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The bridge is still in everyday use as part of the Bangkok-Nam Tok line. 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. What's happening in this "The Bridge on the River Kwai" movie clip?Warden (Jack Hawkins from Land of the Pharaohs and Ben-Hur) fires a mortar, wounding Nicho. British English: The Top 50 Most Beautiful British Insults, British Slang: Your Guide to British Police Slang for the Telly Watcher, British Slang: Tea Time British Words for Tea and Tea Related Culture, ltimate List of Funny British Place Names, 101 Budget Britain Travel Tips 2nd Edition, Great Britons Book: Top 50 Greatest Brits Who Ever Lived, Anglotopias Grand Adventure Lands End to John OGroats. After Guinness was done with the scene, Lean said, "Now you can all fuck off and go home, you English actors. Thousands of Asian workers and POWs (prisoners of war) died while working on the project. This meant that some of the British prisoners were actually natives of the region wearing make-up to appear Caucasian. He succumbed to malaria, dysentery, and malnutrition at Camp Kilo 101 in Thailand. Unlike the other two, it is not located in Thailand. Tonight, enjoy dinner at a hotel restaurant Overnight: Kanchanaburi (Spiegel got a British military adviser to help with that side of things, too.). Kanchanaburi, in Myanmar border, is home to the famous Bridge River Kwai. Cutting the base board 1190 x 160 x 12 mm. Lamb, as he was known, had been a politician before calling up, serving the state legislature in Victoria, Australia. Unique to this film, in some ways, were other issues related to poorly made optical dissolves, the original camera lens and a malfunctioning camera. Bus Bangkok - Kanchanaburi $ 7.19 3h 30m. Read the response of the CWGC to the findings of the Special Committee. [34] According to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission: The notorious Burma-Siam railway, built by Commonwealth, Dutch and American prisoners of war, was a Japanese project driven by the need for improved communications to support the large Japanese army in Burma. The film won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor (Guinness), not to mention a handful of Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and even a Grammy nomination for its soundtrack. He had basically retired when Lean approached him to play Colonel Saito in Kwai, a performance that earned Hayakawa an Oscar nomination. The action of the movie takes place in a Japanese prisoner-of-war (POW) camp in Burma during World War II. The trials of Australian Army Lieutenant George Hamilton Lamb reflected the mens awful experience building the Burma-Siam Death Railway. 13 Fascinating Facts About 'The Bridge on the River Kwai' | Mental Floss [40] Boulle had never been to the bridge. [60] The 167-minute film was first telecast, uncut, in colour, on the evening of 25 September 1966, as a three hours-plus ABC Movie Special. 8. Although the film uses the historical setting of the construction of the Burma Railway in 19421943, the plot and characters of Boulle's novel and the screenplay are almost entirely fictional. The True Story of the Bridge over the River Kwai | CWGC On 16 October 1943, the two ends of the Burma-Thailand railway were joined at Konkoita in Thailand. The Bridge on the River Kwai: Directed by David Lean. During its construction, approximately 13,000 prisoners of war died and were buried along the railway. And a bloke called George Siegatz[29] an expert whistlerbegan to whistle Colonel Bogey, and a hit was born.". The Japanese Railway Regiment forced thousands of allied POWs and natives to build the . British POWs are forced to build a railway bridge across the river Kwai for their Japanese captors in occupied Burma, not knowing that the allied forces are planning a daring commando raid through the jungle to destroy it. We want to hear from you! [39], The major railway bridge described in the novel and film did not actually cross the river known at the time as the Kwai. They remain standing at attention throughout the day. . River Kwai (Kanchanaburi): All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go - Tripadvisor The rest were made of wood and local materials. Lean only got $150,000 himself, but he always said Holden was worth it. Walk over the steel bridge at the River Kwai, one of the most famous rivers in the world, which gained international fame in the book and film, "Bridge on the River Kwai". "[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. Construction of the Burma-Siam railway began in October 1942 and would end in October 1943. Instead, the Lt. Col would stand up for his men when necessary to try to alleviate some of their hardships. At the POW camp, Nicholson not only requires officers to work on the bridge but also pulls men from the hospital in order to meet Saitos deadline for the project. At all. Though he'd already earned five Oscar nominations (three for directing, two for adapting the Dickens novels) and would soon be widely celebrated for Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia (1962), and Doctor Zhivago (1965), at this stage, Lean was in trouble. She retired Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Its this structure, Bridge 277, that still stands and is a famous local tourist attraction. 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. Around the time that he was offered the movie, David Lean had little money, as he was in the middle of a financially ruinous divorce, and was very much in need of a new project. 10 Day Central Thailand with River Kwai & Pattaya Family Tour Has something sim'lar He knew that the railway ran parallel to the Kwae for many miles, and he therefore assumed that it was the Kwae which it crossed just north of Kanchanaburi. Interested in advertising on the world's largest website dedicated to all things Britain? Alec Guiness overseeing men working on the tracks in a scene from the film 'The Bridge On The River Kwai', 1957. Casualties commemorated at Chungkai are mostly men who died in the field hospital set up by prisoners. Commonwealth war graves commission Caring for the fallen, Commonwealth war graves foundation Our charity site. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Despite this, he won an Oscar and a Grammy. They included Chinese, Malayan, Burmese, Thai, Indonesian and Singaporean people. It was released in the US on December 14, 1957, taking in a reported $17M+, which made it the highest-grossing film of 1957. Copyright 2020 Tons Of Facts. For all the death and misery caused by its building, the Burma-Siam Railway only ever carried two Japanese divisions and 500,000 tons of supplies before VJ Day brought the war in Asia to a close. By Barry Fox. Imperial Japanese Army Command deemed this unacceptable. Approximately 5 kilometres north of Kanchanaburi there were two bridges that were built by POWs during the war. In the film, a Colonel Saito is camp commandant. That evening, the officers are placed in a punishment hut, while Nicholson is beaten and locked in an iron box. 3. What is it that makes the film 'The Bridge on the River Kwai' such an 25. Aerial reconnaissance photo of the Steel Bridge taken during a bombing raid. The Bridge On The River Kwai Trivia: Fun And Interesting Facts About The Bridge On The River Kwai: Fascinating Facts About The Bridge on the River Kwai - Kindle edition by Randolph, Amanda. Tracy had read the book and told Spiegel emphatically that the part must be played by an Englishman. Real Bridge on the River Kwai. Madness! A train carrying important dignitaries and soldiers is scheduled to be the first to cross the bridge the following day, and Warden wants to destroy both. Over 65,000 Allied P.O.W.s battled torture, starvation, and disease to hack the 255-mile railway out of harsh jungle for the Japanese. "[50] Kaplan further praised the actors, especially Alec Guinness, later writing "the film is unquestionably" his. Mortally wounded, he falls onto the plunger, the bridge is blown up, and the train with the dignitaries falls into the river. [7][8] In 1999, the British Film Institute voted The Bridge on the River Kwai the 11th greatest British film of the 20th century. [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. Bridge on the River Kwai | touristbangkok.com | Kanchanaburi in Thailand He didn't like the next draft of the screenplay, either, because it made Nicholson "a blinkered character." The telecast of the film lasted more than three hours because of the commercial breaks. David Lean, a British director then in his late forties, had made 11 films, including well-received adaptations of Charles Dickens (Great Expectations, Oliver Twist) and Noel Coward (Blithe Spirit, Brief Encounter). Put on your marching boots and whistle a jaunty tune as we investigate some behind-the-scenes facts about this enduring war film. He is commemorated on the Labuan Memorial, Malaysia. Realising he has no choice, Shears volunteers. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) - IMDb Only minor damage was inflicted. His career was hurt by the advent of sound, and then by increasing anti-Japanese sentiment in America. [35], Lieutenant Colonel Philip Toosey of the British Army was the real senior Allied officer at the bridge in question. There's a stench of death about you. The Kwai Bridge: The Reel and the Real - The New York Times