WAR films – First World War, Second World War, Vietnam, Boer, Korean, Spanish – it’s a fascinating and seemingly inexhaustible seam.
There have certainly been some terrific movies in this genre: The Deer Hunter, All Quiet on the Western Front, Das Boot, Dunkirk, Apocalypse Now and The Bridge on the River Kwai all spring to mind. Great as all these examples undoubtedly are, for me they don’t quite have the appeal and charm of a variety of British-produced war-themed movies that were produced in the 50s and 60s.
This category, mainly shot in black-and-white which lent a certain gritty realism, portrayed a snapshot of Britain and her armed forces, but equally importantly her resilient civilians and the hardships and triumphs they encountered.
Watching these pictures now one can only marvel at the societal changes which have occurred, and equally, yearn fondly for a time when there was a cohesive bond that ran through the population. A time when stoicism was the order of the day rather than emotional incontinence, a time when respect, dignity and duty counted.
For me, and I suspect many TCW readers, these movies reward repeated viewings. There were of course some terrific actors – many having seen active service themselves. For me John Mills was a hard act to beat; whatever rank he was awarded on celluloid, he played it perfectly. His credits rightly reflect what a popular and dependable character actor he was: In Which We Serve, Above Us the Waves, Dunkirk, Ice Cold in Alex, Morning Departure and I Was Monty’s Double to name but a few of his memorable films.
However, much as I would normally see the inclusion of John Mills as something of a litmus test for a military film’s appeal, his exclusion did nothing to detract from productions such as The Cruel Sea, Cockleshell Heroes, Appointment in London, Angels One Five, The Malta Story, Went the Day Well?, The Man Who Never Was or the legendary The Dam Busters.
Many of these films focused quite understandably on the dangerous exploits of individual men or groups, but they did not shy away from some of the more uncomfortable aspects of war.
While perhaps never explicitly talked about, marital infidelity was a nagging concern to service personnel posted overseas, and this issue is addressed in a somewhat comical way in Cockleshell Heroes when David Lodge goes temporarily AWOL to deal with an amorous interloper. Readers might remember the scene where a policeman stands nonchalantly outside the marital home as the unwanted lover is physically ejected via the front window. (The sound is poor on this clip, but you will get the idea.)
For a more nuanced and sensitive angle, it is hard to beat Denholm Elliott’s forlorn look (telephone receiver in hand) as his errant wife, played by Moira Lister, abandons him for a dinner date with a film producer in The Cruel Sea.
Men predominate in most of these films but women, and the important role they played, are never far from the front. Capable and confident with common sense running through them, they are correctly cast as being the backbone of Britain throughout the war.
While America’s earlier 1942 interpretation of English values, via Greer Garson’s rendering of Mrs Miniver, was a touch over the top, it undoubtedly cemented, in the public’s mind, the enormous and vital function women played.
