the brutality (and spoiled brat attitude) of the Nazi Germans. It's good (and horrifying stuff, for sure, but there are lots of better WWI movies on many levels. This one is for people looking to fill in gaps and get the specifics.A last note. This came out after the shift in Hollywood to newer ("New Hollywood") films in the late 60s, and it feels out of place. Other war dramas like "Patton" "M.A.S.H." and "Catch-22" all from 1970 and then just after this one in 1978 and 1979, "The Deer Hunter" and "Apocalypse Now," all offer something more contemporary and compelling in terms of style and movie-making. And character.

A Bridge Too Far is a war film obviously a product of 70's cinema, in that it takes a decidedly uncelebratory route in telling its story. The very fact that it focuses on a famous Allied military disaster is an immediate pointer. Set during the final stages of World War II in 1944, it finds the Allied command in over-confident mood on account of their recent advances on D-Day. The top brass devise a knock-out punch where troops will pierce through Holland from the air and from the ground, taking advantage of low demoralised German numbers. The key being the taking of several bridges, culminating with a crucial one in Arnhem. The problem is that some early warning signs are ignored, which report a much heavier German presence in the area, the operation is given the go ahead regardless only to discover that area is swarming with crack SS troops.Directed by Richard Attenborough, this is an example of a type of film that they simply cannot afford to make any more on account of its ludicrously high calibre ensemble cast. We have Sean Connery, Ryan O'Neal, Anthony Hopkins, Edward Fox, Michael Caine, Dirk Bogarde, Laurence Olivier, Robert Redford, Gene Hackman, Maximilian Schell, Liv Ullman, James Caan and Elliott Gould. It's an unbelievable set of actors to have at its disposal and the film does, for the most part, make good use of them. Not only this but it's visually a treat with beautiful photography and great on-location sets, particularly in Arnhem. The battle scenes were well recreated and it did overall give the feeling of a commendably balanced portrayal of events. This extends to the way that the Germans are depicted, where we have SS men shown in ways that didn't have them as utterly sadistic and evil as is usually the way. This overall measured approach is one that serves this material well in that this is pretty far from jingoistic stuff. It's a pretty doom-laden film in actual fact but I like the fact that it is unafraid to pull its punches and be like this. For this very reason, coupled with the great production values and direction, this remains one of the all-time great war movies for me.