Watched this on Netflix over the past two nights. Can’t remember the last I saw it and had forgotten all the big name actors in the cast (Sean Connery, Ryan O’Neil, Robert Redford, Anthony Hopkins, James Caan) who I wasn’t expecting to see was John Ratzenberger (Cliff from “Cheers”)

Great movie, highly recommended!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: 911Boss,

This is a good flick, one of my favorites about WWII.

And all practical, a sky full of airplanes and paratroopers. Real planes and real men. A film the likes of which we will never see again.

That's a lot like the original Longest Day movie. Many of the major stars in that one too.
Both were great movies and before much of the special effects we see now.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056197/fullcredits

This movie seems to come up every 6-8 months...

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...410007874#6410007874

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...240014274#4240014274

Always been one of my favorite WWII's. Great cast, a timeless film. I think I've watched it two or three times.

Another really great film from 1957, my Dad took me to see when I was around 5yrs old. A Bridge Over The River Kwai. The main thing that really hooked me was near the end and they started whistling that tune in rhythm called "Colonel Bogey". Each time I've watched it again over the years that whistling of "Colonel Bogey" takes me back to that 5yr old hanging with my Dad at the movies, very catchy tune too.

The final scene of A Bridge Too Far, with the British prisoners singing "Abide with Me", never fails to bring me to tears. I'm afraid that could never happen now--that kind of national cultural unity.

Amazon had it on their Prime "freebie" list not that long ago. Took me a few days to finish watching it. I go through my Xbox, so movies have to fight with video games for my rather weak attention span, but I've seen it more than a few times over the decades. Still a very good flick that holds up very well.

One of the reasons the film has held up well since it came out over 40 years ago is the accuracy and attention to detail that went into each scene. Granted the scene with the fighter-bombers attacking the Germans in the woods is a bit lacking for the WWII purist, but they did a good job in attempting to make the planes look like P-47s as much as possible.

The locations, weapons, vehicles, uniforms & civilian clothing, hair cuts for men (well, except Redford) hairstyles for women, etc., are all either accurate or (like the planes) a very good job was done to make them as realistic and period correct as possible. Take a look at some of the pictures of Arnhem during the battle and you'll see that they are almost like-for-like in the movie. Also in this film, unlike so many other WWII portrayals, you won't see the Germans using American tanks and half-tracks, or Lee-Enfield rifles because "one bolt-action looks like another, right?".

Also, I've read that besides making great efforts to be accurate with all of the above, Richard Attenborough tried to get actors who were similiar in build and looks to portray the principals of the operation as they looked at the time. Sean Connery, Dirk Bogarde, Edward Fox, and Ryan O'Neal are particular stand-outs in that regard.

All in all, a great movie that is truer to the book it came from than most any other movie I've ever seen.

The resemblance between Liv Ullman and and the young Kate ter Horst is very remarkable.

Definitely a classic for me! It's where I learned the best way to take a bridge!

Love the airborne operation aspect; very well done. Always kind of bothered by Robert Redford's scenes though; never could decide if bold or stupid tactics. And, from what I had read, Redford made way to much money for his small role, which I always thought was bogus.

Big fan of the bridge construction scene, and I love the Piat.

Loved the movie, visited Armhem and the museum a few years later. The German amor attack across the bridge was outstanding.

IMO, it would have been better without the distraction from some of the big star cameos: Elliot Gould, Robert Redford, Ryan O'Neill, and Gene Hackman (speaking Polish no less!) are a few that come to mind.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0...4/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0

...And it's now free on Kanopy, along with several Clint Eastwood films.

(Kanopy is that rather limited free streaming services offered by many libraries.)

I saw this in theater as a kid. It was fantastic.

quote:

Originally posted by MASig:
Definitely a classic for me! It's where I learned the best way to take a bridge!

Both ends at the same time!

Great flick, one of my favorite war movies!

quote:

Originally posted by KSGM:
Love the airborne operation aspect; very well done. Always kind of bothered by Robert Redford's scenes though; never could decide if bold or stupid tactics. And, from what I had read, Redford made way to much money for his small role, which I always thought was bogus.

Big fan of the bridge construction scene, and I love the Piat.

Listened to an interview on S.C. public radio a few years back with a guy who was a young 2nd Lt and was on that river crossing.... it was his 21st birthday and he said he was 40 years old when the few of them that actually made it across got to the other side. the interesting part of the interview was then he explained him and about 12 others came across a barn with 30 German soldiers sleeping in it and the reporter interviewing him asked what they did... his answer was simply... we killed them all.