A Bridge Too Far (1977)
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A Bridge Too Far is a long and complex look at the spectacularly failed Operation Market Garden, where Allied troops were to drop behind enemy lines into Holland and take bridges to support an advancing ground force in September 1944. As history has shown, it didn't go as planned. At all.
This movie is rather long (3 hrs) and for the first two, is a mixture of rather dull scenes of talking-head-generals discussing strategy and a disjointed and confusing following of no less than five different groups going after their respective goals.
The problem here is that once they get going into a bit with one of the groups, a battle begins, we're abruptly taken away to another force who's either doing nothing, or doing something seemingly unrelated.
The last hour chronicles the final failing hours of the operation, and is actually quite a moving bit of film. If you've made it that far, that is. A "reel too far" maybe.
The ensemble cast is spectacular: Caan, Connery, Redford, Gould, Olivier, Hackman, Hopkins... they all do marvelous jobs. It's just there are too many things going on here, too many interlude stories, and too many talking heads to try and keep track of. If they'd focused on just a couple less, it might've made for a far more compelling story.
Technorati Tags: war movies, film, a bridge too far, operation market garden, 1944, world war ii
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Description
An epic film that "re-creates in stunning detail one of the most disastrous battles of World War II" (The Hollywood Reporter), A Bridge Too Far is a spectacular war picture. Painstakingly recreated on actual battlefield locations and boasting a remarkable cast that includes Sean Connery, Anthony Hopkins, Sir Laurence Olivier and Robert Redford, A Bridge Too Far accurately recaptures the monumental scope, excitement and danger behind one of the biggest military gambles in history.In September 1944, flush with success after the Normandy Invasion, the Allies confidently launched Operation Market Garden, a wild scheme intended to put an early end to the fighting by invading Germany and smashing the Reich's war plants. But a combination of battlefield politics, faulty intelligence, bad luck and even worse weather led to disaster beyond the Allies' darkest fears.
This massive 1977 adaptation by director Richard Attenborough (Gandhi) of Cornelius Ryan's novel features an all-star cast in an epic rendering of a daring but ultimately disastrous raid behind enemy lines in Holland during the Second World War. A lengthy and exhaustive look at the mechanics of warfare and the price and futility of war, the film is almost too large for its aims but manages to be both picaresque and affecting, particularly in the performance of James Caan. The impressive cast includes Robert Redford, Gene Hackman, Anthony Hopkins, Laurence Olivier, Dirk Bogarde, Sean Connery, and Liv Ullmann among others. While not a classic war film, it nevertheless manages to be a consistently interesting and exciting adventure. --Robert Lane
DVD Information
Binding: DVDAspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Brand: Sony
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
Original Release Date:
Actors:
- Sean Connery
- Ryan O'Neal
- Michael Caine
- Laurence Olivier
- Gene Hackman
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