The Bridge on the River Kwai damage. Boulle nonetheless enjoyed the film version though he disagreed with its climax. Many directors were considered for the project, among them John Ford, William Wyler, Howard Hawks, Fred Zinnemann, and Orson Welles (who was also offered a starring role). The film was an international co-production between companies in Britain and the United States. Director David Lean clashed with his cast members on multiple occasions, particularly Alec Guinness and James Donald, who thought the novel was anti-British. Lean had a lengthy row with Guinness over how to play the role of Nicholson; Guinness wanted to play the part with a
The Bridge on the River Kwai parts over two evenings, due to the film's nearly four-hour length. The film was restored in 1992 by Columbia Pictures. The separate dialogue, music and effects were located and remixed with newly recorded "atmospheric" sound effects. The image was restored by OCS, Freeze Frame, and Pixel Magic with George Hively editing. On 2 November 2010 Columbia Pictures released a newly restored "The Bridge on the River Kwai" for the first time on Blu-ray. According to Columbia Pictures, they followed an all-new 4K digital restoration from the original negative with newly restored 5.1 audio. The original negative for the feature was