"A Bridge Too Far"

Title: "A Bridge Too Far"

MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Richard Attenborough
Producers: J.E. Levine and R.P. Levine
Editing: Anthony Gibbs
Composer: John Addison
Starring:
- James Caan as Staff Sargeant Frederick "Boy" Browning
- Michael Caine as Lieutenant-Colonel J.O.E. Vandeleur
- Sean Connery as Major General Roy Urquhart
- Elliott Gould as Col. Robert Stout
- Gene Hackman as Major General Stanislaw Sosabowski

- Anthony Hopkins as Lieutenant Colonel John Frost
- Robert Redford as Major Julian Cook
- Laurence Olivier as Dr. Jan Spaander
- Maximillian Schell as Commanding Officer of II S.S. Panzer Troops

Plot and Critical Review: September 1944. The Allied advance is being slowed by overextended supply lines. U.S. General George S. Patton and British Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery have competing plans for ending the war quickly, and being the first to get to Berlin. Under political pressure, Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower chooses Montgomery's "Operation Market Garden."

Operation Market Garden envisions 35,000 men being flown 300 miles from air bases in England and being dropped as much as 64 miles behind enemy lines in the Netherlands. The largest airborne assault ever attempted. As Lieutenant-General Frederick Browning says, "We're going to lay a carpet, as it were, of airborne troops. We shall seize the bridges - it's all a question of bridges - with thunderclap surprise, and hold them until they can be secured."

Two divisions of U.S. paratroopers are responsible for securing the road and bridges as far as Nijmegen. A British division, under Major-General Urquhart is to land near Arnhem, and take and hold the far side of the bridge at Arnhem, backed by Polish paratroopers under General Sosabowski. XXX Corps are to push up the road to Arnhem, as quickly as possible, over the bridges captured by the paratroopers, and reach Arnhem two days after the drop.

After the Market Garden command briefing, General Sosabowski voices his deep doubts that the plan can work. American commander General Gavin worries about parachuting in daylight.

British commanders are alerted that they are short on transport aircraft and the area near Arnhem is ill-suited for a landing. They decide to land in an open area eight miles from the bridge. Some at the briefing are surprised they are going to attempt a landing so far from the bridge, but they have to make the best of it. General Urquhart tells that the key for the eight mile distance from the drop zone to the bridge, is the use of gliders to bring in Jeeps. Browning lays out that if any one group fails, the entire operation fails. The British officers do not question the orders, but Sosabowski walks up to check the RAF briefing officer's uniform insignia and says "Just making sure whose side you're on."

The general consensus among the British top brass is that resistance will consist entirely of "Hitler Youth or old men.", but young British intelligence officer, Major Fuller, brings reconnaissance photos to General Browning showing German tanks at Arnhem. Browning dismisses the photos, and also ignores reports from the Dutch underground. Browning does not want to be the one to tell Montgomery of any doubts because many previous airborne operations have been cancelled. Major Fuller's concerns are brushed off and he is removed from duty.

British officers note that the portable radios are not likely to work for the long distance from the drop zone to the Arnhem bridge amid the water and trees of the Netherlands. They choose not to convey their concerns to those in command.

At the XXX Corps briefing, the overall plan is outlined, laying out the bridges that will be taken by the paratroopers, held and then secured by ground forces. Speed is the vital factor, as Arnhem must be reached within 2–3 days. It is the crucial bridge, the last means of escape for the German forces in the Netherlands and an excellent route to Germany for Allied forces.

The airborne drops catch the Germans totally by surprise, and there is little resistance. Most of the men come down safely and assemble quickly, but the Son bridge is blown up by the Germans. Model, thinking that the Allies are trying to capture him, panics and retreats from Arnhem. However, soon after landing, troubles beset Urquhart's division. Many of the Jeeps either don't arrive by gliders at all or are shot up in an ambush. Their radio sets are also useless, meaning no contact can be made with either paratroopers moving into Arnhem or XXX Corps. Meanwhile, German forces reinforce Nijmegen and Arnhem.

XXX Corps' progress is slowed by German resistance, the narrowness of the highway and the need to construct a Bailey bridge to replace the destroyed bridge at Son. The XXX Corps is able to move onto the Graves bridge without much resistance, but is halted at Nijmegen. There, soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division perform a dangerous daylight river crossing in flimsy canvas-and-wood assault boats. The river crossing is successful and the Nijmegen bridge is captured. The Germans close in on the isolated British paratroopers occupying part of Arnhem at the bridge. British armour continues to fight its way up the corridor, but is delayed by strong German resistance.

After securing Nijmegen Bridge, XXX Corps waits several hours for its infantry forces to finish securing the town. Finally Sosabowski's troops enter the battle. They attempt to reinforce the British in Arnhem, but fail. They are only able to get a few men across to reinforce the British. After days of house-to-house fighting in Arnhem many of the paratroopers are either captured or forced to withdraw. Operation Market Garden has failed.

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"A Bridge..." wanted to be the "The Longest Day" of its time. No expense was spared as the most popular actors of the time were assembled to form a "mega-cast." The producers hoped that this would increase the quality of the film's acting and bring many people to see it for the sake of their favorite actor. With such a decorated cast they felt certain to hit audiences across the board. Strong as their casting might have been, no one could have anticipated the content of the film would become so contested.

When we watch movies about WWII we expect the good guys (Allied Forces - normally US military) to win in the end. "The Longest Day", "The Thin Red Line", and "Saving Private Ryan" all feature plot lines that end in Allied victories, even if at a great cost in the way of soldiers' lives. And then there's "A Bridge Too Far" which is about, if nothing else, a seemingly fail-safe mission that became a complete embarrassment to the Allied Forces. This film doesn't pull any punches in displaying the ignorance and pride of Allied commanders. The public gave up $50 million at the box office, but the Academy and many of the cinematic boards refused the film awards (even nominations) because it showed a failure on the part of the "good guys."

My Rating: 7.5/10

Content To Caution:

V-4 - Intense battle and war-related violence throughout.
L-4 - I guess they were upset about something...
DU-1.5 - Many soldiers drink and smoke. One character is always seen with a cigar in his mouth.
RT-1 - No comment.
H/S-2 - No comment.
CH-1.5 - Boys telling boys jokes.
S/N-.5 - No comment.

The "Reel Revelation": "A Moment Of Silence"

"Would five minutes be too much? Just five minutes respite. Dear God, grant these young men die in peace and quiet."

Do you recall this scene from the film? After the majority of the battles had been fought many of the wounded soldiers were relocated to a makeshift hospital in a large home the Allied forces had claimed as a command center. The family that lived in the home was forced to take shelter in a small room underneath a stairwell. After the mother of the family put her children to bed she opened the door and looked out upon a room full of soldiers both wounded and near death. The sound of cannon-fire faded and she asked God to grant those soldiers a quiet and peaceful death

Our world is loud. We've become accustomed (and this conditioned) to an unbelievable level of volume around us. Television sets in the home, radios in our vehicles, and mp3 players everywhere in between. But what we're hearing isn't just music or the news; it's noise. Have you ever noticed how much noise there is around you? Or, do you ever notice how little quiet there is?

On an average day here are some of the things i'm most likely to hear in my office:

Alerts from my phone

The AC system turning on and shutting off and turning on again

The printer in the rehearsal room turning out copies

Doors opening and closing

Folks stopping in to chat

Music

The wind (and rain and hail) against the windows

The buzz of the fluorescent bulbs overhead

Traffic

Sirens of emergency vehicles

The phone ringing

Choirs rehearsing

A random kid banging away on the drum set

And the list goes on. I don't hear all of those sounds at the same time, of course, but sometimes it seems like it! And yet i'm able to sit at my desk and complete my tasks as if I was sitting in the middle of a wrecking yard. Even though there's so much sound around me I barely seem to hear it; that's how used to it I am. I really notice the noise (or the absence of it) when I walk at night or awake early in the morning and there's no sound but the whisper of the wind and my feet on the pavement. It's during those moments I feel I am most aware of myself, my thoughts, and God's presence.

It would be heretical to say that God isn't in the "noise", for Jesus came into our noisy world and was even sentenced to death by our screaming. We are able to fellowship with God in a busy and noisy world, but there seems to be a very deep connection between a heart of prayer and silence. We remember, for example, that Jesus told His disciples to "Come away by yourselves to a deserted place..." (Mark 6:31) and that He Himself went way to a "secluded place" (Luke 4:42) when He needed to be alone for prayer and rest. If Jesus needed to get away to a silent place to pray, ought we follow suit?

If you were to pray and ask God to help you find five minutes of quiet time today, would you know it when it arrived? Would you be willing to sit in stillness for five minutes and offer your heart to Christ? Could you shut out the volume of the world and be with Jesus for just five minutes? Make that your aim today and for the remainder of this Lenten season. Find the time. Make that time. Ask God to help you to know when it arrives. Find that "secluded place" and be with Jesus. His voice will be the sweetest sound of all.

See you tomorrow - E.T.

P.S. - I'd like to dedicate this review to my Dad. We've shared a love of war movies for a long time and "A Bridge..." is one we've enjoyed over and over again.