Editing A Bridge Too Far (film)

{{short description|1977 film by Richard Attenborough}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = A Bridge Too Far
| image          = Bridge_too_far_movieposter.jpg
| caption        = Original film poster
| screenplay     = [[William Goldman]]
| based_on       = {{based on|''[[A Bridge Too Far (book)|A Bridge Too Far]]'' |[[Cornelius Ryan]]}}
| starring       = {{ubl|[[Dirk Bogarde]]|[[James Caan]]|[[Michael Caine]]|[[Sean Connery]]|[[Edward Fox (actor)|Edward Fox]]|[[Elliott Gould]]|[[Gene Hackman]]|[[Anthony Hopkins]]|[[Hardy Krüger]]|[[Laurence Olivier]]| [[Ryan O'Neal]]|[[Robert Redford]]|[[Maximilian Schell]]|[[Liv Ullmann]]}}
| director       = [[Richard Attenborough]]
| producer       = {{ubl|[[Joseph E. Levine]]|Richard P. Levine}}
| cinematography = [[Geoffrey Unsworth]]
| music          = [[John Addison]]
| editing        = [[Antony Gibbs]]
| studio         = Joseph E. Levine Productions
| distributor    = [[United Artists]]
| released       = {{film date|1977|06|15|df=y}}
| runtime        = 176 minutes
| country        = {{plainlist|
* United Kingdom<ref name="Lumiere">{{cite web|title=''A Bridge Too Far'' (1977)|url=http://lumiere.obs.coe.int/web/film_info/?id=29032|website=[[Lumiere (database)|Lumiere]]|access-date=August 2, 2017|archive-date=June 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623123835/http://lumiere.obs.coe.int/web/film_info/?id=29032|url-status=live}}</ref>
* United States<ref>{{cite web|url=http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b6bc68604|title=A Bridge Too Far (1977)|work=BFI|access-date=August 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151209165044/http://explore.bfi.org.uk/4ce2b6bc68604|archive-date=December 9, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>
}}
| language       = {{ubl|English|German|Dutch}}
| budget         = $25 million<ref>{{cite journal |last=McKenna |first=A.T. |title=Joseph E. Levine and A Bridge Too Far (1977): A Producer's Labour of Love |journal=Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=211–227 |year=2011 |s2cid=144254805 |doi=10.1080/01439685.2011.572606}}</ref>
| gross          = $50.7 million<ref>{{cite web|url=https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=bridgetoofar.htm|website=[[Box Office Mojo]]|title=''A Bridge Too Far'', Box Office Information|access-date=May 26, 2014|archive-date=July 13, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140713212139/http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=bridgetoofar.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}

'''''A Bridge Too Far''''' is a 1977 [[Epic film|epic]] [[war film]] directed by [[Richard Attenborough]]. It depicts [[Operation Market Garden]], a failed Allied operation in the Nazi-occupied [[Netherlands in World War II|Netherlands]] during [[World War II]]; the film's [[screenplay]], by [[William Goldman]], is based on a [[A Bridge Too Far (book)|book of the same title]] by historian [[Cornelius Ryan]].<ref name="Goldman">{{harvnb|Goldman|1977}}</ref> It stars an [[ensemble cast]], featuring [[Dirk Bogarde]], [[James Caan]], [[Michael Caine]], [[Sean Connery]], [[Edward Fox (actor)|Edward Fox]], [[Elliott Gould]], [[Gene Hackman]], [[Anthony Hopkins]], [[Hardy Krüger]], [[Laurence Olivier]], [[Ryan O'Neal]], [[Robert Redford]], [[Maximilian Schell]] and [[Liv Ullmann]].

Independently produced by Richard and [[Joseph E. Levine]], it was the second film based on a book by Ryan to be adapted for the screen (after ''[[The Longest Day (film)|The Longest Day]]'' (1962)).<ref>{{cite book| url=https://www.amazon.com/Longest-Day-June-1944/dp/B002YJG2WU| title=The Longest Day| first=Cornelius| last=Ryan| author-link=Cornelius Ryan| edition=1st| publisher=Simon & Schuster| location=New York City| year=1959| asin=B002YJG2WU| access-date=2019-07-21| archive-date=2021-03-03| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303203921/https://www.amazon.com/Longest-Day-June-1944/dp/B002YJG2WU| url-status=live}}</ref> It was the second film based on the events of Operation Market Garden, following ''[[Theirs Is the Glory]]'' (1946).<ref name="Theirs">'' "Theirs Is the Glory." Arnhem, Hurst and Conflict on Film'', Co-authored by David Truesdale and Allan Esler Smith. Page x, Introduction. Published 2016 by Helion and Company. {{ISBN|978-1-911096-63-4}}</ref> A co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States,<ref name=":1">{{cite web |title=AFI&#124;Catalog |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/MovieDetails/56111 |website=catalog.afi.com}}</ref> the film was shot on location in the [[Netherlands]], in many of the real locations where the historical events took place.

Although released to a tepid critical response, ''A Bridge Too Far'' received several awards. At the [[31st British Academy Film Awards|31st BAFTA Awards]] it won four out of eight nominated categories, including [[BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role|Best Supporting Actor]] for Edward Fox and [[BAFTA Award for Best Score|Best Score]] for [[John Addison]]—who himself had served in the British [[XXX Corps (United Kingdom)|XXX Corps]] during Market Garden. Attenborough was nominated for [[BAFTA Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]], and the film was nominated for [[BAFTA Award for Best Film|Best Motion Picture]].  It was a success at the box office, becoming the sixth-most popular movie of 1977.

==Plot==
[[Operation Market Garden]] involves 35,000 men being flown {{convert|300|mi}} from airfields in England and dropped behind enemy lines in the [[Netherlands in World War II|Netherlands]]. Two divisions of US paratroopers are responsible for securing the road and bridges as far as [[Nijmegen]]. A British division, under Major-General [[Roy Urquhart]], is to land near [[Arnhem]] and hold the bridge there, backed by a brigade of [[Polish Armed Forces in the West|Polish]] paratroopers under General [[Stanisław Sosabowski]]. [[XXX Corps (United Kingdom)|XXX Armoured Corps]] is to push up the road over the captured bridges and reach Arnhem within two days.

As Major-General Urquhart briefs his officers, some are surprised that they are going to attempt a landing so far from their objectives. Although the consensus is that resistance will consist entirely of inexperienced old men and [[Hitler Youth]], [[Aerial reconnaissance|reconnaissance]] photos show German tanks at Arnhem. General [[Frederick Browning|Browning]] nevertheless dismisses the photos and ignores reports from the [[Dutch resistance|Dutch underground]].

The Arnhem bridge is the prime target, as the last means of escape for the German forces in the Netherlands and it is a direct route to Germany. However the road to it is only a single lane linking the key bridges, and vehicles have to squeeze onto the verge to pass. The road is also elevated, causing anything moving along it to stand out.

Although the airborne drops surprise the enemy and meet little resistance, the [[Son, North Brabant|Son bridge]] is demolished by the Germans just before it can be secured. Furthermore, many of the [[Willys MB|jeeps]] either do not arrive or are destroyed in an ambush, in addition to their nonfunctional radio sets.

Meanwhile, XXX Corps's progress is slowed by German resistance, the narrowness of the road, and the need to construct a [[Bailey bridge]] to replace the bridge at Son. They are halted at Nijmegen, where soldiers of the [[82nd Airborne Division]] perform a daylight crossing to capture the [[Nijmegen railway bridge|Nijmegen bridge]], and XXX Corps is further delayed waiting for infantry to secure the town.

The Germans close in on the isolated British paratroopers occupying Arnhem near the bridge, and although Sosabowski's troops finally arrive after being delayed in England they are too late to reinforce the British. After days of intense fighting against [[SS]] infantry and [[panzer]]s the outgunned troops are either captured or forced to withdraw to [[Oosterbeek]]. Urquhart receives orders to retreat, while the other Allied commanders blame the various difficulties encountered for their failure to provide support.

Urquhart escapes with less than a fifth of his original 10,000 troops while those who are too badly injured to flee stay behind to cover the withdrawal. At British headquarters, Urquhart confronts Browning about his personal sentiments regarding the operation and the latter contradicts his earlier optimism.

Back in Oosterbeek [[Kate ter Horst]], whose home has been converted into a makeshift hospital by the British, abandons its ruins. Passing through the front yard, now a graveyard for fallen troops, she and her children leave with an elderly doctor, pulling a few possessions in a cart, while wounded British troops sing "[[Abide with Me]]" as they await capture.

==Cast and roles==
''Note: Characters ordered by rank''

===British===
{| class="wikitable"
|- "
! style="width:150px;"|Actor
! style="width:280px;"|Character
! style="width:280px;"|Based on
! style="width:650px;"|Notes
|-
| [[Dirk Bogarde]] || [[Lieutenant-General]] [[Frederick Browning|Frederick 'Boy' Browning]] || {{n/a}} || [[General officer commanding|GOC]] [[I Airborne Corps (United Kingdom)|I British Airborne Corps]], and at [[Headquarters|HQ]] [[First Allied Airborne Army]] as its [[Second-in-command|deputy commander]], [[British Army]] at Nijmegen.
|-
| [[Edward Fox (actor)|Edward Fox]] || Lieutenant-General [[Brian Horrocks]] || {{n/a}} || GOC, XXX Corps,{{efn|Carried the primary responsibility for the 'Garden' ground offensive part of the operation}} British [[Second Army (United Kingdom)|Second Army]].<ref>Fox had known General Horrocks as a friend before working on the film and took care to portray him accurately. Later he would cite this as his favourite film role. {{Citation|url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/attenborough/bridgefar.html |title=A Bridge Too Far (1977) British Film Institute |access-date=October 19, 2009|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080312084607/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/attenborough/bridgefar.html |archive-date=March 12, 2008}}</ref>
|-
| [[Sean Connery]] || [[Major General|Major-General]] [[Roy Urquhart]] || {{n/a}} || GOC, [[1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom)|1st British Airborne Division]], Arnhem
|-
| [[Donald Douglas (Scottish actor)|Donald Douglas]] || [[Brigadier]] [[Gerald Lathbury]] || {{n/a}} || Brigade Commander, 1st Parachute Brigade, British Army in Arnhem.
|-
| [[Gerald Sim]]|| [[Colonel]] Sims || Arthur Austin Eagger<ref>O.B.E. (Military Division) of the Order "in recognition of gallant and, distinguished services in Sicily" Supplement to The London Gazette, March 23, 1944</ref>|| Senior Medical Officer, 1st Airborne Corps, RAMC, British Army. 
|-
| Richard Kane || Colonel Weaver || Graeme Warrack||Senior Medical Officer, Headquarters RAMC, 1st British Airborne Division, at the Main Dressing Station in the Schoonoord Hotel of the Oosterbeek Perimeter.
|-
| Philip Raymond || Colonel McEwan || Edward H. Goulburn||C.O. 2nd Armoured Grenadier Guards Battalion.
|-
| [[Michael Caine]]|| [[Lieutenant Colonel|Lieutenant-Colonel]] [[Joe Vandeleur|J.O.E. Vandeleur]]|| {{n/a}} || CO, 3rd Battalion (Infantry), the [[Irish Guards]], the [[Guards Armoured Division]], [[XXX Corps (United Kingdom)|XXX Corps]], British Army
|-
| [[Anthony Hopkins]] || Lieutenant-Colonel [[John Frost (British Army officer)|John Frost]] || {{n/a}} || Commanding Officer, 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, [[1st Parachute Brigade (United Kingdom)|1st Parachute Brigade]], 1st British Airborne Division at Arnhem road bridge
|-
| [[Michael Byrne (actor)|Michael Byrne]] || Lieutenant-Colonel [[Giles Vandeleur]] || {{n/a}} ||Acting CO, 2nd Battalion (Armoured), the Irish Guards, the British Guards Armoured Division. Cousin to 'Joe'.
|-
| [[Donald Pickering]] || Lieutenant-Colonel C.B. MacKenzie || {{n/a}} || Principal General Staff Officer (Chief of Staff), Headquarters, 1st Airborne Division, British Army, Divisional HQ at the Hartenstein Hotel
|-
| [[Christopher Good]]|| [[Major (rank)|Major]] Harry Carlyle ||[[Digby Tatham-Warter|Allison Digby Tatham-Warter]].||Officer Commanding, A Company, 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, 1st Parachute Brigade, Arnhem.<ref>The major did not die of wounds at Brigade HQ but was taken prisoner, moved to the St Elizabeth Hospital and later conducted an escape (Operation Pegasus) with the Dutch Resistance to bring out 138 escapees of the battle, returning to his post with the remnants of his company ''Evasion Report: 21st September – 23rd October 1944'' ([http://www.pegasusarchive.org/arnhem/RepPegasus.htm www.pegasusarchive.org])</ref> 
|-
| [[Frank Grimes]] || Major Fuller || [[Brian Urquhart]]||G-2 (Intelligence Officer) for the 1st Airborne Corps,<ref>Ambrose et al 1999, p.132</ref> British Army stationed at the HQ located in [[Moor Park (house)|Moor Park Golf Club]], [[Hertfordshire]], England.
|-
| [[Stephen Moore (actor)|Stephen Moore]]|| Major Robert Steele||[[Anthony Deane-Drummond|Anthony Deane–Drummond]] ||Second–in–command of the divisional signals for [[1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom)|1st Airborne Division]], later attached to [[1st Parachute Brigade (United Kingdom)|1st Parachute Brigade]]. 
|-
| [[John Stride]] || [[Grenadier Guards]] Major || [[Peter Carington, 6th Baron Carrington|Captain Lord Carrington]]||British Grenadier Guards Commander who argues with Major Cook after 82nd capture Nijmegen Bridge. 
|-
| [[Michael Graham Cox]]|| [[Captain]] [[Jimmy Cleminson]]|| {{n/a}} || T/Capt., 5 Platoon, B Company, 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, British Army, Arnhem
|-
| [[Keith Drinkel]] || [[Lieutenant]] Cornish|| Eric MacKay||9th Parachute Squadron Royal Engineers, 1st Airborne Division. 
|-
| [[Denholm Elliott]] || [[RAF]] Meteorology Officer || {{n/a}} ||
|-
| [[Jeremy Kemp]] || RAF Briefing Officer || {{n/a}} || RAF, although the briefing probably took place at the 1st Airborne Corps HQ in [[Moor Park (house)|Moor Park Golf Club]], [[Hertfordshire]], England
|-
| Mark Sheridan || [[Sergeant]] Tomblin || {{n/a}} || 2nd Battalion, 1st Parachute Brigade, 1st British Airborne Division
|-
| [[George Innes]] || Sergeant MacDonald || {{n/a}} || British 1st Airborne Division radio operator at the Hartenstein Hotel
|-
| [[Alun Armstrong]] || [[Corporal]] Davies|| {{n/a}} ||2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, 1st Parachute Brigade, 1st British Airborne Division
|-
| [[Paul Copley]] || [[Private (rank)|Private]] Wicks || Dennis Wicks || [[Batman (military)|Batman]] to Lieutenant Colonel Frost, CO, 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, British Army
|-
| [[Ben Cross]]|| [[Trooper (rank)|Trooper]] Binns || {{n/a}} || 2nd Battalion, 1st Parachute Brigade, 1st British Airborne Division
|-
| [[David Auker]] || 'Taffy' Brace || {{n/a}} || Medic, 1st British Airborne Division
|}

=== Americans ===
{| class="wikitable"
|- "
! style="width:150px;" |Actor
! style="width:280px;"|Role
! style="width:280px;"|Based on
! style="width:650px;" |Notes
|-
| [[Paul Maxwell]] || [[Major general (United States)|Major General]] [[Maxwell Taylor]] || {{n/a}} || CG, 101st Airborne Division, US Army at the Son bridge and later St-Oedenrode
|-
| [[Ryan O'Neal]] || [[Brigadier General]] [[James M. Gavin|James Gavin]]|| {{n/a}} ||Division Commander, US [[82nd Airborne Division]], US Army at the bridge across the River Maas in [[Grave, Netherlands|Grave]], later at the Maas-Waal canal and the bridge across the River Waal in [[Nijmegen]]
|-
| [[Elliott Gould]]|| [[Colonel]] Robert Stout || [[Robert Sink]]{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}||CO, [[506th Infantry Regiment (United States)|506th Parachute Infantry Regiment]], 101st Airborne Division. 
|-
| [[Arthur Hill (Canadian actor)|Arthur Hill]]|| US Army Surgeon Colonel || David Gold||Chief Division Surgeon, 101st Airborne Division Clearing Station. 
|-
| [[Robert Redford]] || [[Major (rank)|Major]] [[Julian Cook]] || {{n/a}} || Commanding Officer, 3rd Battalion, [[504th Parachute Infantry Regiment|504th PIR]], 82nd Airborne, US Army, seizing key bridges over the Maas-Waal Canal and the river assault crossing of the Waal.
|-
| [[Nicholas Campbell]] || [[Captain]] Glass|| LeGrand King Johnson<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=War Stories |url=https://www.101airborneww2.com/warstories2.html |access-date=2023-05-20 |website=www.101airborneww2.com}}</ref>|| CO, F Company, 2nd Battalion, 502PIR. 
|-
| [[Garrick Hagon]] || [[Lieutenant]] Rafferty || {{n/a}} || Lieutenant, 101st Military Police Platoon, 101st Airborne Division, Division Field Hospital, US Army
|-
| [[John Ratzenberger]] || Lieutenant Wall || 1Lt. [[James Megellas]]||Lieutenant, Company H, 504th PIR, 82nd Airborne Division, US Army, at River Waal crossing. 
|-
| [[James Caan]]|| [[Staff sergeant|Staff Sergeant]] Eddie Dohun || Charles Dohun<ref name=":2" />||First Sergeant of Company F, 2nd Battalion, [[502nd Infantry Regiment (United States)|502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment]], [[101st Airborne Division]] [[U.S. Army]] (attacking Best).
|}

=== Other Allies ===
{| class="wikitable"
|- "
! style="width:150px;" |Actor
! style="width:280px;"|Role
! style="width:650px;" |Notes
|-
| [[Gene Hackman]] || [[Major General]] [[Stanisław Sosabowski]] || Brigade Commander, Polish [[1st Independent Parachute Brigade]], [[Polish Armed Forces]]
|-
| [[Peter Faber (actor)|Peter Faber]] || [[Captain (OF-2)|Captain]] [[:nl:Arie Dirk Bestebreurtje|Arie Bestebreurtje]] || Liaison officer with the 82nd Airborne Division, Office of Strategic Services,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.b26.com/page/arie.d.bestebreurtje.htm |title=Capt. Arie D. Bestebreurtje – World War II Special Operations Soldier |publisher=B26.com |access-date=June 14, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020124955/http://www.b26.com/page/arie.d.bestebreurtje.htm |archive-date=October 20, 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Royal Netherlands Army|Royal Dutch Army]]{{efn|Escaping in 1941 to the UK, he studied at the Royal Military Academy and later, in Edinburgh, he was trained as an OSS agent and assigned to operations behind enemy lines in occupied Holland.}}
|-
|Siem Vroom
|[[Dutch Resistance|Dutch underground]] leader
|
|-
|Erik van 't Wout
|Underground leader's son
|
|-
|Marlies van Alcmaer
|Underground leader's wife
|
|}

===Germans===
{| class="wikitable"
|- "
! style="width:150px;"|Actor
! style="width:280px;"|Role
! style="width:280px;"|Based on
! style="width:650px;"|Notes
|-
| [[Wolfgang Preiss]]|| ''[[Generalfeldmarschall]]'' [[Gerd von Rundstedt]]|| {{n/a}} ||Commander, [[OB West]]
|-
| [[Walter Kohut]]|| Generalfeldmarschall [[Walter Model]]|| {{n/a}} || Commander, [[Army Group B]]
|-
| [[Hardy Krüger]]|| [[Brigadeführer|Generalmajor der Waffen-SS]] Karl Ludwig|| [[Heinz Harmel]] || Division Commander, [[10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg]].
|-
| [[Maximilian Schell]]|| [[Obergruppenführer|General der Waffen-SS]] [[Wilhelm Bittrich]]|| {{n/a}} || Corps Commander, [[II SS Panzer Corps]].
|-
| [[Hans von Borsody]] || [[General of the Infantry (Germany)|General der Infanterie]] [[Günther Blumentritt]]|| {{n/a}} || Chief of Staff, [[OB West]]
|-
| [[Fred Williams (actor)|Fred Williams]] || [[SS-Hauptsturmführer]] [[Viktor Eberhard Gräbner]]|| {{n/a}} || Commander, reconnaissance battle group of [[9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen]]
|-
| [[Lex van Delden (actor)|Lex van Delden]] || [[SS-Oberscharführer]] Matthias Boschmann|| {{n/a}} || [[Wilhelm Bittrich|Bittrich]]'s orderly.
|-
| [[Hartmut Becker]] || [[German Army (Wehrmacht)|German Army]] [[Feldgendarmerie]] sentry|| {{n/a}} ||
|}

===Dutch civilians===
{|class="wikitable"
|- "
! style="width:150px;"|Actor
! style="width:280px;"|Role
! style="width:650px;"|Notes
|-
| [[Laurence Olivier]] || Dr Jan Spaander ||
|-
| [[Liv Ullmann]] || [[Kate ter Horst]] ||
|-
| Mary Smithuysen || Old Dutch lady ||
|-
| Hans Croiset || Old Dutch lady's son ||
|-
| Josephine Peeper || Cafe waitress ||
|-
| Tom van Beek || Jan ter Horst ||
|-
| [[Erik Chitty]] || Organist ||
|-
| Albert van der Harst || Medic ||
|-
| [[Richard Attenborough]] || Lunatic wearing glasses || Uncredited cameo 
|}

==Production==
Air filming was done in the first weeks of September 1976, culminating in a series of air drops of a total of 1,000 men.{{efn|A member of the 1st Battalion The Parachute Regiment claims there were no more than 200 men involved. Parachute drops were conducted by the 1st Battalion The Parachute Regiment, only 100 jumpers plus support, 10 man sticks per Dakota.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}}} Supplies were dropped from a number of [[Douglas Dakota|Dakota]] aircraft. The Dakotas were gathered by the film company Joseph E. Levine Presents Incorporated. All aircraft were required to be CAA ([[Civil Aviation Authority (United Kingdom)|Civil Aviation Authority]]) or FAA ([[Federal Aviation Administration]]) registered and licensed to carry passengers. An original deal for the purchase of 10 fell through when two airframes were rejected as passenger configured without the necessary jump doors. 

Eleven Dakotas were procured. Two ex-[[Portuguese Air Force]], 6153 and 6171 (N9984Q and N9983Q), and two from [[Air Djibouti]], operating from [[Djibouti]] in [[French Somaliland]], F-OCKU and F-OCKX (N9985Q and N9986Q) were purchased by [[Joseph E. Levine]]. Three [[Danish Air Force]] K-685, K-687, and K-688, and four [[Finnish Air Force]] [[C-47 Skytrain|C-47]]s, DO-4, DO-7, DO-10 and DO-12, were loaned for the duration of the parachute filming.

Aircraft 6171 doubled as the camera ship on most formations, with a camouflaged [[Piper Aztec]], G-AWDI. A camera was mounted in the astrodome, one on the port upper mainplane surface, with a third camera on the outside of the forward port cabin window and a fourth under the aircraft centre section. In addition, centre escape hatches were removed to make additional camera ports available, provided that no troops were aboard during filming. A second Aztec, G-ASND, was a backup camera ship on some shots, but it was not camouflaged. An [[Aérospatiale Alouette II|Alouette]], G-BDWN, was also employed. After a mishap with G-AWDI, two locally hired [[Cessna 172]]s, PH-GVP and PH-ADF, were also used. Ten [[Airspeed Horsa|Horsa]] glider replicas were built, but a windstorm damaged almost all of them. Seven or eight were hastily repaired for the shoot. 

The replica gliders were tail-heavy and required a support post under the rear fuselage, with camera angles carefully chosen to avoid revealing this. Dakota 6153 was fitted with tow gear and [[Airspeed Horsa|Horsa]] replicas were towed at high speed, though none went airborne. A two-seat [[LET L-13 Blaník|Blaník]] sailplane, provided by a member of the [[London Gliding Club]], [[Dunstable]], was towed aloft for the interior takeoff shots.

[[File:Shooting of a scene from A bridge too far.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Shooting of a scene in [[Deventer]] on 18 May 1976. German vehicles are crossing the bridge.]]
Four [[North American Harvard|Harvard]]s portrayed American and German fighters. Their original identities were PH-KLU, PH-BKT, B-64 and B-118, the former two aircraft loaned by the [[Royal Netherlands Air Force]]. These were flown by members of the ''Gilze Rijen Aero Club'', which also provided an [[Auster Aircraft|Auster]] III, PH-NGK, which depicted an Auster V, RT607, in wartime camouflage. [[Supermarine Spitfire|Spitfire]] Mk. IX, MH434, depicting a photo reconnaissance variant, coded AC-S, was lent by the Hon. Patrick Lindsay, and was flown by aerobatic champion [[Neil Williams (pilot)|Neil Williams]].<ref>Hurst, Flt. Lt. K.J., [[DC-3]] Project Officer for the film; ''[[AIR International]]'', July 1977, Volume 13, Number 1, pp. 33-34, Talkback column</ref>

Runcorn Bridge, in Halton, was used as a back drop for the bridge scenes.[[Silver_Jubilee_Bridge]]{{cn|date=May 2025}}

Sufficient American tanks, jeeps, and trucks of World War II vintage were found because many of the vehicles were being discarded from European military (almost entirely reserve) units, especially from [[Hellenic Army|Greece]] and [[Turkish Land Forces|Turkey]].

The scenes set 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. A few scenes were shot in [[Zutphen]], where the old municipality house and the main church can be seen. Additional scenes were filmed at [[Twickenham Studios]].<ref name=":1"/>

The [[Motion Picture Association|Motion Picture Association of America]] initially gave the film an [[R rating (Motion Picture Association)|R rating]] for its use of the word "[[fuck]]" and depictions of war violence, but United Artists lobbied it to change it to a PG rating so that younger audiences could see the film. Cuts were also made to the film when released in the United Kingdom to avoid an AA rating from the [[British Board of Film Classification|British Board of Film Censors]].<ref name=":1" />

==Finance==
In order to keep costs down, all the star-name actors agreed to participate on a "favoured-nation" basis (i.e. they would all receive the same weekly fee), which in this case was $250,000 per week (the 2012 equivalent of $1,008,250 or £642,000).<ref name="You page 152-3">''Entirely Up To You, Darling''; page 152-3; paperback; Arrow Books; published 2009. {{ISBN|978-0-099-50304-0}}</ref>

Shooting of the American-led assault on the Bridge at Nijmegen was dubbed the "Million-Dollar Hour". Because of heavy traffic, the crew had permission to film on the bridge only between eight and nine o'clock on 3 October 1976. Failure to complete the scene would have necessitated rescheduling at a cost—including Redford's overtime—of at least a million dollars. For this reason, Attenborough insisted that all actors playing corpses keep their eyes closed.<ref name="Goldman" />

After United Artists agreed to pay $6 million for US and Canada distribution rights,<ref name="post">{{cite news |first=C. |last=A. |date=June 15, 1977 |title= The final decision will be mine |newspaper=The Washington Post |id={{ProQuest|146729580}}}}</ref> the film went on to become the sixth-most popular movie at the 1977 US box office.

==Reception==
The film received a favourable, but tepid response from critics.<ref name="FilmCritic" /> Critics agreed that the film was impressively staged<ref>{{cite news|author=Canby, Vincent|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/06/16/archives/film-its-a-long-war-in-bridge-too-far.html|title=Film: It's a Long War In 'Bridge Too Far'|work=The New York Times|date=June 16, 1977|access-date=April 2, 2018|archive-date=December 10, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201210090438/https://www.nytimes.com/1977/06/16/archives/film-its-a-long-war-in-bridge-too-far.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and historically accurate, although many found it too long and too repetitive. On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], 59% of 29 critics gave the film a positive review, with an average rating of 6.1/10. Its critics consensus reads: "''A Bridge Too Far'' is a war movie too long, although top-notch talent on both sides of the camera keeps the end result consistently watchable."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bridge_too_far|title=A Bridge Too Far|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=September 7, 2024}}</ref> According to [[Metacritic]], the film received "generally favorable" reviews based on a [[weighted average]] score of 63 out of 100 from 13 critics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/a-bridge-too-far|title=A Bridge Too Far|website=[[Metacritic]]|publisher=[[CBS Interactive]]|access-date=April 7, 2021}}</ref>

[[Vincent Canby]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' said further, "The movie is massive, shapeless, often unexpectedly moving, confusing, sad, vivid and very, very long."<ref>{{cite news|author-link=Vincent Canby|author=Canby, Vincent|date=June 16, 1977|title=Film: It's a Long War In 'Bridge Too Far'|work=[[The New York Times]]|page=74}}</ref> 
[[James Caan]] and [[Anthony Hopkins]] were cited by many critics for the excellence of their performances in a film with hundreds of speaking roles and cameos by many of the period's top actors.<ref name="FilmCritic">{{cite news|author=Morgan, Jason|url=http://www.filmcritic.com/reviews/1977/a-bridge-too-far/|title=''A Bridge Too Far''|work=FilmCritic|date=Jan 9, 2006|access-date=September 6, 2010|archive-date=September 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110907032404/http://www.filmcritic.com/reviews/1977/a-bridge-too-far/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Generals Urquhart and Horrocks acted as military advisers to the film, adding to its historical accuracy. However, some reviewers suggested that the film contains historical inaccuracies and needs to be viewed as a 'Hollywood' interpretation of events. [[Robin Neillands]] commented, "A countless number of veterans have urged me to ignore most of the story in the film ''A Bridge Too Far''".<ref name=":0">{{cite book|title=The Battle for the Rhine 1944|last=Neillands|first=Robin|publisher=Cassell|year=2005|isbn=978-1-40722-127-4|location=London|pages=87 and 93}}</ref>

[[Stanley Kauffmann]] of ''[[The New Republic]]'' wrote "A picture of conventional length on this subject might have scored some conventional ironies. But why did anyone think that a film about a failed WWII operation, without any novelty of information or deepening of history or even differently spectacular action, should run five minutes less than three hours? A Film Too Long".<ref>{{cite magazine| title=Senses and Nonsenses| url=https://newrepublic.com| publication-date=1977-07-02| magazine=The New Republic}}</ref>

[[Roger Ebert]] gave the film two out of four, describing it as {{blockquote|such an exercise in wretched excess, such a mindless series of routine scenes, such a boringly violent indulgence in all the blood and guts and moans they could find, that by the end we're prepared to speculate that maybe Levine went two or even three bridges too far. The movie's big and expensive and filled with stars, but it's not an epic. It's the longest B-grade war movie ever made.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/a-bridge-too-far-1977 |title=A Bridge Too Far |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |date=June 17, 1977 |website=[[RogerEbert.com]] |access-date=November 30, 2018 |archive-date=January 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210105205321/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/a-bridge-too-far-1977 |url-status=live}}</ref>}} 
[[Gene Siskel]] gave the film two-and-a-half out of four and wrote, {{blockquote|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.<ref>{{cite news|author-link=Gene Siskel|author=Siskel, Gene|date=June 16, 1977|title=Big-budget 'Bridge' overspans itself|work=[[Chicago Tribune]]| page=6, Section 2}}</ref>}} John Pym of ''[[The Monthly Film Bulletin]]'' wrote that "by the end of this extravagant film, we have a fair idea of the who-did-what logistics of a costly military operation. The root problem with ''A Bridge Too Far'', however, is that the top-heavy complement of stars never allows for any focus of attention."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Pym |first=John |date=July 1977 |title=A Bridge Too Far |journal=[[The Monthly Film Bulletin]] |volume=44 |issue=522 |page=142 }}</ref>
[[Charles Champlin]] of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote, {{blockquote|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.<ref>{{cite news|author-link=Charles Champlin|author=Champlin, Charles|date=June 12, 1977|title=World War II Writ Large in 'Bridge Too Far'|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|at=Calendar, p. 1, 13}}</ref>}}
Gary Arnold of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' called it "an unusually conscientious and impressive war epic" that justified its high budget... {{blockquote|in terms of careful period recreation, visual spectacle (the sequences depicting paratroop landings are particularly awesome), the mixture of exciting combat episodes with vivid human interest vignettes, an effort to establish a coherent, many-faceted view of a complicated and ill-fated military adventure, and a generally superior level of filmmaking intelligence and craftsmanship.<ref>{{cite news|author=Arnold, Gary|date=16 June 1977|title=An Epic War Movie At the Head of Its Class|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|page=C1}}</ref>}}

A "making-of" documentary included in a special edition DVD of ''A Bridge Too Far'' says that, at the time of its release, "the film was shunned by American critics and completely ignored at Oscar time for daring to expose the fatal inadequacies of the Allied campaign".<ref>{{cite news|author=Papamichael, Stella|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2004/05/19/a_bridge_too_far_SE_1977_dvd_review.shtml|title=''A Bridge Too Far: Special Edition'' DVD (1977)|publisher=BBC|access-date=September 5, 2010|archive-date=1 March 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100301061622/http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2004/05/19/a_bridge_too_far_SE_1977_dvd_review.shtml|url-status=live}}.</ref>

===Accolades===
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Awards and nominations received by ''A Bridge Too Far''
! Award
! Category
! Nominee
! Result
|-
| rowspan=1|[[Evening Standard British Film Awards]]
| Best Film
| ''A Bridge Too Far''
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan=8|[[31st British Academy Film Awards]]
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| ''A Bridge Too Far''
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Direction|Best Direction]]
| Richard Attenborough
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Editing|Best Editing]]
| [[Antony Gibbs]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Production Design|Best Production Design]]
| [[Terence Marsh]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Sound|Best Sound]]
| Peter Horrocks, [[Gerry Humphreys]], [[Simon Kaye]], [[Robin O'Donoghue]], and Les Wiggins
| {{won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role|Best Actor in a Supporting Role]]
| Edward Fox
| {{won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film Music|Best Film Music]]
| [[John Addison]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| [[Geoffrey Unsworth]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[1977 National Society of Film Critics Awards]]
| [[National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Edward Fox
| {{won}}
|}

==Promotion==
{{Infobox book | 
| name          = Story of ''A Bridge Too Far''
| title_orig    =
| translator    =
| image         = 
| caption       = 
| author        = [[William Goldman]]
| illustrator   = 
| cover_artist  =
| country       = United States
| language      = English
| series        =
| genre         = non-fiction
| publisher     = 
| release_date  = 1977
| media_type    = 
| pages         = 
| ISBN          = 
| dewey= 
| congress= 
| oclc= 
| followed_by  = 
}}
To promote the film, scriptwriter [[William Goldman]] wrote a book titled ''Story of A Bridge Too Far'' as a favour to Joseph E. Levine.<ref name="Egan p 145"/> It was published in December 1977 and divided into three sections:
#"Reflections on Filmmaking in General and ''A Bridge Too Far''". This section features some essays later reprinted in Goldman's ''[[Adventures in the Screen Trade]]''.<ref name="Egan p 145">Egan, p. 145</ref>
#"''A Bridge Too Far'': The Story in Pictures" – 150 sequential photographs from the film with Goldman's captions.
#"Stars and Heroes" – some of the movie's actors and the men they play tell Goldman their thoughts on the film and the battle.

==Notes==
{{notelist|30em}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
* {{citation |last=Goldman |first=William |author-link=William Goldman |title=William Goldman's Story of a Bridge Too Far |publisher=[[Coronet Books]] |year=1977 |isbn=978-0-340-22340-6}} [NB: Book has no page numbers]
* {{citation |last=Ryan |first=Cornelius |author-link=Cornelius Ryan |title=A Bridge Too Far |publisher=[[Hamish Hamilton]] |location=London |year=1974 |isbn=978-0-340-19941-1}}
* Ambrose, Stephen E. & Immerman, Richard H., ''Ike's spies: Eisenhower and the espionage establishment'', University Press of Mississippi, 1999. {{ISBN|0-385-14493-8}} {{OCLC|6863017}}

==Further reading==
* Arthur, Max. ''Forgotten Voices of the Second World War: A new history of world war two in the words of the men and women who were there'', Ebury Press, 2004 {{ISBN|0091897351}} {{OCLC|57691717}}
* {{citation |last=Waddy |first=Colonel John |title=The Making of a Bridge Too Far |magazine=[[After the Battle]] |publisher=Plaistow Press |location=London |year=1977 |issue=17 |pages=10–34}}

==External links==
{{Portal|Film}}
{{Wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|0075784}}
* {{mojo title|bridgetoofar}}
* {{TCMDb title|15854}}
* {{AFI film|56111}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.britishcinemagreats.com/films_page/a_bridge_too_far/a_bridge_too_far_page_one.htm |title=A Bridge Too Far |work=at British Cinema Greats |access-date=2007-02-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080329194800/http://www.britishcinemagreats.com/films_page/a_bridge_too_far/a_bridge_too_far_page_one.htm |archive-date=2008-03-29 |url-status=usurped }}

{{Richard Attenborough}}
{{William Goldman}}
{{Cornelius Ryan}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridge Too Far}}
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[[Category:Operation Market Garden|Bridge Too Far (film)]]
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