I recently viewed this film for the first time, and on the big screen at that. It was showcased at the Third Annual Traverse City Film Festival. I had always heard it was a classic. I can say that it deserves its reputation. Alec Guinness gives a superb performance as the dyed-in-the-wool British military commander, Col. Nicholson. He insists that Japanese commander Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa) adhere to military guidelines and he refuses to allow British officers to work. His stubborn resolve results in a trip to the metal hot house, but also in some well deserved laughs as Colonel Nicholson stubbornly refuses to bend to Saito’s commands. When Nicholson is finally allowed to supervise a bridge for a Japanese train to travel across, he becomes determined to build it better than the Japanese ever could. However, a freed POW plans to lead an alliance to blow up the bridge, and the resulting climax proves to be dramatic in the best sense of the word. There is some violence in the film, with little corresponding blood on screen. Guinness won an Academy Award for this picture. We award five doves to this classic film.