Waterloo Bridge (1940)

80% of critics liked it
(5 reviews)
88% of users liked it
(4,413 ratings)

Given the omnipresence of the Motion Picture Production Code in 1940, the second film version of Robert E. Sherwood's Waterloo Bridge would have to be laundered and softened to pass muster. In the original, made in 1931, the heroine is nothing more or less than a streetwalker, patrolling London's… More Given the omnipresence of the Motion Picture Production Code in 1940, the second film version of Robert E. Sherwood's Waterloo Bridge would have to be laundered and softened to pass muster. In the original, made in 1931, the heroine is nothing more or less than a streetwalker, patrolling London's Waterloo Bridge during World War I in hopes of picking up the occasional soldier. She falls in love with one of her clients, a young officer from an aristocratic family. Gently informed by the young man's mother that any marriage would be absolutely impossible, the streetwalker tearfully agrees, letting her beau down gently before ending her own life by walking directly into the path of an enemy bomb. In the remake, told in flashback as a means of "distancing" the audience from what few unsavory story elements were left, the heroine, Vivien Leigh, starts out as a virginal ballerina. Robert Taylor, a British officer from a wealthy family, falls in love with Vivien and brings her home to his folks. This time around, Taylor's uncle (C. Aubrey Smith), impressed by Vivien's sincerity, reluctantly agrees to the upcoming marriage. When Taylor marches off to war, Vivien abandons an important dance recital to bid her fiance goodbye, losing her job as a result. Later, she is led to believe that Taylor has been killed in battle. Thus impoverished and aggrieved, she is given a motivation for turning to prostitution, a plot element deemed unecessary in the original-which indeed it was. Now the stage is set for her final sacrifice, though the suicidal elements are carefully weeded out. Waterloo Bridge was remade for a second time in 1956 as Gaby, with Leslie Caron and John Kerr. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 49 min.
Directed By: Mervyn LeRoy
Genres: Drama, Romance, Classics

In Theaters: May 17, 1940 Wide
On DVD: Jan 27, 2009

Critic Reviews

Bosley Crowther, New York Times
Let there be no doubt about it. Vivien Leigh is as fine an actress as we have on the screen today. Maybe even the finest, and that's a lot to say.
Bob Bloom, Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)
A glossy MGM weeper. A chick flick from the golden era.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Glossy, sanitized remake of the brilliant 1931 James Whale film

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Cindy I

I love tragic romances, and this is one of the best. A tearjerker about a WWI soldier (played by the BEAUTIFUL Robert Taylor), and the woman he loves (played by the almost as beautiful Vivien Leigh), who meet during an air raid in London, but then are separated by the same war that… More
I love tragic romances, and this is one of the best. A tearjerker about a WWI soldier (played by the BEAUTIFUL Robert Taylor), and the woman he loves (played by the almost as beautiful Vivien Leigh), who meet during an air raid in London, but then are separated by the same war that brought them together. It is also a good example of the damage the English class system of the time could do to relationships under the guise of "trying to help" and "it's for the best", and also the sacrifices people are willing to make for the ones they love. I loved this film, and I plan to re-watch it at every opportunity.
A B

Classic romantic trajedy. Vivien Leigh is outstanding.
jay n

a beautiful film
Dannielle A

I don't understand Myra! If only she had read the column carefully. And why didn't she tell her future mother in law? And why did the mother in law give up on her so easily? Why didn't she tell the truth and beg for forgiveness? If he loved her, her past wouldn't… More
I don't understand Myra! If only she had read the column carefully. And why didn't she tell her future mother in law? And why did the mother in law give up on her so easily? Why didn't she tell the truth and beg for forgiveness? If he loved her, her past wouldn't have mattered to him. I saw the ending coming from a mile away. What a depressing movie yet very well done!
Emily B

A classic romance starring Robert Taylor and Vivien Leigh. Roy and Myra meet during an air raid. They agree to marry after he comes back from the front, but when Roy is mistaken for dead Myra has to turn to prostitution to survive. Overall a very good film although one thing did… More
A classic romance starring Robert Taylor and Vivien Leigh. Roy and Myra meet during an air raid. They agree to marry after he comes back from the front, but when Roy is mistaken for dead Myra has to turn to prostitution to survive. Overall a very good film although one thing did annoy me, it's set during WW1 yet the characters have 1940s clothes and hairstyles!

Cast

            Vivien Leigh as Myra

            Robert Taylor as Capt. Roy Cronin

            Lucile Watson as Margaret Cronin

            Virginia Field as Kitty

            Maria Ouspenskaya as Mme. Olga Kirowa

            C. Aubrey Smith as The Duke

            Janet Shaw as Maureen

            Janet Waldo as Elsa

            Steffi Duna as Lydia

            Virginia Carroll as Sylvia

            Leda Nicova as Marie

            Florence Baker as Beatrice

            Eleanor Stewart as Grace

            Clara Reid as Mrs. Bassett

            Leo G Carroll as Policeman

            Harry Allen as Taxi Driver

            Jimmy Aubrey as Cockney

            Phyllis Barry as Malicious Girl

            David Clyde as Barnes the Butler

            Denis D'Auburn as Generous Man

            Frank Dawson as Vicar's Butler

            Gilbert Emery as Colonel

            Herbert Evans as Commissionaire

            Denis Green as Sergeant on Bridge

            Ethel Griffies as Mrs. Clark

            Winifred Harris as Dowager

            Halliwell Hobbes as Vicar

            Charles Irwin as Announcer

            George Kirby as Waiter

            Eric Lonsdale as Soldier

            Wilfred Lucas as Elderly Huntsman

            James May as Cockney

            Florine McKinney as Viola

            Charles McNaughton as Mack the Waiter

            Leonard Mudie as Parker

            Tempe Piggott as Cockney

            Elsa Prescott as Cockney Woman

            Jean Prescott as Girl

            Paul Scardon as Doorman

            Wyndham Standing as Toff

            Harry Stubbs as Proprietor of Eating House

            David Thursby as Cockney

            Norma Varden as Hostess

            Martha Wentworth as Tart on Bridge

            Eric Wilton as Headwaiter

            Douglas Wood as Vicar

            Colin Campbell as Groom

            Frank Mitchell as Father

            Bill James as Sergeant

            Rita Carlyle as Flower Woman

            Douglas Gordon as Taxi Driver

            Bobby Hale as Taxi Driver

            Robert Winkler as Boy

            Harold Howard as Ticket Collector

            Frances McInerney as Violet

            John Power as Toff's Companion
See full cast