After the success at the Battle of Normandy, the allies spent six months planning Operation Market Garden—an attempt to secure several bridges in the Netherlands by land and by air—assembled in just seven days. The tide had started to turn, and the Allies hoped Operation Market Garden would end the war by Christmas 1944. They were wrong.
Spearheaded by Field Marshall Montgomery, the plan involved dropping 35,000 men across the Netherlands, in what would be the largest airborne assault the world had ever seen. It was a spectacular failure, thousands of lives were lost and millions of dollars’ worth of equipment were destroyed, without meeting their objectives.
Adapted by William Goldman from a book of the same name by Cornelius Ryan, A Bridge Too Far has a cast featuring the likes of Dirk Bogarde, Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Robert Redford, James Caan, Dirk Bogarde, Laurence Olivier, Maximillian Schell, Elliott Gould, Anthony Hopkins, Ryan O’Neal and Gene Hackman.
Despite the large, all-star cast, William Goldman gives them all a moment to shine. Whether it’s Elliott Gould’s memorable turn as cigar chomping Colonel Robert Stout, or a scene where James Caan’s Staff Sargeant Eddie Dohun drives his dying commanding officer through enemy lines to the nearest M.A.S.H. unit is amazing stuff. Some critics at the time thought this scene was made up, when in fact it was depicted just as it happened.
We see both American and German commanders making decisions, and soldiers carrying them out. Amid this, we see ordinary citizens (like one played by Liv Ullman) open their homes to the wounded and a doctor (Laurence Olivier) desperately tries to help them. In other cases, citizens are forced to open their homes to soldiers who need cover.
A Bridge Too Far is effectively bleak. Everything that could go wrong does. Such is the case when Major General Urquhart’s (Sean Connery) men are forced to land eight miles from their target, promised jeeps don’t show up and none of the radios work. John Wayne isn’t going to save the day. The men are asked to take incredible risks to survive. While not as graphic as more modern war films as Saving Private Ryan, A Bridge Too Far still captures the emotional weight of lives lost in war.
While director Richard Attenborough does an admirable job handling such a big cast, at nearly three hours runtime, A Bridge Too Far has too many scenes that don’t advance the narrative. One of the greatest screenwriters ever, William Goldman built a career on his ability to write tight dialogue. He loses it a bit here, perhaps trying to give members of his star-studded cast ample screen time.
Kino Lorber’s 4K restoration from the original camera negative is the same one used in last years Imprint release. Presented in its original 2.35:1 aspect ratio with HDR Dolby Vision, the results are wonderful. The black-and-white pre-credit prologue offers grayscale with clean whites and inky blacks. The rest of the film in color, offers a vivid palette throughout. While there are a few small scratches, they don’t affect the overall viewing experience.
This release offers both a lossless 2.0 track and a surround 5.1 track. John Addison’s stirring score is presented with clarity throughout. The sounds of war are realistic and full. Dialogue is clean, clear and concise.
English SDH subtitles are included.
The following extras are available:
DISC 1 (4KUHD):
- NEW Audio Commentary by Filmmaker/Historian Steve Mitchell and Combat Films: American Realism Author Steven Jay Rubin
- Audio Commentary by Screenwriter William Goldman and the Film’s Main Crew
DISC 2 (BLU-RAY):
- NEW Audio Commentary by Filmmaker/Historian Steve Mitchell and Combat Films: American Realism Author Steven Jay Rubin
- Audio Commentary by Screenwriter William Goldman and the Film’s Main Crew
- Theatrical Trailer