Thursday, October 13, 2016

Millions Like Us





Millions Like Us
"Millions Like Us" (1943).jpg
Italian theatrical poster
Directed bySidney Gilliat and Frank Launder
Produced byEdward Black
Written bySidney Gilliat
Frank Launder
StarringEric Portman
Gordon Jackson
Patricia Roc
Basil Radford
Naunton Wayne
Moore Marriott
Joy Shelton
Megs Jenkins
Terry Randall
Music byLouis Levy[1]
CinematographyJack Cox
Roy Fogwell
Edited byR.E. Dearing
Distributed byGainsborough Pictures
Release dates
  • 5 November 1943
Running time
103 min
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
A propaganda film from 1943 made by Gainsborough Films and directed by Frank Lauder and Sidney Gilliatt, this documentary-style ‘home-front' movie has a huge reputation and is regarded as one of the best films to come out of the War period. Propaganda for encouraging the populace to pull together to defeat the enemy it may have been, but the directors and actors manage to bring out the pathos, warmth and ‘pulling together' of the period so well that it just feels like a great ‘feel-good' movie, though with a somewhat sad ending.
There are many small details to be enjoyed - the contrast between the pre-war holiday had by the main family and the stringencies of wartime; Tommy Trinder, giving his services for no credit, heard but not seen (as the Station Master's voice-over); "Calling All Workers" being played as we're introduced to the factory; the MC's (played by Hal Gordon) face lighting up when a lorry-load of soldiers arrive to spice up his drab dance-hall; Irene Handl's 30 seconds as the married couple's land-lady; Anne Crawford's snooty, posh, ‘better-than-thou' caricature; and incredibly young-looking Gordon Jackson gently wooing Patricia Roc, a complete natural as the quiet, slightly shy young woman who is forced by the government, against her wishes, to be sent to a munitions factory in Wales; Eric Portman playing against type as the Factory boss - so many enjoyable moments
This was the first film to give Pat Roc a leading role of some substance and which led to a seven-year contract with Gainsborough Studios and her reputation as "The Goddess of the Odeons". Along with Phyllis Calvert and Margaret Lockwood she was one of the most popular stars of the 1940s, towards the end of which her career went into decline. It is surprising that with her bubbly, effervescent personality and tremendous popularity with the movie-going public, more wasn't made to capitalise on this popularity, but according to her biographer, Michael Hodgson, she had difficulties with J Arthur Rank and wasn't prepared to continue being used as ‘bodice-ripping' fodder which he resented and retaliated by foolishly ignoring the potential in his star. 

Millions Like Us


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the band, see Millions Like Us (band).
Millions Like Us
"Millions Like Us" (1943).jpg
Italian theatrical poster
Directed bySidney Gilliat and Frank Launder
Produced byEdward Black
Written bySidney Gilliat
Frank Launder
StarringEric Portman
Gordon Jackson
Patricia Roc
Basil Radford
Naunton Wayne
Moore Marriott
Joy Shelton
Megs Jenkins
Terry Randall
Music byLouis Levy[1]
CinematographyJack Cox
Roy Fogwell
Edited byR.E. Dearing
Distributed byGainsborough Pictures
Release dates
  • 5 November 1943
Running time
103 min
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Millions Like Us is a 1943 British propaganda film, showing life in a wartime aircraft factory in documentary detail. It starred Patricia Roc, Eric Portman,Megs Jenkins, Gordon Jackson and Anne Crawford, was written and directed by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder.[1]

Plot[edit

]Celia Crowson (Roc) and her family go on holiday to the south coast of England in the summer of 1939. Soon afterwards the Second World Warbreaks out and Celia's father (Moore Marriott) joins what was to become theHome Guard and her more confident sister Phyllis (Joy Shelton) joins theAuxiliary Territorial Service. Fearing her father's disapproval if she moves away from home, Celia hesitates about joining up but eventually her call-up papers arrive. Hoping to join the WAAF or one of the other services, Celia instead gets posted to a factory making aircraft components, where she meets her co-workers, including her Welsh room-mate Gwen Price (Megs Jenkins) and the vain upper middle class Jennifer Knowles (Anne Crawford). Knowles dislikes the work they have to do at the factory, causing friction with their supervisor Charlie Forbes (Eric Portman) which eventually blossoms into a verbally combative romance.

A nearby RAF bomber station sends some of its men to a staff dance at the factory, during which Celia meets and falls in love with an equally shy youngScottish flight sergeant Fred Blake (Gordon Jackson). Their relationship encounters a crisis when Fred refuses to tell Celia when he is sent out on his first mission, but soon afterwards they meet and make up, with Fred asking Celia to marry him. After the wedding they spend their honeymoon at the same south coast resort as the Crowsons went to in 1939, finding it much changed with minefields and barbed wire defending against the expected German invasion. Just after returning to the factory, they find furnished rooms nearby to set up house together, but then Fred is killed in a bombing raid over Germany. Celia receives the news while working at the factory and at a mealtime shortly afterwards the band plays Waiting at the Church, without realising it had been played at Celia's wedding reception. About to break down, Celia is comforted by her fellow workers, as bombers from Fred's squadron overfly the factory en route to another raid.

Cast[edit]


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