Sir Dirk Bogarde's portrayal of General Browning was highly controversial, and several friends of the late General suggested that, had Browning still been alive in 1977, he would have sued director Sir Richard Attenborough and screenwriter William Goldman for libel. Bogarde took issue with the portrayal during filming, having known Browning personally, as he was a member of Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery's staff during the war. Bogarde was upset by the personal criticism he received following the release of the film, especially as he had not been involved in the writing of the script. Although Attenborough publicly took responsibility for the controversy, his relationship with Bogarde was never the same again. Browning's son said he believed his father was made the fall guy for the failure of Operation Market Garden in the film because the producers knew there would have been too much flak if they went after Montgomery.
During World War II, Sir Dirk Bogarde, who played Lieutenant General Browning, served in intelligence with the British Army. He, and eight other intelligence officers, were sent to Arnhem by General Bernard L. Montgomery during the battle.
Director Richard Attenborough knew he only had one chance to shoot the large paratrooper sequence. To insure that he got the coverage he needed, there were 19 cameras rolling during the drop.
Sir Michael Caine's scripted line to order the column of tanks and armored cars into battle, was "Forward, go, charge." Luckily for Caine, Lieutenant Colonel J.O.E. Vandeleur was on the set, so he could ask him what the actual line was. Vandeleur told him, "I just said quietly into the microphone, 'Well, get a move on, then,'" which is what Caine says in the movie.
Sir Laurence Olivier showed up on the set wearing an old suit and a pair of battered black shoes. He informed Sir Richard Attenborough that he had been gardening in the shoes for a month, so that they would look just right for the character, a Dutch farmer and doctor who risks his life to tend the wounded.
Richard Attenborough: One of the lunatics wearing glasses watching the soldiers. This was his only acting role in one of the films that he directed.