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Volume CXXXIII, Number 9 |
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Before Obi-won: Alec Guinness stars in Lean war epic at Smith
DAVIN MICHAELS
COLUMNIST
Praised as one of the greatest war stories of its generation and winner of seven Academy Awards including Best Director, Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, and Best Actor, David Lean's The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957) will be presented by the Bowdoin Film Society this weekend.
The film tells the epic story of a division of World War II prisoners of war who are forced by their Japanese captors to construct a bridge over the river Kwai, located in the Thai jungle. The commanding officer, Major Nicholson (Alec Guiness), puts up a fight against the tyrannical Japanese officer, Colonel Saito, citing the Geneva Convention as evidence that officers are relieved from performing physical labor.
Nicholson finally agrees to order his men to construct the bridge and the Americans end up putting a great deal of sweat and work into it, producing a symbol of their strength and unfailing unity despite the situation. However, they risk failure when an allied demolition team is secretly deployed to destroy the bridge on the day of its opening.
What is remarkable about this film is the fact that the war serves as the background for a story that deals mostly with the psychology of individuals and personal relationships. There is beautiful realism in the film, displayed in the color and shooting location. In an ironic twist to a suspenseful and engaging plot, Nicholson ends up taking on the project as if it is his own, working feverishly and even obsessively to make it the best, forgetting the initial purpose of the bridge.
This film includes spectacular performances by Guiness, who won an Academy Award for the role, and two American soldiers, Major Shears (William Holden) and Major Warden (Jack Hawkins). It was directed by David Lean, who also directed Doctor Zhivago (1970) and A Passage To India (1984). Lean's Lawrence of Arabia (1962) will be shown by the Film Society on December 5 and 6.
The Bridge On The River Kwai will be presented at 7:00 p.m. tonight and tomorrow night in Smith Auditorium in Sills Hall. It is free and open to all members of the Bowdoin community.
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