The Bridge 1959

The Bridge

Die Brücke

1959 · West Germany · Directed by Bernhard Wicki · 103 min

TenseBleak Great first watch · Easy War drama

In the final days of the Second World War, teenage boys are ordered to defend a bridge that the retreating army no longer considers important.

What to expect

Wicki strips military heroism down to school friendships, borrowed uniforms, confused orders, and a location whose tactical value disappears before the boys understand the cost. The bridge becomes a lesson imposed with live ammunition.

How to ease in

Learn the boys through their homes before the uniforms make them look alike. Once they reach the bridge, keep asking who still knows the actual military situation and who is acting from inherited language.

Heads-up

A quick, non-exhaustive note Includes child soldiers, graphic war violence, death, trauma, Nazi ideology, family conflict, and a relentlessly anti-war conclusion.
Momo's Note May contain spoilers Who is Momo? →

In the final days of the Second World War, teenage boys are ordered to defend a bridge that the retreating army no longer considers important.

The bridge matters because the boys have been told that duty must matter. I watch the military abandon the position while the language of honour remains behind to command them.

Open the note ↓

The bridge matters because the boys have been told that duty must matter. I watch the military abandon the position while the language of honour remains behind to command them.

— Momo

Momo with notes about this film

Credits & versions

Credits
Cast
Folker Bohnet — Hans Scholten · Fritz Wepper — Albert Mutz · Michael Hinz — Walter Forst · Frank Glaubrecht — Jürgen Borchert
Production
Hermann Schwerin · Fono-Film GmbH
Cinematography
Gerd von Bonin

Version map

filmportal.de catalogue presentation103 min103 minutes is attached only to the named filmportal.de catalogue presentation. No unsupported cut, score, territory, frame rate, source element, or restoration detail is inferred.Runtime reference · Checked 2026-08-21

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