Review of The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954) by Matthew D — 12 Aug 2018

A meandering, preachy, war mess.

The Bridges at Toko-ri is not a classic of cinema. It is far too long and could easily have been cut down to half the length Many shots are slow and drawn out without any significant meaning. The Bridges at Toko-ri is less than 2 hours in running time, but it feels like more than 3 hours long. Atrocious pacing with lackluster cinematography to say the least.The acting is poor, the writing is simplistic, the characters are cliche, and the message is patriotic propaganda. I am sorely disappointed in The Bridges at Toko-ri.

The romance is like a far inferior film of Sayonara with Marlon Brando that would come out a couple years later. The piloting is like a worse Top Gun. Fake miniatures that lack any charm with endless war sequences that lead nowhere. I cannot stand the Asian stereotypes and the American caricatures. It's all a big mess. Just watch Sayonara for a better romance or The Guns of Navarone for a better war film.

William Holden is such a bland actor. He lacks charisma or depth. Grace Kelly is a great actress that is absolutely wasted with a max of 5 minutes of screen time. Finally, I cannot stand Mickey Rooney. He is always a shallow character, but he feels like a lame cartoon here. Just awful acting all around, honestly.

I just do not have much else to say about The Bridges at Toko-ri. You can easily skip this one and watch any number of better war films instead. Try out The Guns of Navarone, Dr. Strangelove, Sayonara, The Bridge on the River Kwai, Saving Private Ryan, Letters from Iwo Jima, or Apocalypse Now instead.