Maps of Movies

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

Where The Bridge on the River Kwai says it takes place, and where it was really shot.

The jungle bridge in Thailand was built, and blown up, in Sri Lanka

Scenes and places

Arrival at the Japanese prison camp (1943)

Colonel Nicholson marches his men into the camp and refuses to let his officers do manual labor. Colonel Saito answers with threats, and the standoff sets up the whole film.

Set in Japanese POW camp (fictional) — A Japanese prison camp in Thailand where British prisoners arrive in February 1943.

The camp has no real-world site; the film says only that it lies in Thailand.

Nicholson builds the bridge (1943)

Nicholson sees the shoddy work his men have done and orders a proper bridge as a lasting tribute to British skill. His fellow officer Clipton warns him it is collaboration with the enemy.

Set in The bridge on the Kwai (the Kanchanaburi bridge it is modelled on) — The film's railway bridge on the Burma-Thailand line; the real bridge it is modelled on stands near Kanchanaburi. Google Maps · Apple Maps

Historians note the real railway bridge did not cross the river then called the Kwai; it crosses the Mae Klong at Tha Ma Kham.

Filmed at Kelani River near Kitulgala, Sri Lanka (Kelani River, Kitulgala, Sri Lanka) — The bridge set was built here on the Kelani River; the film was made in Ceylon, not Thailand. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Shears recovers in Ceylon (1943)

Shears, the only survivor of an escape attempt, settles into a comfortable recovery in Ceylon. Major Warden then arrives to recruit him for a mission he wants no part of.

Set in Recovery hospital, British Ceylon — The hospital in British Ceylon where Shears recuperates.

Mount Lavinia Hotel is a colonial-era seaside hotel south of Colombo.

Filmed at Mount Lavinia Hotel, Mount Lavinia (Mount Lavinia, Colombo, Sri Lanka) — Filmed right here. The hotel stood in for the hospital. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Shears and the nurse on the beach (1943)

Shears spends a quiet, carefree moment with a nurse by the sea, a world away from the camp he escaped.

Set in A beach in Ceylon — A beach where Shears spends time with a nurse.

The film does not name the beach, and no source gives its location.

The commandos parachute into the jungle (1943)

Warden, Shears and their team parachute into Thailand, and a Japanese patrol soon finds them. A village chief, Khun Yai, and a group of Thai women guide the survivors toward the river.

Set in Jungle and Thai village near the river — The jungle and village where the commandos land and meet the Thai villagers who guide them.

The film gives no named place for the landing; no source identifies where it was shot.

Charges at the base of the bridge (1943)

Under cover of darkness the commandos plant explosives at the base of the bridge towers, planning to destroy it as the first train crosses the next morning. Meanwhile Nicholson waits proudly for the first train.

Set in The bridge on the Kwai (the Kanchanaburi bridge it is modelled on) — The film's railway bridge on the Burma-Thailand line; the real bridge it is modelled on stands near Kanchanaburi. Google Maps · Apple Maps

The same Kitulgala set seen earlier, now rigged with charges.

Filmed at Kelani River near Kitulgala, Sri Lanka (Kelani River, Kitulgala, Sri Lanka) — The bridge explosion was filmed at the bridge near Kitulgala. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Characters

• Colonel Nicholson — The British commanding officer who leads his men into a Japanese prison camp.
• Shears — An American naval officer who escapes the camp.
• Colonel Saito — The Japanese camp commandant.
• Major Warden — The British commando officer who plans to destroy the bridge.

Questions answered on the map

• Was the bridge on the River Kwai really filmed in Thailand?