Medjesky o4

the bridge on the river Kwai is a movie that, unlike many of the movies in today's media, takes the time to flesh out characters, worlds and ideas. the story is simple: an English battalion surrenders to the Japanese and agrees to work on a bridge, but on their terms.their terms are of course the rules of the Geneva convention. the commanding officer of the English group is very stubborn in his beliefs and is true to the code of war, his soldiers are loyal and brave and his enemy is clear. writing wise the movies is fairly simple at first though a there is a seemingly loose sub-plot that turns into a major plot point concerning one commander sheer that evolves into something of a search and rescue. the colonel in charge of the prisoners gets torn between his duty to build the bridge and the escape prisoners, his men.

the story itself is a testament to good  screen writing and the ideas of duty are tested. the way this movie synthesizes the story and it's ideology, with the lighting and score are phenomenal. the writers and director took time to develop characters that were otherwise mysterious and blurs the line of good and evil. very well bet where this movie shines the most is presentation. The way the movie conveys the colonel and the major are not only interesting but amazing given the time. in the beginning we are immersed into it with establishing shots of the location. when the major is making his daring escape you feel the thrill and terror and find yourself wondering if he'll get to safety. there are aerial shots when he is stuck on the boat and the writing when he arrives at the hospital and is being asked to return you feel his anguish. without giving too much away the colonel is also superbly portrayed. he is stubborn, and plenty of times he tells the warden of the pow camp that his officers will not work. though he abandons these ideas later in the movie you can see how much he cares about getting his work done.

overall i didn't think i would like this movie, but i was pleasantly surprised by the depth of characters, the lush and dangerous environments, the fantastic swells and lulls in the score and the interesting plot. the feeling of immersion was there from the moment i started watching and even though this movie is a hefty 2 and a half hours i highly recommend it.