The Bridge On The River Kwai (1957)

Long film about a prison camp commander and a British officer in his camp.  They battle wills about how the work on a bridge and a railroad will be conducted.  The other story is the escape of William Holden's character from the camp and his subsequent actions to help a mission to find the bridge.  I didn't mind the length of the film as it depicts experiences helping to understand the characters but the mission in the jungle is of too little importance to occupy the screen time allowed.  What was kewl was how THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI lingered on Colonel Nicholson and the Japanese camp commander and the director could have even done more to intensify their struggle. Stupendous ending that had to be shot in one take and it was. [4.5 stars]