If you’re looking for films that are based on best-selling novels, then we’ve got the perfect suggestion for you. Follow this article to know more about a similar film, The Bridge on the River Kwai. Later, I’ll also share where was The Bridge on the River Kwai filmed.
The classic war drama film, The Bridge on the River Kwai, was released in the summer of 1957. This rousing film was actually inspired by Pierre Boulle’s novel of the same name, which was published 5 years prior to this movie.
The story of The Bridge on the River Kwai revolves around a group of daring British POWs who were held in captivity during the Second World War. The story gets interesting when the downtrodden soldiers of the Allied Forces somehow find a way to fool the Japanese troops and escape from the prison camp.
The Bridge on the River Kwai won 30 major awards, including 7 Academy awards. Apart from being critically acclaimed, this action drama movie also performed brilliantly at the box office. The Bridge on the River Kwai grossed over $30 million in total, against the production budget of just $2 million.
Are you ready to find out where was The Bridge on the River Kwai filmed? Then without stalling any longer, let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Where Was The Bridge On The River Kwai Filmed? Let’s Know This Epic War Drama Closely!
Famous English filmmaker and screenplay writer David Lean had made a number of brilliant films before joining this project. Movies like Blithe Spirits, Oliver Twist, and Great Expectations were directed by Lean, however, they were all filmed in black & white.
But, the fact that these movies were shot in black & white didn’t take away from the overall commercial success. Both audiences and critics were absolutely amazed by Lean’s style of direction and storyline, which were also adapted from famous novels like The Bridge on the River Kwai, for instance.
So in order to get the same sort of positive reaction from movie buffs, Lean exactly knew what he had to do. Other contemporary filmmakers could hardly brood about the risk, let alone taking it, which Lean took while choosing the filming location of The Bridge on the River Kwai.
The story of The Bridge on the River Kwai is set in Thailand. But, instead of taking the easy route and filming the entire movie in and around this South-East Asian country, Lean decided to shoot in Sri Lanka.
That’s right, friends! I was shocked as well. All outdoor sequences of The Bridge on the River Kwai were filmed in and around the beautiful country of Sri Lanka. At the initial stages of production, Lean and his team took this decision, keeping the production budget in mind.
Plus, the fact the director was always inclined towards doing something different also weighed in while he was making the final decision. However, the ground reality of shooting all major sequences of The Bridge on the River Kwai in Sri Lanka was far from what Lean imagined.
The principal photography commenced in the last week of November 1956 and continued till the second week of May 1957.
The shooting schedule got stretched way more than the production members anticipated. Mainly because of the tropical climate of Sri Lanka, which made shooting during the daytime a really uncomfortable scenario for the entire crew
But, thankfully, the production members were able to maneuver through the situation somehow and finish the shooting process by the second week of May 1957. Since the movie was also scheduled to release in the same year, Lean at first panicked a little bit.
Eventually, the release date of The Bridge on the River Kwai remained unchanged. Okay, let us now discuss in detail where was The Bridge on the River Kwai filmed.
Sri Lanka
The opening scene of the film, where we see the British prisoners of war held in captivity in Thailand, was actually filmed in Sri Lanka. A sparsely populated area located on the bank of River Kelani was used to shoot this scene.
However, the production members had to construct the Japanese prison camp from the ground up before filming. Other important scenes of the movie in and around the Western Province of Sri Lanka.
The production members captured some brilliant outdoor scenes in a small village located on the foothills of Mount Lavinia. Finally, the production members moved to the Central Province of Sri Lanka and filmed near Peradeniya Botanical Gardens.
These scenes were actually used to depict the British Army Headquarters in Burma. However, the ending scene of the movie features the strategic bridge located near a government rest house in the town of Kitulgala, Sri Lanka.
And now, let me walk you through the plot of The Bridge on the River Kwai. Meanwhile you can also read Meet Cute, Leap Year, and Failure to Launch.
Plot Of The Bridge On The River Kwai | What’s It About
The basic premise of The Bridge on the River Kwai revolves around the heroic story of a group of British POWs who were held in occupied Burma. At the very beginning of the film, the Japanese troops appear to torture the captive soldiers of the Allied Forces.
As the story progresses further, the British Army Headquarters takes cognizance of the inhumane situation and devises a brilliant plan. Special Force operators of the British Army are then deployed in Burma to safely extract the prisoners and demolish the prison camp for good.
Watch The Bridge on the River Kwai and find out how the Special Force operators of the British Army executed this brilliant plan.
Final Words
Alright, guys! I hope you were able to follow this article. If you have already watched this epic war drama, make sure to watch it again and see if you can identify the filming locations which are mentioned above.
Apart from that, if you have any other questions regarding where was The Bridge on the River Kwai filmed, let us know in the comments section below.
