Like The Longest Day, the other great Hollywood World War 2 epic based on the works of Cornelius Ryan, A Bridge Too Far was independently produced. Daryl F. Zanuck risked a personal fortune to tell the story of the Normandy Invasion in the former while, in the latter, maverick mogul Joseph E. Levine came out of retirement to fulfill a promise he had made to Ryan (who died of cancer in 1974) to bring his book about Operation Market Garden to the big screen. While it doesn't quite capture the tight plotting or the enormous scale of its predecessor, A Bridge Too Far is still a great film in its own right.
The film really captures the tragedy of war (something Zanuck wanted to focus on more in The Longest Day). Many of the film's strongest scenes are not big battle sequences but subtle moments of genuine humanity amidst the inhumanity of war. This is something of a theme running throughout the film. Early in the film Sergeant Eddie Dohun (James Caan) promises his captain that he will survive the battle, and we later see him fulfilling this promise at great personal risk, even threatening to shoot the surgeon at the field hospital unless he operates immediately. Throughout the film we see Liv Ullmann's Kate ter Horst (whose narration opens the film) caring for the wounded and dying. The film's final image is of her and her family leaving their now ruined home to join a group of refugees.
This is not to say that the film does not have some impressive spectacle. The parachute drop, featuring hundreds of extras and many authentic C47s, is draw dropping. The battle scenes are also impressively mounted. Particularly well done is the assault on the bridge at Nijmegen by members the 82nd Airborne. Its intensity and realism anticipate the more famous beach landing in Saving Private Ryan. A particularly memorable moment, which actually happened, is Major Julian Cook's (Robert Redford) repetition of "Haily Mary, full of grace" in time with his rowing. In general, the film does not shy away from portraying the religiosity of the people who lived through the event. In the penultimate scene, the British wounded, left behind, sing "Abide With Me" as they await their imminent capture once the Germans arrive.
Much credit has to go to Joseph Levine, who risked a small fortune to finance the film. Levine had promised Cornelius Ryan, on his deathbed, that he would bring the author's book to the screen. To carry this out he sought out the relatively inexperienced director Richard Attenborough, an actor who had made propaganda films for RAF during the war. Attenborough does an admirable job behind the camera, holding together the various moving parts while maintaining focus on the human story. Like Levine, he was dedicated to ensuring that the film stayed true to history, insisting that it be shot on location in the Netherlands. He uses a documentary-like approach behind the camera, which is complemented by cinematographer Geoffrey Unsworth's muted, naturalistic lighting.
Attenborough was friends with the film's composer, John Addison, who had served with the British XXX Corps during Market Garden. Addison and Attenborough were agreed that the film, with its documentary approach, would benefit from a minimal use of orchestral music. The director suggested that Addison focus on the characters while writing his score, rather the scoring the battle scenes. His score, surprisingly, brings out the ironic side of the story more than anything else. Yet there's sense of underlying sadness and tragedy there as well.
Much of this can also be credited to screenwriter William Goldman, best known for penning Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and All the President's Men (1976), both historical films with a deep layer of irony. What holds the rather complex plot together is Goldman's ingenious analogy of a western movie, where XXX Corps is the cavalry on the way to rescue the beleaguered settlers (the airborne troops), only in this case they arrive too late. His script stays admirably close to the actual events. So many small details, that one might expect to be creative liberties, are actually true. A German soldier did just happen upon the allied plans in a downed glider. The allied planes did inadvertently drop supplies behind the German lines. Goldman does a particularly good job showing how blindsided most of the allied commanders were by their success and how these unforeseen and, often, highly coincidental events lead, ultimately, to disaster. This was particularly tragic for the Dutch civilians, whose eagerness for liberation early in the film is bitterly let down by its end. The Germans, on the other hand, are shown to be demoralized and resigned and then subsequently incredulous at their temporary success.
Attenborough and Addison were not the only people involved in the film who served during the war. Dirk Bogarde, who plays General Browning, the man tasked with coordinating the operation, served on General Montgomery's staff during the war. Paul Maxwell, who portrays Maxwell Taylor in the film, was in the Canadian Artillery. Hardy Krüger, who plays an SS Panzer Division commander based on Heinz Harmel, was impressed into an SS division near the end of the war when he was only 16. What's particularly remarkable is that most of the cast bear a striking resemblance to their real-life counterparts, yet another trait the film shares with The Longest Day.
Levine, lacking studio resources, relied on star power to sell the film, and he brought in some of the biggest names in Hollywood. Edward Fox stands out as the commander of XXX Corps, Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks. Fox's combination of enthusiasm and wit make him a perfect fit for the role of the charismatic commander. Michael Caine provides a sardonic, laid-back contrast to Fox as his subordinate, Lieutenant-Colonel J.O.E. Vandeleur. Sean Connery's presence lends a sense of manliness and gallantry to Major-General Roy Urquhart, the commander of the 1st British Airborne Division, who became surrounded and isolated miles away from their objective. Connery does a good job conveying the General's growing frustration and disenchantment as the battle progresses. Anthony Hopkins shines as Lieutenant-Colonel John Frost, whose advance units reached Arnhem early, only to be cut off from the rest of their unit and slowly decimated by the overwhelming superiority of the German forces. Frost was an eccentric commander, who went into battle with a hunting horn and would coolly walk through the streets of Arnhem while under enemy fire, and Hopkins portrayal is spot on. Finally, Gene Hackman puts in a passionate performance as the Polish General Stanisław Sosabowski, whose opposition to the plan lead to his being made a scapegoat for the other commanders after it failed.
Of the Americans, Ryan O'Neal is surprisingly effective as Brigadier General James Gavin, bringing an unexpected weight and gravity to the role of the famous general. Robert Redford gets some of the film's strongest material as Major Julian Cook while Elliot Gould adds a sense of irony as Colonel Robert Stout (a fictional character inspired by Robert Sink, commander of the 506th Parachute Regiment). Finally, James Caan brings his brash, swaggering presence to bear as Staff Sergeant Eddie Dohun (whose name in real life was Charles Dohun). Laurence Olivier and Liv Ullmann, meanwhile bring a real sensitivity and sense of sympathy to the Dutch civilians Jan Spaander and Kate ter Horst (known as the "Angel of Arnhem"). Finally, Maximilian Schell helps to humanize the German commander Wilhelm Bittrich capturing his incisive leadership and gallantry, especially in his treatment of the defeated enemy.
A Bridge Too Far is both a stirring epic and a poignant tragedy. The way filmmakers managed to compress this highly complicated event into a manageable and comprehensible 3-hour film while maintaining a delicate balance between irony, spectacle and genuine pathos, is truly impressive.
