| To End All Wars | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | David L. Cunningham |
| Written by | Brian Godawa Ernest Gordon |
| Produced by | Jack Hafer David L. Cunningham |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Greg Gardiner |
| Edited by | Tim Silano |
| Music by | John Cameron Moya Brennan |
| Distributed by | GMT Pictures |
Release dates | |
Running time | 125 minutes |
| Languages | English Japanese |
To End All Wars is a 2001war film starringRobert Carlyle,Kiefer Sutherland and Sakae Kimura and was directed byDavid L. Cunningham. The film is based onThrough the Valley of the Kwai, an autobiography ofErnest Gordon, then a Scottish Captain, later thePresbyterian Dean of thePrinceton University Chapel.
The film is set in aJapaneseprisoner of warlabour camp where the inmates are building theBurma Railway during the last three and a half years ofWorld War II.[3] Captain Ernest Gordon was a company commander with the 2nd Battalion,Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders who fought in several battles in theMalayan Campaign and theBattle of Singapore before being captured and made aprisoner of war by the Japanese.
It was filmed primarily on the island ofKauai,Hawaii, with some excerpt shots ofThailand. The film wasrated R in the U.S. for war violence and brutality, and for somelanguage. The film was produced by Jack Hafer and David Cunningham.[4]
The screenplay is based on the autobiography ofErnest Gordon and recounts the experiences offaith and hope of the interned men.[5] The autobiography was originally published under the nameThrough the Valley of the Kwai,[6] then later asMiracle on the River Kwai (not to be confused with the separate novelThe Bridge over the River Kwai by Pierre Boulle). Gordon's book was finally re-issued with the titleTo End All Wars to tie in with the film.
Post-production of the film footage was delayed because of lack of funding, which was eventually provided by Goldcrest Films.[7]
On the review aggregation websiteRotten Tomatoes the film has a score of 62% based on reviews from 13 critics, with an average rating of 5.9/10.[8] The film was awarded the Crystal Heart Award and Grand Prize for Dramatic Feature at theHeartland Film Festival.[9] A review inVariety is mainly negative.[3]
The film's soundtrack was never released as a stand-alone release. Various songs have been re-recorded byMoya Brennan on her subsequent solo albums, most recently 'Mo Mhian' onMy Match Is A Makin'.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mo Mhian (Healing Heart)" | Moya Brennan | |
| 2. | "I Will Go (Campbell's Theme)" | Moya Brennan | |
| 3. | "Lá na Cruinne" | Moya Brennan | |
| 4. | "Find The Place" | John Cameron & Moya Brennan | |
| 5. | "Amazing Grace" | John Newton / Traditional | |
| 6. | "Pomp And Circumstance" | Edward Elgar | |
| 7. | "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" | Johann Sebastian Bach | |
| 8. | "Yankee Doodle Boy" | George M. Cohan |
