Film and TV
Underappreciated: A Matter of Life and Death
Heard of this film? Thought not. We dust off the cobwebs from this 1946 classic about being trapped between this life and the next.
"Ah, there's June. She walks in beauty, like the night... Only she's cycling and it's daytime.”
This is an odd film to include in a blog on the underappreciated. It’s certainly appreciated, having come in at number 20 in the BFI’s list of the top 100 British films of the twentieth century. But this was voted for by critics and film-makers and amongst the general public it remains somewhat ignored, especially with the under-50s. This is a travesty and this fantastic picture needs to be saved from the mid-afternoon TV slots and take a place in most discerning film-fans’ collections. Made by the writer-director team Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell, it was originally conceived as a piece of cinematic propaganda to improve Anglo-American understanding after the Second World War, but despite this it does not feel at all dated. It has inspired many modern directors and screenwriters and is truly one of the masterpieces of British cinema.
As his plane goes down over the Channel in 1945 Peter Carter knows his last words will be to American RAF radio operator June. Without a parachute he jumps, and miraculously survives… only he wasn’t supposed to. There was a mix-up in the other world (never explicitly named as heaven) and he was lost in the fog, but by the time ‘Conductor 71’ finds him, Peter has found June and fallen in love. Up in the bureaucratic other world, they become increasingly impatient to correct their mistake. Conductor 71, a Frenchman from the revolutionary period, plagues Peter in a serious of visions where time seems to stop or he is transported to the gateway to the other world. Meanwhile, on earth, Peter and June seek the advice of Dr Reeves as to the medical cause of Peter’s visions. Peter must fight for his life as he stands trial in heaven and undergoes dangerous surgery on earth. But are the visions real?
The film was shot both in colour and black-and-white and cleverly goes against the grain to show the next world in monochrome and this world in glorious Technicolor (as Conductor 71 remarks, “One is starved for Technicolor up there”). Between the two lies a giant moving staircase, which plays host to some of the most memorable scenes in the film, such as Peter’s debate with the Conductor about which great historical figure should represent him at the trial. The depiction of the other world as a modern and efficient bureaucracy works amazingly well, with new arrivals meeting angels in uniform, signing name and rank, and collecting wings (watch out for a young Richard Attenborough as a newly-deceased airman). Yes, some of the accents and national stereotypes could be criticised nowadays, but Powell and Pressburger seem to use them with an acceptable mix of absurdity and irony. And the effects are brilliant, given that they all had to be done the old-fashioned way, with characters walking and talking around a frozen game of table-tennis.
The writing and direction come together to make what could have been a tangled mess of a grand fantasy narrative a truly beautiful, romantic and witty picture. The dialogue is funny and clever, and each character wonderfully crafted. The performances are pitch-perfect; David Niven shines in the lead role, but the supporting cast, with Kim Hunter as June, Roger Livesey as Dr Reeves, and, of course, Marius Goring as Conductor 71, is by no means overshadowed by Niven’s infinite capacity to charm. Debates on life, love and the afterlife are all carried off without becoming too heavy or complicated. The opening sequence is stunningly crafted. This one of the most inventive and romantic films ever made and it truly deserves to be rediscovered by younger audiences.
Topics: Film, Underappreciated
Under-appreciated? Remains somewhat ignored, especially with the under-50s? Whatever makes you think so?
There were at least 2,000 people in the audience when it was screened in the courtyard of Somerset House back in August 2005. Most of those were quite young to my ageing eyes. I would have said that most of them were in the 25-35 age group. It was a bit more expensive that a ticket to the average (very average) blockbuster at the local multiplex so I wouldn’t have expected many teenagers to be able to have afforded it.
I don’t disagree with your summary or with your opinions of the film. I just query your assumption that it’s ignored or even that it’s not very well known by young people. I find that as soon as I mention a few of the iconic scenes, like David Niven on the “Stairway to Heaven”, then people realise that they have seen it, often quite a few times. Also that they’ve usually been impressed by it and liked it even if they couldn’t remember its title.
Steve Crook
The Powell and Pressburger Appreciation Society
http://www.powell-pressburger.org/
I did not claim that no one under 50 loves this film, but that the majority of people will shrug their shoulders when you mention it to them. As a member of the Powell and Pressburger Appreciation Society of course you will come across lots of people who like it. The point of this blog is to highlight films with more of a ‘cult’ following that deserve to be more generally recognised as classics. Film geeks will have heard of it because of its critical acclaim, but otherwise people tend not to recognise it. The Somerset House screenings are always popular despite the film so I am not sure this really serves as proof of popularity.
I have to admit that I do come across a few people who vaguely recollect having seen it when I describe the plot, but surely this illustrates how woefully ignored it has been. It is the kind of film people catch in passing on TV and don’t remember the name of, whereas it should be a film that people automatically know as one of the great classics of British cinema along with things like Brief Encounter, Kind Hearts and Coronets, and Get Carter etc. Try walking into a shop to buy a copy- you’ll find plenty when it comes to these other titles but you’d be lucky to find more than one copy of this.
Sorry, I didn’t mean it to come across as a criticism, merely a query.
I do applaud anything that brings more attention to this and the other great films, whenever and wherever they were made. But it’s an uphill battle fighting against the massive advertising budget that comes with most “major” films nowadays.
When people are raised on a diet of “action” films and other “blockbusters” with little real plot or characters which are just filled with special effects and explosions, then it’s hard to wean them off that diet onto something which is more fulfilling.
I just cherish the small victories like when someone does see one of these classic films and wants to see more of them, rejecting the “junk diet” that they are being force fed. That’s why the Somerset House screening was so good. It was the first year that they’d screened films there like that and it led to the popularity of the others. But to see an audience of 2,000 young people give a standing ovation to a 60 year old film, that was wonderful.
All the best
Steve
Seriously though, it’s not underappreciated amongst people who have a fucking clue.