The Bridge

2006 • 94 minutes

About this movie

The Golden Gate Bridge is an iconic structure; a symbol of San Francisco, the West, freedom - and something more, something spiritual, something words cannot describe.
Director Eric Steel and his crew spent an entire year focusing on the Bridge. Running cameras for almost every daylight minute, they documented nearly two dozen suicides and a great many unrealized attempts. In addition, the director captured nearly 100 hours of incredibly frank, deeply personal, often heart-wrenching interviews with the families and friends of the departed, as well as with several of the attempters themselves.
The Bridge is a visual and visceral journey into one of life's gravest taboos, offering glimpses into the darkest, and possibly most impenetrable corners of the human mind.

Ratings and reviews

I like dark films, but this one is unbearable. I did not read the description carefully, and was expecting a film about the history of the GG Bridge. Needless to say I was shocked (but also disappointed) when the guy in the flannel shirt flipped himself off the railing, with many more to come. It does beg the question: Why have higher railings not been installed on the GG, as they have on the Duke Ellington Bridge over Rock Creek Park in Washington, DC? I did not finish the film, so perhaps this question was answered. Even so, I have seen suicides in my family and found this a wrenching, but not especially illuminating look, into the subject. You've got to wonder about a guy who trains a camera on the bridge for a year waiting for people to fall.

Its hard to watch, but I had a family member take their own life. I have watched this movie more than once. Sometimes I am searching for the "why" of it - what causes it? I don't accept the usual answers because as a Psychology professional myself, I think they fall short. I do, however, hope something reduces the number of suicides on this bridge. I drove over this bridge once. Its big, beautiful and magnificent and I don't get why people end their lives here.

In one of the most beautiful cities in the US, suicide is a common occurrence from a prominent and popular landmark. Despair takes its toll, compelling fragile individuals to end it all in a very public manner. I don't think I could watch it again, it is very disturbing.