Forgive the groan-worthy pun, but when I first I thought of reviewing romances this February, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger immediately came to mind. The Archers always provide a unique experience, from their sumptuous visuals to their charming characters and eloquent worldview. Today we'll look at two of their most romantic movies.
I Know Where I'm Going! (1945)
I've seen I Know Where I'm Going! twice now, and must conclude it's not my cup of tea. The film has a fanatical following, but I can't get too worked up over a routine romcom with creative imagery. (Okay, there *is* Wendy Hiller...)
Ever since childhood, Joan Webster (Wendy Hiller) has desired success and wealth. Now she's engaged to Sir Robert Berringer, an elderly millionaire with a private estate in the Scottish Hebrides. On her way north, Joan gets stranded by a storm and encounters a group of colorful locals. Not least of them is Torquill (Roger Livesey), a dashing naval officer who soon grows fond of Joan. Will Joan see the error of her thinking and discover true love?
I Know Where I'm Going! gets off to a clever start, with P&P indulging in some of their most clever imagery. Early scenes include one inventive bit after the next: an amusing credits sequence of Joan's childhood (with letter magnets and chalkboards listing crew members), a top hat double-exposed onto a piping steam engine, a dream sequence with a toy train slinking through tartan-patterned landscapes. A later scene with a curraugh caught in a maelstrom rivals Ryan's Daughter's storm sequence in intensity and excitement.
Unfortunately, Going! is otherwise familiar territory. The plot is fairly standard - the recent Amy Adams vehicle Leap Year borrowed it wholesale - and P&P don't do much with it. There's a lot of Scottish atmosphere to absorb, but local color only generates so much interest. The "eccentric" characters Joan encounters aren't half as interesting as your average Archers film and the leads have little chemistry, putting a crimp in the romance. As nice as it is to look at, Going! ends up a lightweight experience.
Wendy Hiller is a superb actress who shines even in weak films (Major Barbara), and this is no exception. She makes Joan strong-willed and ambitious without seeming abrasive, her later conversion a rewarding event. In contrast, the usually-charming Roger Livesey (The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp) is a colorless dud. A sultry Pamela Brown (Becket) gets some nice scenes, but Finlay Currie (Billy Liar) and John Laurie (Hobson's Choice) are reduced to bit parts.
A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
"Any resemblance to any other world known or unknown is purely coincidental."
In contrast, A Matter of Life and Death (1946) (aka Stairway to Heaven) is utterly charming. A cleverly-constructed romantic fantasy, it's the Archers' most outlandish film - and one of their best.
RAF Pilot Peter (David Niven), his plane going down in flames, has a heartfelt final conversation with American radio operator June (Kim Hunter) before crashing. Peter somehow survives, but starts having visions of Conductor 71 (Marius Goring), a French aristocrat claiming to be an emissary of Heaven. Peter protests he can't go to Heaven, having fallen in love with June. June takes Peter to Dr. Reeves (Roger Livesey), who's convinced Peter's suffering from arachnoiditis, a chronic brain disorder. While Reeves tries to arrange a delicate operation, in Heaven Peter must appear before God's high court, with the first American killed at Lexington (Raymond Massey) serving as prosecutor.
The Archers often engaged in "magic realism" and fantastic imagery (The Red Shoes being the outstanding example) but A Matter of Life and Death outdoes them all. The film opens with a Kubrickian starscape overlayed with sardonic narration, setting the tone immediately. The contrast between a vibrant, colorful Earth and monochrome black-and-white heaven is a brilliant conceit: "We're starved for Technicolor up there!" cries the Conductor. Matter provides breathtaking imagery throughout, climaxing in an extraordinary dissolve from Peter's eye to the Milky Way to a heavenly courtroom. But P&P always couple the imagery with playful self-effacement; no need to take this stuff too seriously.
Matter is interesting on other levels, too. The filmmakers took care to match Peter's condition with a real ailment and so the reality of events remains ambiguous. Certainly Dr. Reeves' explanation has all the bases covered, but we see a vision of Heaven before Peter's "death." The two worlds are fluid and interact in the trial scenes; sharp-eyed viewers will notice that God (Abraham Sofaer) is also the brain surgeon! Most films would opt for a clear explanation, but Matter allows multiple interpretations.
Finally, Matter continues A Canterbury Tale's preoccupation with Anglo-American amity. P&P explore the cultural divide several ways: the romance itself, a soldiers' production of Midsummer Night's Dream ("Oberon is not a gangster!"), and most literally in the courtroom scenes. Wartime Brittons had not unreasonable resentments against American GIs, but Matter argues the two peoples have no sensible reason not to get along. With its intercultural romance and a Heaven populated by all races, Matter ultimately strikes a warm, humanist note.
David Niven and Kim Hunter make a wonderful couple. Niven is stellar as usual, mixing acerbic wisecracks with unalloyed charm and bemused befuddlement. Hunter (Planet of the Apes) plays a beautifully-drawn character: she's a proactive, intelligent woman fiercely drawn to her man. They have such great chemistry that one forgets how little screen time they actually share.
The supporting cast brims with veterans of other Archers films: Roger Livesey, Marius Goring, Raymond Massey (49th Parallel), Kathleen Byron (Black Narcissus). All do fine work, but the standout is Goring, whose hysterically foppish Conductor steals every scene. Robert Coote (Gunga Din) is Peter's co-pilot, Abraham Sofaer (Pandora and the Flying Dutchman) plays God and Richard Attenborough has a walk-on early in the film.
Up next: Marty (1955).
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