The Longest Bridge

I stumbled up this by accident and decided to give it a go. I'm glad I did. This is the story of the Japanese invasion of China in the late 1930's. The film literally begins with the Japanese invasion, so as the opening credits roll we watch an excellent recreation of the bombing of Shanghai. From there the film recounts the Chinese efforts to drive out the invaders.

I'm at a loss as to why this film isn't better known. Frankly this is a big budget war film of the sort Hollywood hasn't done since the 1960's. Sure the dubbing is a bit odd at times (who chose what voice went with what character?) but this is a slam bang action movie like those that I used to watch on rainy Sundays. This is a movie for those who like Bridge Too Far, Battle of the Bulge, Longest Day. Its also for those who like films like Inglorious Bastards, or From Hell to Victory.

The only real problems with the movie itself was that it can get a bit saccharine and tear jerky at times. The film also can movie a bit too fast to follow who is doing what. Still these are minor complaints and I would love to see this in a well translated widescreen version on DVD.

8 out of 10.