Movie #39: The Bridge on the River Kwai. Or really, the bridge to madness.

Title: The Bridge on the River Kwai 

Starring: William Holden, Alec Guiness, Jack Hawkins

Directed by: David Leon

Year: 1957

Number on the AFI List: 36

Although criticized for being historically inaccurate, The Bridge on the River Kwai is a fantastic war film that explores themes of perseverance, honor, and pride…that eventually goes too far. Colonel Nichols (Alec Guiness) and his squad of British soldiers have been captured and taken to a Japanese POW camp in order to build the Burma-Siam railway bridge. Nichols is insistent on remaining in command over his men, to the point that he and all of his commanders underneath him are placed in “hot boxes” for over a month, while the rest of his men sabotage the building of the bridge. Eventually, Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa), the commander of the POW camp, gives into Nichols’ demand to be in charge, since he is running out of time to get the bridge built. Nichols’ begins to view the project as a sign of British pride, and demands his men build with excellence. At the same time, the allies are planning to blow up the bridge once its finished. The movie builds to an explosive ending that leaves many men, allied and Japanese, dead, and with Nichols’ bridge, and pride, in a heap of rubble at the bottom of the Kwai river.

This film explores many questions, including: how long should a man suffer at the hands of his enemy for the sake of dignity? And if he wins, can he avoid working in favor of the enemy and forget his loyalty to his country?  How long before pride leads to disgrace? What seems honorable is actually a snare. The movie ends with haunting laughs from the British soldiers as everything goes awry. I was left saying “wow…wow…WOW.” Madness. True madness.

Favorite moment: The ending.

Will I Watch it Again: YES.

Movie #38: 12 Angry Men. Or really, justice as it should be.

Title: 12 Angry Men

Starring: Henry Fonda and 11 others

Directed by: Sidney Lumet

Number on the AFI List: 87 (cause they're CRAZY)

Year: 1957

For a movie that only ever names two characters (at the end) and takes place primarily in one room (the jury deliberation room), this movie is SO well done. The director and cinematographer did a fantastic job keeping the movie interesting with the different shots, many of them so jarring and uncomfortable it made me claustrophobic just watching. The heat in the room was palpable, not only in temperature but also between the actors. The writer did a great job writing moments of intensity followed by moments of ease, creating an ebb and flow that kept the film entertaining and yet intense. Henry Fonda, as Juror #8, does a fantastic job keeping the other men on track, but the movie is a great example of a true ensemble performance. 

The crime: a juvenile minority has been accused of stabbing and killing his father. Not to give anything away, each of the men has to overcome their prejudices and assumptions to come to a more accurate verdict. Some of the actors have an easier time overcoming this than others. Each of the men's walls are so beautifully built up and then torn down until the climactic conclusion. I only hope and pray that all citizens take their responsibility of jurors as serious as these men did, especially when someone's life is on the line. 

"It's always difficult to keep personal prejudice out of a thing like this. And wherever you run into it, prejudice always obscures the truth. I don't really know what the truth is. I don't suppose anybody will ever really know. Nine of us now seem to feel that the defendant is innocent, but we're just gambling on probabilities - we may be wrong. We may be trying to let a guilty man go free, I don't know. Nobody really can. But we have a reasonable doubt, and that's something that's very valuable in our system. No jury can declare a man guilty unless it's sure."

Favorite moment: Hard to choose, the movie doesn't have scenes as much as continuous moments, more like a play than a film. However, when Juror #9 speaks and the camera does an up close shot of his face...I found that fascinating. And he has some pretty awesome speeches, too.

Will I Watch it Again: Yes!