The Bridge at Remagen

Very under rated war epic. Why this movie isn't just as big as the other big war movies of the 60's(the guns of Navarro /bridge to far) is probably because it was to realistic for the times! acting is good only problem is that the Germans speak a little bit to good English but the action is topnotch especially the big tank battle scene in the middle of the movie, is one of the best war scenes i've ever seen till this day!!!The Bridge scene is also very impressive with tanks that destroy huge apartment blocks! this was a big budget movie at the time you can tell you can't count the extra's walking around and the destruction is as realistic as I've ever seen !!TRULY A MUST SEE FOR WAR MOVIE LOVERS!!!

Famous for its Apocalypse Now-style production problems. Filmed in then-Czechoslovakia where the then Communist government offered up a whole town (due to be cleared to make way for a strip mine) for cinematic destruction. But halfway through shooting the Russian army invaded to remove reformist president Alexander Dubcek. George Segal and Robert Vaughn give career best performances, but it also marks the moment when US war films moved beyond action-adventure and into a darker realm. The capture of the Remagen Bridge in 1945 was a magnificent feat of arms by the US Army. But in the film account the troops are slovenly, often fearful thugs, slanging and striking their officers, robbing corpses and killing children. It's not really about World War II at all, but about how many Americans saw the Vietnam War. The Bridge at Remagen is out of time, set in 1945 but made in 1968, the year of the Tet Offensive, when the US realised that Vietnam was a lost war. It shows.

Truth is often stranger than fiction we know. What's more perplexing is having seen 'The Bridge At Remagen,' you may think it more or less happened that way which was intriguing to say the least.

*** SPOILERS ***

In reality, the events surrounding the capture of this bridge were even more bizarre and surely never was there such great coincidence. These elements of the movie happened in reality:

-the bridge at Remagen was accidentally captured intact by US forces;

-the Germans unsuccessfully tried to blow it up, repeatedly;

-the Americans lost a lot of men in the fighting around the bridges;

-the German commander of the defense at the bridge was court martialed and executed by the Germans;

Following are the more bizarre real events of the bridge at Remagen. The commander of the US re con force that spotted the bridge first, was an man named Karl Timmerman! This US Lieutenant was of German descent. His father had stayed in Europe following his tour of duty during the First World War. There his father met his future mother in Germany. Karl Timmerman was born and grew up in Germany, NEAR the bridge at Remagen. He and his parents then moved to the States.

Timmerman and his men took the bridge and the Germans guarding it completely by surprise. No men were lost and the relative small squad quickly disabled the defending machineguns and captured all defenders without firing a single shot! US high command didn't think the bridge at Remagen of strategic importance as there were no major roads leading from it. However, remembering his youth nearby, Timmerman explained and persuaded his commanders because he knew from memory that a dozen kilometers nearby, was the major highway to Frankfurt!

Although it had cost them not a single man to capture the bridge, the Americans lost a LOT of men in the days and weeks following the capture, because the Germans were desperate to recapture it. They made many attacks and bombed the bridge from the air, even with the first jet-bombers.

The movie was really okay, much much better than 'Battle Of The Bulge' or even 'The Battle Of Britain.'

I especially like the performance of Robert Vaughn in this film, as the German officer in charge of the blowing up of the Remagen bridge. His last line, in front of the firing squad, is one of the most memorable I know in the history of war films and it is all the more poignant for its juxtaposition immediately after the scene showing the emotional reunion of the characters played by George Segal and Ben Gazzara. Elmer Bernstein's memorable theme music also adds to ones enjoyment of this film although, much to my surprise, I gather that the film soundtrack has never been released in this country.

This is a no-nonsense, gritty, thoroughly well made war film. As a recreation of war it is quite convincing, I couldn't spot anything wrong with the military equipment. The battle scenes are exciting and give a good, clear picture of the fighting instead of just chaotic shots of shooting and explosions. However, the people are never lost among the warfare. These are complex, solid characters, and the actors are good throughout. There is nothing superhuman, just individuals, very low on humanity or manners. Tired and ill-motivated Americans, desperate and scared Germans. Nothing glorious or patriotic: there is even a scene with American planes bombing refugees and Germans trying to protect them! This is not an adventure, more a depiction of an interesting situation and the people in it. However, the story flows on and there isn't a dull moment. Why this film hasn't acquired more recognition is beyond me. As a war film I think it is better than most of it's contemporaries, like "The Battle of the Bulge" or "Anzio".