The Bridge at Remagen (1969) - film review

March 1945.  The war in Europe has entered its final phase, with German troops retreating eastwards, driven back by a relentless Allied assault.  Determined to prevent the Allies from gaining a foothold in Germany, Hitler issues orders for all bridges across the River Rhine to be blown up.   Major Paul Krüger is charged with the destruction of the last bridge, at the small town of Remagen.   General von Brock, Krüger’s immediate superior, questions the wisdom of this strategy and persuades the Major to keep the bridge open for as long as possible to provide an escape route for the retreating German armies.   Meanwhile, Lieutenant Hartman of the U.S. 9th Armored Division, is ordered by his superior, General Shinner, to capture the bridge at Remagen, since it has great strategic importance.  Realising that the bridge is about to fall into the hands of the enemy, Major Krüger has no choice but to order its destruction...

One of the most authentic yet shamefully overlooked war films of the 1960s, The Bridge at Remagen distinguishes itself with its doggedly realistic portrayal of the physical destruction and emotional trauma of war, achieved through a combination of stunning effects work and nuanced performances from a first rate cast.   It is based on Ken Hechler’s real-life account of the week-long stand off between German and Allied troops at the Ludendorff Bridge during WWII.  The film is directed with flair and energy by John Guillermin, the distinguished British film director who is best remembered for crowd-pleasing blockbusters like The Towering Inferno (1974) and Death on the Nile (1978), although he also directed two other notable war films: I Was Monty's Double (1958) and Guns at Batasi (1964).  

One of the strengths of this film is that it takes time to establish the characters before the cataclysmic action sequences begin, allowing us to better comprehend their psychological ordeal when they feel the scorching heat of battle.  Unusually, we are introduced to characters on both sides of the conflict, and parallels are drawn between the American soldiers and their German counterparts.  On both sides, noble low-ranking soldiers are used as cannon fodder by ambitious officers to further their careers, and some powerful anti-war sentiment emerges when the human cost of warfare is exposed in a few moving vignettes.  Although George Segal dominates the film with his humane portrayal of an American lieutenant who has grown sick of the war but sticks with it more through habit than through a sense of duty, Robert Vaughn gives the best performance, a hugely sympathetic portrayal of a German officer who is torn by conflicting loyalties.  Unlike many war films of its time, The Bridge at Remagen depicts combat not as a Boy’s Own adventure, but as a horrific game of chance that tests the courage and endurance of its participators to the absolute limit.  Without the customary Hollywood gloss, over-dramatization and phony heroics, it shows us the brutal reality of modern warfare and offers a poignant reminder of the debt that is owed to all those who went through Hell to defeat Fascism during the Second World War.

© Alex Sullivan 2010

Write a review for this film...

What do you think of this film?