Set in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp during World World II, Bridge stars Alec Guinness as the colonel in charge of the British captives. Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa) runs the POW camp with an iron first and demands that the British prisoners build a bridge rail connecting them to the jungles of Burma. Guinness, who projects a certain Jedi-like quality, takes this project as a way for the British soldiers to retain their self-respect. He feels that building this bridge will show Britain’s architectural superiority and also allow the men to rise above the level of merely prisoners through self-empowerment.

This is where the story splits in two parts. One half of the story is the battle of wills between Guinness and Hayakawa. Both men are extremely proud and honorable. Although they seem to detest each other there is a deep underlying feeling of mutual respect. The other half of the story is somewhat less compelling, however, no less important to the film. Seen through parallel cross cuts, William Holden is an American prison camp escapee who is sent back to the camp with the orders to destroy the bridge so the Japanese cannot use it.

The Bridge! on the River Kwai instantly takes its place as one of the greatest war films ever made. Based on Pierre Bouelle’s novel, not only does it examine the personal side of the war through the personal battle between Guinness and Hayakawa; it also shows the bitter irony of war. Guinness’ men built the bridge in order to be good soldiers, but the British send someone in to destroy the bridge in order to win the war.

In addition to taking home the golden statuette for Best Picture, Bridge was award six other Oscars. David Lean won for Best Director and Alec Guinness was honored for Best Actor. It also won Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Score (containing the famous whistling of “Colonel Bogey March”), and Best Cinematography. Sessue Hayakawa was beaten in the Best Supporting Actor category by Red Buttons in Sayonara.

An interesting bit of gossip circulating is that the novelist Pierre Bouelle was not the screenwriter. The word on the street is that blacklisted scribes Michael Wilson and Carl Foreman actually should have received the Academy Award for the script.

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF
One of the most difficult tasks for a screenwriter is to adapt a play to a motion picture.

Often times dialogue on stage can become quite stilted on the big screen. Also, plays are usually confined to a couple of different sets which limits the scope of the film. Despite these possible stumbling blocks writer/director Richard Brooks has successfully adapted Tennessee Williams’ play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof into a fine film.

Set in the South, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof centers around a family who is vying for their dying patriarch’s inheritance. Burl Ives plays the commanding Big Daddy, who is terminally ill and wants to give his estate to his favorite son, Brick. However, Brick, a broken ex-jock played by Paul Newman, cannot stand his domineering father, his overbearing wife (Elizabeth Taylor), or his life in general. Despite his wife’s constant urging Newman wants no part of getting back into his father’s good graces and could care less about the inheritance or his disintegrating marriage.

Although Richard Brooks down played Brick's sexual confusion , he remained fairly true to Williams’ version. The viewer feels the sultry heat of the setting and the story ooze off of the screen. Burl Ives gives a standout performance as Big Daddy, who cannot love his children as much as he loves himself. Former child actor Elizabeth Taylor has shown that she really has grown up in front of our eyes. The bright-eyed star of National Velvet and the Lassie films has transformed into a beautiful, sensual siren in the role of Maggie the Cat. The real star of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, however, is relative newcomer Paul Newman.

Newman hits every note correctly in the difficult role of Brick. He demonstrates the character’s disenchantment with the world around him without making him seem pathetic. He combines the commanding screen presence of Spencer Tracey and Gary Cooper with his own brand of devastatingly good looks. In just his fourth feature film appearance, Paul Newman has established himself as a movie star for decades to come.