SummaryBased on Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize winning novel, this timeless story is set in early 18th century Peru.
Directed By:Mary McGuckian
Written By:Mary McGuckian, Thornton Wilder
The Bridge of San Luis Rey
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
25
User score
Generally Favorable
7.4
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Unfavorable
25
9% Positive
1 Review
1 Review
36% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
55% Negative
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
63
Wilder's created world is alive with his erudition, his sympathy for his characters in their loneliness and flawed goodness. This film doesn't do him justice but it's a gesture in the right direction.
50
Ultimately comes across as a soporific costume drama featuring a gallery of miscast stars.
40
An honorable but dull attempt to translate a neglected literary source to the screen.
30
May be the opposite of trash, but it is something just as disposable: dead literary meat. Dragged down by a stuffy screenplay clotted with generic period oratory, overdressed to the point that the actors seem physically impeded by their ornate costumes, and hopelessly muddled in its storytelling, the movie is edited with a haphazardness that leaves many dots unconnected.
25
The script and direction by Irish filmmaker Mary McGuckian is just deadly.
20
After watching this movie, which stars Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Kathy Bates and Gabriel Byrne, I was moved only to find my own bridge to leap from.
0
"I am surrounded by oceans of boredom," the campy Abraham complains at one point. It's a sentiment audiences are bound to share.
User score
Generally Favorable
7.4
88% Positive
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
13% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
Feb 11, 2026
9
This is the worst A list movie of all times. Is this actually a comedy, I asked myself. Thats how bad it is.
Robert dinero sounded like he just walked off the set of good fellows playing the same character.
Kathy Bates couldnt even make this watchable. I was disgusted at the horrible script she had to contend with, creating a buffoonish character that made my skin crawl.
The icing on the cake was the courtier with the red rubber lips.
Another factor in this review was what the **** is happening. Who is this person or that person. Is the daughter in peru and spain? And so on. Once pepita arrived, I was done. How could a director bankrolled with money and excellent actors create this God awful film. Watch it at your own risk.
Production Company:
- Tribeca Productions
- Metropolitan Filmexport
- Davis Films
- Bridge
- Kanzaman
- Spice Factory
- Movision
- Scion Films
- Pembridge Pictures
Release Date:Jun 10, 2005
Duration:2 h
Rating:PG
Tagline:Five Lives Bound By One Fate.
Awards
Goya Awards
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
