…(And Bleakest) You'll Ever See
"Bernhard Wicki's 1959 German film "Die Brücke," or "The Bridge," is one of the most tragic, powerful antiwar films ever made. It reveals the emptiness of patriotism during wartime, the futility of combat, and the ephemeral nature of a soldier's life. It confronts the very notion that "serving your country" should be viewed as heroic, standing in direct opposition to the pro-combat philosophy that undergirds the vast bulk of American military cinema.
"The Bridge" takes place in a small unnamed German town during the last days of World War II. The Americans are moving in, and the war will be over in about 96 hours. The film's opening scenes reveal that most of the adults in the town are pulling up roots and getting out of Dodge. They don't want to be present when their town falls.
The protagonists of "The Bridge" are a group of seven teenage boys who have merely been going to school during the war, and have been carefully shielded from violence all over Europe. Their teacher, Mr. Stern (Wolfgang Stumpf), has spent the bulk of the war filling the boys' heads with ideas that serving Germany will be a noble endeavor, and that they will eventually live up to their usefulness as citizens once they are drafted. Before the end of the movie, they will be. Never mind that the war is already lost…"
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's commission from one of our own.
