Verified purchase I first saw “A Bridge Too Far” when it was released in 1977 and I enjoyed it. It still has much to recommend it. It is an old-fashioned war film and the soldiers are shown as brave, heroic, and highly motivated. It is about Operation Market Garden in 1944, which involved landing 35,000 paratroopers behind the German lines.
A Bridge Too Far (book), a non-fiction book by Cornelius Ryan on Operation Market Garden. A Bridge Too Far (film), a film based on the book, directed by Richard Attenborough.
Look up a bridge too far in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. A Bridge Too Far may refer to: "A bridge too far", an idiom inspired by Operation Market Garden, meaning an act of overreaching.
"In strictly cinematic terms, the appeal of A Bridge Too Far is easy to state: it is spectacular in the size and range of its effects, earnestly well-acted by a starry and able cast, well-paced and swift despite its length, and marked by an evident attempt to give the balanced truth of a tragic episode from history."
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A Bridge Too Far, directed by Richard Attenborough, is a war film on an epic scale. It follows the men who fought through one of the worst military blunders of World War 2: Operation Market Garden. This is the true story behind XXX (30) Corps, during Operation Market Garden.
The meaning of the term “a bridge too far” refers to a goal or aim which is too ambitious. The origin of the idiom “a bridge too far” comes from the second world war when troops had difficulty in physically holding up a bridge without the correct tools, thus the phrase was coined.
Late in 1944, the Allies seem to have the upper hand in the European land war. A combined British and American paratrooper force, led by American general Gavin and British general Urquhart (Sean Connery), plans to take a highway leading from the Netherlands into Germany, so that British ground troops led by Lieutenant General Horrocks (Edward Fox) and Lieutenant Colonel Vandeleur (Michael Caine) can enter enemy territory. But the Allies soon learn that they may be overconfident.A Bridge Too Far / Film synopsis
German victoryBattle of ArnhemDate 17–26 September 1944 (1 week and 2 days) Location Gelderland, Netherlands 51°58′49″N 5°54′01″E Result German victoryBelligerentsUnited Kingdom PolandGermanyCommanders and leaders8 more rows
The battle of Arnhem (17–25 September 1944) was a bold – but ultimately failed – attempt to outflank German defences in north-west Europe by establishing a bridgehead across the lower Rhine river at the Dutch town of Arnhem.
Major John HowardOn the night of 5 June 1944, a force of 181 men, led by Major John Howard, took off from RAF Tarrant Rushton in Dorset, southern England in six Horsa gliders to capture Pegasus Bridge, and also "Horsa Bridge", a few hundred yards to the east, over the Orne River.
The Allies Hoped Operation Market Garden Would End WWII. Here's What Went Wrong. It was a daring and massive offensive into the Nazi-occupied Netherlands that ultimately became a costly failure. It was a daring and massive offensive into the Nazi-occupied Netherlands that ultimately became a costly failure.
Steve McQueen was offered one of the major roles for the film. However upon discovering Maximillan Schell had been cast, McQueen immediately lost interest. The reason, was due to Schell having had an affair with McQueen's first wife. All of the star actors received a $250,000 weekly fee.
It's a movie worth watching, even though it is about a battle that could not be won. [1] Unsurprisingly, A Bridge Too Far was more successful in Great Britain and the Netherlands, the nations that are more attuned to the history of Operation Market-Garden. It did well enough in British and Dutch theaters that Joseph E.
Massive, shapeless, often unexpectedly moving, confusing, sad, vivid and very, very long. Long, worthy and detailed film.
Field Marshal Bernard MontgomeryMarket Garden was a risky plan of British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. It was executed by 41.628 English, American and Polish airborne troops and three divisions on the ground. The operation consisted of two parts. Operation Market was the largest airborne operation in the history of warfare.
The true story of Operation Market Garden, the Allies attempt, in September 1944, to hasten the end of World War II by driving through Belgium and Holland into Germany. The idea was for U.S.
Sir Dirk Bogarde 's portrayal of General Browning was highly controversial, and several friends of the late General suggested that, had Browning still been alive in 1977, he would have sued director Sir Richard Attenborough and screenwriter William Goldman for libel.
A Bridge Too Far is a 1977 epic war film based on the 1974 book of the same name , directed by Richard Attenborough and with a screenplay by William Goldman. Produced by Joseph E. Levine and Richard P. Levine, it was the second film based on a book by historian Cornelius Ryan to be adapted for the screen (after 1962's The Longest Day ).
To promote the film, scriptwriter William Goldman wrote a book titled Story of A Bridge Too Far as a favour to Joseph E. Levine. It was published in December 1977 and divided into three sections: "Reflections on Filmmaking in General and A Bridge Too Far ".
The Arnhem bridge is the prime target, as it serves as the last means of escape for the German forces in the Netherlands and a direct route to Germany for the Allies. The road to it, however, is only a single highway linking the various key bridges, and vehicles have to squeeze to the shoulder to pass.
Gene Siskel gave the film two-and-a-half out of four stars and wrote, "More often than not, A Bridge Too Far isn't a story; it's a parade of famous faces. As for the battle footage, it is more often tedious than glamorous. The paratroop landing provides a spectacular five minutes. Other action footage is routine.".
Because of heavy traffic, the crew had permission to film on the bridge only between eight and nine o'clock on October 3, 1976. Failure to complete the scene would have necessitated rescheduling at a cost—including Redford's overtime—of at least a million dollars.
The scenes around the "Arnhem" bridge were shot in Deventer, where a similar bridge over the IJssel was still available. Although a replica of the original road bridge in Arnhem existed, by the mid-1970s modern urban development surrounded it, making it impossible to use as a setting for a 1940s city.
Upon arrival at British headquarters, Urquhart confronts Browning about his personal sentiments regarding the operation, wherein the latter contradicts his earlier optimism regarding it. Back in Oosterbeek, Kate ter Horst, whose home was converted into a makeshift hospital by the British, abandons its ruins.
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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.
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