Dreadfully Boring

Better Late Then Never

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

Etienne Périer is a Belgian director who has made most of his films in France .His favourite genre was the thriller:"Meurtre En 45 tours" which was made just before "bridge" was a Boileau-Narcejac ("Diaboliques" "Vertigo" ) novel and set a pattern for the seventies works "La Main A Couper" "Un Meurtre ESt Un Meurtre " "La Part Du Feu" ;the best was inspired by a true story "Un Si Joli Village"(1978) but it was not a commercial success and it was 1989 before Périer made another movie :another thriller in eighteenth century Venice where Vivaldi met Goldoni.Still with me? "Bridge to the sun" has nothing to do with Périer's French films .When I read his name in the credits ,I could not believe my eyes.Although completely impersonal,it's a valuable pacifist work ,a kind of movie we are desperately in need of in our trouble times.Based on true facts-like the 1978 effort,which would tend to prove that Périer is at his best with them-,it depicts the life of an Japanese ambassador and his American wife.As WW2 was breaking out and Pearl Harbour was around the corner ,the couple and their daughter were going to have a bad time.The best moments,however ,are in the first part of the movie,when Gwenn discovers the Japanese way of life and .....its very macho side!Carroll Baker is gorgeous but as the story stretches over more than ten years it's extraordinary she 's stayed fresh as a rose after all those years,even in the bombing scenes !Ditto for her husband who does not look terminally-ill at all in the final sequences.This is minor quibble :"bridge to the sun" is a heartfelt movie,which proves one more time the absurdity of war.There were Germans who fought against the Nazis,there were French resistant fighters who refused collaboration,there were Japanese men who risked their lives for peace ,even in the most desperate situations. Like this? try these....."Empire of the sun" Spielberg 1987"Sayonara" Joshua Logan 1957

This film took me by surprise with the great acting by Carroll Baker as Gwen Terasaki who is a Southern gal from the United States who meets up with a Japanese young man named Hedenari Terasaki, (James Shigeta) in the late 1930's and this couple fall deeply in love which I would call one Soul Mate meeting another. After awhile this couple have a baby girl which they love very much and she grows very close with her mom and dad. Everything is going just fine until the Japanese Government declares war on America, Dec. 7, 1941 when they bombed Pearl Harbor. The American Government immediately investigated all men who were Japanese and deported them back to Japan. Gwen Terasaki was allowed to stay in America with her daughter, however, Gwen decided to go back to Japan which they both knew would become a horrible experience for all of their family. This is a true story and it is a heart breaker, but it clearly shows that when you find your Soul Mate in life, you will do whatever is possible to stay with your loved one and sacrifice everything for each other. Don't miss this great film Classic, Enjoy.

It is on Turner Classic Movies June 19, 2008. It is not available on VHS or DVD.This movie had a profound effect on my wife, who saw it right after its release in 1961 with her sister. They were 11 and 8 at the time. The woman in the movie is from from East Tennessee and we are from West Tennessee. I do not understand why it was never copied and sold. It is a great movie. The historical context is meaningful for anyone interested in Pearl Harbor, World War 2, MacArthur, or the Japanese interment during WW2. It is a classic love story, on the order of Romeo and Juliet, but with world wide implications. This will be the first time my wife has seen it in 45 years !!!

I saw this movie over 40 years ago on television, and it made such an impression on me that I am now trying to find this movie again. The book was written in 1957 by Gwen Terasaki and was also called Bridge to the Sun. The movie came out in 1961. This was a true story about an American girl who came to Washington, DC, and there she met a Japanese diplomat. They fell in love and got married very quickly. Then WWII broke out, and all Japanese were deported back to their country. Gwen Teresaki went with her husband to Japan. It shows all the differences between the two cultures, and how Hidenari Terasaki became a teacher to his wife, Gwen, about the customs of the Japanese. It's truly a beautiful love story as well as a realistic account of the difficulties of this interracial marriage. I really believe more should see this movie as it can open up your eyes as to the fact that all of us should live together in peace and get along. I will never forget this movie/life story! I wish the movie would come out again or be re-made as I believe it would help us all !