“A Bridge Too Far” is a war movie that effectively captures the scope of a major military operations. Showcasing numerous perspectives, director Richard Attenborough (“Gandhi”) has made a fine addition to war film genre with this one. It may lack the clarity of some war films but it does provide a great spectacle.

“A Bridge Too Far” follows Operation Market Garden, the failed Allied to capture a series of bridges in the Netherlands during the latter stages of WWII. A series of problems including the weather and unreliable communications turn what should have been a decisive moment for the British and the other Allies into a blood-soaked disaster.

There are so many famous faces in here that it is hard to remember them all. My favourite was probably Sean Connery (“Goldfinger”, “The Rock”) as Major General Urquhart. I also enjoyed the performances from Anthony Hopkins (“The Rite”) and Michael Cain (“Get Carter”, “The Dark Knight”)). I would have definitely liked to have seen more from Gene Hackman (“Superman: The Movie”) as Major General Sosabowski. James Caan (“The Godfather”), Laurence Olivier (“Spartacus”) and Robert Redford (“The Great Gatsby”) also appear and they were okay. The German military men shown here are as villainous as you would expect. Keep an eye for the brief cameo appearance made by Richard Attenborough.

“A Bridge Too Far” contains many violent battle scenes throughout. It’s actually very gory considering this came out in 1977. However, the violence seems to serve a purpose as it conveys the disturbing nature of war. The all-star cast is great but it’s the thrilling action sequences, the immense scale of the production and the theme music that help make this a really good movie. While I think that there are probably better war movies out there, do not overlook “A Bridge Too Far”.