10 facts about the bridge on the river kwai

[30], A 1969 BBC television documentary, Return to the River Kwai, made by former POW John Coast,[33] sought to highlight the real history behind the film (partly through getting ex-POWs to question its factual basis, for example Dr Hugh de Wardener and Lt-Col Alfred Knights), which angered many former POWs. He joined up in 1940 and served in the Middle East with the 2/2nd Pioneer Battalion before transferring back to the Dutch East Indies in early 1942. Aerial reconnaissance photo of the Steel Bridge taken during a bombing raid. Disease was a huge killer among railway workers, but so was brutality. The Bridge on the River Kwai is a British 1957 movie from Columbia Pictures, based on Pierre Boulle's 1952 book The Bridge over the River Kwai (French: Le Pont de la Rivire Kwai). At one point during filming, David Lean nearly drowned when he was swept away by a river current. The movie was filmed in Ceylon, which is now Sri Lanka. At its behest, Sam Spiegel asked David Lean to incorporate a love scene. This, plus the fact that he loved to travel, plus the fact that shooting a film in Southeast Asia would be good for him tax-wise, motivated him to accept a project that was bound to be grueling. Subsequent releases of the film finally gave them proper screen credit. does not fall onto the plunger, and the bridge suffers only minor damage. Nicholson is shocked by the poor job being done by his men and orders the building of a proper bridge, intending it to stand as a tribute to the British Army's ingenuity for centuries to come. From iconic memorials to local churchyards, there is unique heritage to explore across Great Britain. They are joined by approximately 1,850 Dutch casualties and one non-war grave. Its construction came about because Japan needed another supply route to link Singapore and Malaysia to its possessions in Burma following Singapores fall in February 1942. Forced labourers were labourers taken from the populations of Japan-conquered territories. [46], On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film received an approval rating of 96% based on 93 reviews, with an average rating of 9.4/10. Nicholson desperately tries to keep Joyce from depressing the plunger, while Shears and Warden try to kill Nicholson. He had basically retired when Lean approached him to play Colonel Saito in Kwai, a performance that earned Hayakawa an Oscar nomination. It was 425 feet long, 90 feet high, and cost $52,085 out of the film's $2 million budget. The railway ran for 250 miles from Ban Pong, Thailand to Thanbyuzayat, Burma and is now known as the Death Railway. This Week's Toybox is . Guinness had appeared in Lean's Dickens films but had since made a name for himself doing goofy comedies like The Lavender Hill Mob (1951). The majority of its smaller components are originals, while a few are post-war replacements. The Bridge on the River Kwai was widely praised, winning seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, at the 30th Academy Awards. Find the latest updates on the work of the Special Committee. Before the US began rolling up Japanese possessions throughout the Pacific, and the British really started gaining momentum in Burma, Japan had carved out a large empire. 13. The deaths of the Asian workers and the prisoners were real events, but most of the book and the movie are not true. To counter the Allies tightening grip on supply lines, the Japanese army resurrected an old idea first mooted by regional powers in the late 19th century: to build a railway between Myanmar and Siam. For many, its their first exposure to the horrors prisoners of wars suffered in the Far East. Real Bridge on the River Kwai. Commonwealth war graves commission Caring for the fallen, Commonwealth war graves foundation Our charity site. Realising he has no choice, Shears volunteers. [3] Since it was not a documentary, there are many historical inaccuracies in the film, as noted by eyewitnesses to the building of the real Burma Railway by historians.[30][31][32][33]. In 1997, this film was deemed "culturally . The Japanese Railway Regiment forced thousands of allied POWs and natives to build the . The bridge, several museums, and cemeteries have respectfully preserved the history and memorialized the dead. Burma-Siam Railway labourers and prisoners of war slept in rudimentary bamboo huts on filthy floors. ", Warden fires a mortar, killing Shears and Joyce and fatally wounding Nicholson. 16. But the unusual move paid off for ABCthe telecast drew huge ratings with a record audience of 72 million[60] and a Nielsen rating of 38.3 and an audience share of 61%. Ironically, Allied bombing raids of the region between March and June 1943 contributed to casualties sustained around Thanbyuzayat. In the movie the bridge is destroyed by commandos. 6 Interesting And Awesome Facts About Dondokomon From Digimon, 20 Amazing And Fun Facts About San Bernardino, California, United States, 26 Fun And Fascinating Facts About The Gods Of Egypt Movie, 15 Interesting And Fun Facts About Napa, California, United States, 20 Interesting And Amazing Facts About National City, California, United States, 15 Interesting And Fascinating Facts About Needles, California, United States, 15 Interesting And Amazing Facts About Nevada City, California, United States, 15 Amazing And Interesting Facts About Newark, California, United States. The railway route, which ran through Burma and Thailand, had been planned by the British. International shipment of items may be subject to customs processing and additional charges. Boulle was given sole credit on the film and was awarded the Oscar for best screenplay. The Bridge On The River Kwai Film Facts. A sketch of that bridge was used as the basis for the fictional one. David Lean is taken that story and directed it in 1957. His first epic was his twelfth film: The Bridge on the River Kwai, starring Alec Guinness and William Holden as P.O.W. The real River Kwai, and its bridge, is in what was then Siam, now Thailand.The name 'River Kwai' refers to the Khwae Noi and Khwae Yai rivers in western Thailand, which converge to become the Mae Klong river at Kanchanaburi, about 70 miles northwest of Bangkok, and it was across the Mae Klong that the infamous bridge was built. The real swamps in Ceylon were deemed to be too dangerous. The Kwai River Bridge was part of the meter-gauge railway constructed by the Japanese during World War Two. [31] He strongly denied the claim that the book was anti-British, although many involved in the film itself (including Alec Guinness) felt otherwise.[36]. The river is the Mae Klong River which passes through a valley of the Khwae Noi River (little tributary). As the train approaches, Nicholson frantically pulls up the wire, following it to find the detonator. THE HEAD OF COLUMBIA PICTURES FORCED LEAN TO ADD A LOVE SCENE. 3. On 16 October 1943, the two ends of the Burma-Thailand railway were joined at Konkoita in Thailand. [65], On 2 November 2010 Columbia Pictures released a newly restored The Bridge on the River Kwai for the first time on Blu-ray. In particular, they objected to the implication presented in the film that Japanese military engineers were generally unskilled at their profession and lacked proficiency. Read our FAQs or send a question to our customer service team. Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson have written the screenplay for this film. So Spiegel hired another writer, Calder Willingham, to give it a crack. Sam Spiegel bought the railroad train from the Ceylonese government. The Bridge on the River Kwai. You can also take a boat down the Kwai River . The Japanese did indeed force British, Dutch, Australian, and American prisoners to build the Burma Railway, resulting in some 13,000 POW deaths and at least 80,000 civilian deaths. As the train approaches, they hurry down to the riverbank to investigate. Two labour forces, one based in Siam and the other in Burma, worked from opposite ends of the line towards the centre. Omissions? The Mount Lavinia Hotel was used as a location for the hospital. Lets find out. The process of adapting Pierre Boulle's French-language novel Le Pont de la Riviere Kwai was difficult (more on that later), but the two writers ultimately responsible for it were Carl Foreman (High Noon) and Michael Wilson (A Place in the Sun). The elephants employed in helping build the bridge would take breaks every four hours and lie around the water, whether the crew wanted them to or not. This film is produced by Sam Spiegel, and the music is composed by Malcolm Arnold for . The Bridge on the River Kwai is a British 1957 World War II film by David Lean based on the novel The Bridge Over the River Kwai by French writer Pierre Boulle. A small tourist train offers rides across the bridges span, while pedestrians can also travel over it on foot. First Joyce and then Shears are killed in the ensuing gunfire. Work on the bridge proceeds badly, due to both the faulty Japanese engineering plans and the prisoners' slow pace and deliberate sabotage. By daybreak, however, the river level has dropped, exposing the wire connecting the explosives to the detonator. Alec Guiness, William Holden, and Jack Hawkins in front of bridge they built in a scene from the film 'The Bridge On The River Kwai', 1957. Its estimated around 16,000 Allied prisoners of war were killed during construction of the Burma-Siam Railway. 2023 Commonwealth War Graves Commission. But I am writing a factual account, and in justice to these menliving and deadwho worked on that bridge, I must make it clear that we never did so willingly. Jun 7, 2011 - New on Blu 6-7-11: Studios unload nearly 70 titles. Bought 4 and 6 mm dowel wood for bridge piers. He described the music for The Bridge on the River Kwai as the "worst job I ever had in my life" from the point of view of time. It was still highly unusual at that time for a television network to show such a long film in one evening; most films of that length were still generally split into two parts and shown over two evenings. Spiegel sent the screenplay to the Japanese government ahead of time, hoping to get their cooperation with the production. 8. Clipton objects, believing this to be collaboration with the enemy. Chungkai War Cemetery is something of a sister site to Kanchanaburi. The story is fictional but uses the construction of the Burma Railway, in 1942-1943, as its historical setting, and is partly based on Pierre Boulle's own life experience working in Malaysia rubber . When, the next morning, Saito orders all the British prisoners to begin building the bridge under the command of a Japanese engineer, Nicholson and the other officers refuse, even when Saito threatens to kill them. This was an entertaining story. Tonight, enjoy dinner at a hotel restaurant Overnight: Kanchanaburi Moreover, Kanchanaburi has an annual "Bridge Over the River Kwai" week, which has a sound show to relive the moments of World War II. It is close to, but not over the country's border with Myanmar. Bridge Over The River Kwai Address: Tha Makham, Kanchanaburi, Thailand. $ 3 million (estimated) The Bridge on the River Kwai is a British 1957 movie from Columbia Pictures, based on Pierre Boulle 's 1952 book The Bridge over the River Kwai ( French: Le Pont de la Rivire Kwai ). Parts of the Burma-Siam railway still stand. Read our Cookie Policy, Terms & Conditions and Data Protection & Privacy Policy. At their head was Lieutenant-Colonel Phillip Toosey. Construction of the Burma-Siam railway began in October 1942 and would end in October 1943. [66] The original negative for the feature was scanned at 4k (four times the resolution in High Definition), and the colour correction and digital restoration were also completed at 4k. American casualties were repatriated back to the United States. Writers: Pierre Boulle (novel), Carl Foreman and Michael Wilson (screenplay), Academy Award nominations (* denotes win), https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Bridge-on-the-River-Kwai-film-by-Lean, Filmsite - The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), BFI Screenonline - The Bridge on the River Kwai, Turner Classic Movies - The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957). Lambs sister received a letter from him in September 1943, saying he was in excellent health and being treated well by his captors. The movie starring William Holden, Alec Guinness and Jack Hawkins was shot at more than 1 locations. He was listed as missing in action in June 1943. [27] Gavin Young[28] recounts meeting Donald Wise, a former prisoner of the Japanese who had worked on the Burma Railway. Wrote Guinness: "I felt like turning around and getting back on the plane and paying my own fare home!" They would work in appalling conditions, given minuscule amounts of food, snatches of sleep, and little to no medical treatment. The Bridge on the River Kwai, commonly referred to as the Railroad of Death or Death Railway, which stands in Kanchanaburi, Thailand, was one of only eight steel bridges of the estimated 688 that were built. Further afield, and appealing to my military family war history, is Kanchanaburi with its war cemetery and bridge over the Kwai river which is made famous by the Oscar winning film The Bridge on the River Kwai. [41] According to Variety, the film earned estimated domestic box office revenues of $18,000,000[42] although this was revised downwards the following year to $15,000,000, which was still the biggest for 1958 and Columbia's highest-grossing film at the time. The line passing through the scenic Three Pagodas Pass runs for 250 miles. Camps were set up at 100-metre intervals. Also, in the novel, the bridge is not destroyed: the train plummets into the river from a secondary charge placed by Warden, but Nicholson (never realising "what have I done?") This way, he remained oblivious to the real nature of his characters fate. See some of the commonly asked questions about the Special Committee. By 1944, its operational capacity was being massively hampered by the damage caused by air raids. During WW II, Japan constructed the meter-gauge railway line from Ban Pong, Thailand to Thanbyuzayat, Burma. 60,000 or so Allied prisoners of war, including British, Australian, Dutch and some US troops, alongside more than 200,000 civilian labourers were pressed into service. The screenplay was instead credited to the novelist, Boullewhich was quite a feat, since he didnt speak or read English. Since it first graced the silver screen won the admiration of audiences everywhere and continues to do so. The Bridge over the River Kwai met its fate in 1945. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) Addeddate 2021-08-19 15:12:20 Identifier the-bridge-on-the-river-kwai_202108 Scanner Internet Archive HTML5 Uploader 1.6.4. plus-circle Add Review. Cafes and tourist spots dot the banks of the Khwae Noi. The Bridge on the River Kwai. Sri Lanka Filming Locations: The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957) Posted on July 17, 2017 by tokyofox. One of the biggest causes of ire was the treatment of Toosey. It was released in the US on December 14, 1957, taking in a reported $17M+, which made it the highest-grossing film of 1957. 28. Victims were cremated and their remains are buried in the aforementioned graves. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. "[52] Harrison's Reports described the film as an "excellent World War II adventure melodrama" in which the "production values are first-rate and so is the photography. Warden responds that he already knew and that the US Navy had agreed to transfer him to the British SOE with the simulated rank of Major to avoid embarrassment. The US was beginning to control the sea lanes, making it increasingly difficult for Japanese shipborne cargo to reach the army dotted across the Pacific. Shears is enjoying his hospital stay in Ceylon unwittingly within a commando school referred to as "Force 316" (likely based on the real world Force 136 of the Special Operations Executive (SOE)). The camp commander, Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa), informs the prisoners that they will all begin working on the building of a railway bridge the following day. Chungkai was also a POW worker base camp. Copyright 2020 Tons Of Facts. Highly competent work is also done by William Holden, Jack Hawkins and Sessue Hayakawa". On another occasion, they argued over the scene where Nicholson reflects on his career in the army. The movie is based on the novel "Le Pont de la Riviere Kwai" by Pierre Boulle. The train crashed into a generator on the other side of the bridge and was wrecked. Vital equipment that would normally have been shipped through the canal had to be flown out to the location instead. Around 90,000 forced labourers are thought to have died building Death Railway. Alec Guiness overseeing men working on the tracks in a scene from the film 'The Bridge On The River Kwai', 1957. [11] Guinness admitted that Lean "didn't particularly want me" for the role, and thought about immediately returning to England when he arrived in Ceylon and Lean reminded him that he wasn't the first choice. [49] Mike Kaplan, reviewing for Variety, described it as "a gripping drama, expertly put together and handled with skill in all departments. [38] Some Japanese viewers also disliked the film for portraying the Allied prisoners of war as more capable of constructing the bridge than the Japanese engineers themselves were, accusing the filmmakers of being unfairly biased and unfamiliar with the realities of the bridge construction, a sentiment echoed by surviving prisoners of war who saw the film in cinemas. Harry Cohn, the vulgar (but successful) man who ran Columbia Pictures at the time, was furious when he read the script and saw no . Bangkok - Kanchanaburi More info / Tickets. The telecast of the film lasted more than three hours because of the commercial breaks. The actual bridge on the River Kwai is located in Thailand, and stretches over a part of the Mae Klong river, which was renamed Khwae Yai (Thai for big tributary). (This can be compared to a scene in the 1927 movie, The General, which starred Buster Keaton.). Japanese guards were known for their cruelty and would frequently torture and assault their prisoners. Other parts have been placed in various local war museums. The Bridge on the River Kwai is a 1957 British-American epic war movie directed by David Lean and starring William Holden, Jack Hawkins, and Alec Guinness, featuring Sessue Hayakawa. Mitch Miller had a hit with a recording of both marches. Take a look below for 28 more fun and interesting facts about The Bridge on the . California Doubling: The film is set in Thailand, but was filmed in Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka), a distinction the publicity of the time didn't see fit to make clear.Instead, it raved about the movie being shot in Ceylon in a way which implied the real-life River Kwai was located there. The prisoners of war who had . Lean feared Guinness' public persona had changed so much that audiences wouldn't buy him in this very dramatic role, but came around to the idea when the Laughton plan didn't work. Then he hired Lean to directand Lean didn't like Foreman's version. The Bridge over the River Kwai (French: Le Pont de la rivire Kwa) is a novel by the French novelist Pierre Boulle, published in French in 1952 and English translation by Xan Fielding in 1954. He insisted that Lean add a scene where Shears, the American played by William Holden, cozies up to a nurse (Ann Sears). Initial estimates from Japanese engineers suggested it would take five years. He, Shears, and Joyce reach the river in time with the assistance of Siamese women bearers and their village chief, Khun Yai. This story is retold in: Anecdotal Tit Bits: Making "The Bridge on the River Kwai", "links for research, Allied POWs under the Japanese", "The Colonel of Tamarkan: Philip Toosey and the Bridge on the River Kwai", "The Colonel of Tamarkan: Philip Toosey and the, "Once-Stupendous-Now-Modest $2,700,000 Budget Kept Secret; 'River Kwai's' Sockfull Gross", "Screen: 'The Bridge on the River Kwai' Opens", "Film Reviews: The Bridge on the River Kwai", "Balu Mahendra, who made his visuals speak, dies at 74", "Warren Buffett carries an American Express card and about $400 in cash", "How Cartrivision's 1972 VCR ForesawAnd ForfeitedThe Time-Shifted Future", "Movies | Disc & Digital | Sony Pictures", "Wayne and Shuster Show, The Episode Guide (19541990) (series)", Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's Anchor, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Drama, National Board of Review Award for Best Film, New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Film, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Bridge_on_the_River_Kwai&oldid=1138405911, Films featuring a Best Actor Academy Award-winning performance, Films featuring a Best Drama Actor Golden Globe winning performance, Films that won the Best Original Score Academy Award, Films whose cinematographer won the Best Cinematography Academy Award, Films whose director won the Best Directing Academy Award, Films whose director won the Best Director Golden Globe, Films whose editor won the Best Film Editing Academy Award, Films whose writer won the Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award, Films with screenplays by Michael Wilson (writer), United States National Film Registry films, World War II films based on actual events, Short description is different from Wikidata, Album articles lacking alt text for covers, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2021, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Best DVD Original Retrospective Documentary/Featurette, Online Film & Television Association Awards, This page was last edited on 9 February 2023, at 14:21. Witnessing the carnage, Clipton shakes his head and mutters, "Madness! The British soldiers were slaves; they did not help the Japanese.