MADE IN ENGLAND: THE FILMS OF POWELL AND PRESSBURGER (2024)

Directed by David Hinton



Where & When: Nuart Theater, West Los Angeles, CA. July 27, 2024 7:30 PM



The filmmaking team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger are responsible for some of the most exquisite, breathtaking works of world cinema, which includes "A Matter of Life and Death", "Black Narcissus" and "The Red Shoes", that have gone on to become important classics in motion picture history. Introduced by producer, Alexander Korda in 1939, the British Powell had worked in various roles in the early days of the film industry beginning in France before returning home to get an opportunity to write and direct while Pressburger, Hungarian-born of Jewish heritage, had begun his career as a journalist before turning towards screen writing, forced to migrate a couple of times before landing in Britain due to the rise of the Nazis. Pressburger was asked to doctor the script for the World War I spy thriller, "The Spy in Black" that Powell was directing which began the cinematic partnership between these men, eventually making over twenty films over the course of their career together.

The extraordinary documentary, "Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger" goes into great detail about the influence and craftsmanship of these groundbreaking filmmakers. We have executive producer, Martin Scorsese as our on-screen narrator, delivering a masterclass on these highly esteemed and inspirational film creators in this captivating doc, directed by David Hinton. The now eighty-one legendary director begins by recalling his own childhood history with him being forced to be indoors most of the time due to being an asthmatic. This lead to him being brought to movie theaters where his love of cinema was developed. By the time Scorsese became a teenager, he had become obsessed with the work of Powell and Pressburger which would greatly impact not only his desire to become a filmmaker but his own cinematic style. 

After making two more films together, realizing they work well together with a common viewpoint regarding cinema, Powell and Pressburger formed a partnership which would be known as "The Archers". While Pressburger would work on the initial script outline and Powell would essentially direct the film, together they would shape the complete movie with the screen credit going to both as writer, producer and director. The Archers were early indie filmmakers; experimenting with structure, demanding control over their work and never wanted to be forced to compromise on their productions. The duo assembled a regular group of actors and crew members that they worked well with and wanted to participate in fulfilling their creative vision.

Powell and Pressburger were enlisted to do their part for the war effort by creating films that would inspire and uplift during this harrowing time. However, they chose to do this on their own terms. "The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp" may have been a pro-British, romantic war drama but it was also a satire on the country's army, delivering soft jabs at the leadership. The original intention of "A Matter of Life and Death" was to help improve the tense relations between the late arriving American soldiers stationed in the UK and the war weary, British public. But what it became was a surreal romantic fantasy in stunning Technicolor set during the World War involving a British airman (David Niven) who survives a plane crash and falls in love with an American radio operator (Kim Hunter) only he begins to have visions of an angel summoning him to the afterlife.

The end of the war allowed the filmmakers to let their imaginations soar even further. "Black Narcissus" revolves around the increasing strain within a small convent of nuns trying to establish a school on top of an isolated mountain in the Himalayas. Filled with unexpected simmering sexual tension and grounded by exceptional realism, this film firmly establishes Powell and Pressburger as true cinematic artists highlighted by the Oscar-winning cinematography of Jack Cardiff.

But what is considered by many viewers and critics as this team's greatest masterpiece would be their follow-up feature, "The Red Shoes" from 1948. Boldly wanting to experiment with how music and visuals could effectively be used in a film, "The Red Shoes" is set in the world of ballet, exploring a dancer's conflict between living for their art and finding space to have a personal life. Determined to have a professional dancer who could act in the lead role, the duo managed to lure a very reluctant Moira Shearer, a ballerina from Scotland, to do the part after pursuing her for a year. The one sequence the film is best known for is the seventeen minute ballet centerpiece inspired by the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale which the film is based. Far from a traditional filmed dance number that was commonly done at the time, the scene utilizes editing, close-ups and impressionistic visual effects, creating an undeniable cinematic experience.

By the mid-1950's, The Archers had decided to pursue some separate creative paths. Pressburger would have two novels published and write a few screenplays for other filmmakers. Powell had begun working on some solo film projects, most notably beginning with the controversial, "Peeping Tom" in 1960. During this period, they came together to make a film, "They're a Weird Mob" in 1966 with Pressburger using a pseudonym, "Richard Imrie". But their final collaboration together would be "The Boy Who Turned Yellow", a 1972 feature made for the UK non-profit, Children's Film Foundation.

Scorsese's longtime film editor, Thelma Schoonmaker would go on to marry Powell in 1984 (after introducing the two to each other). This gave Scorsese an even greater opportunity to connect with Powell, allowing him to pick his brain over the films his cinematic idol had made and receive advice from him on the movies he was making at the time, ultimately forming a closer friendship. This relationship also helped gain access to a trove of archival footage seen in the film with interviews with the filmmakers, personal home movies and behind-the-scenes recordings.

Hinton, a British director of several documentary shorts and episodes of television series, basically gets out of the way, simply allowing the rapid-fire, insightful discussion by Scorsese and the resonant beauty of the images by Powell and Pressburger to do much of the work in "Made In England".  While there are moments in his conversations that can feel a bit dry like a college lecture, Scorsese is a passionate cheerleader, reiterating why he loves their films and why you really should too. Long before they even ended their partnership, the work by these filmmakers would fall out of favor and they were never properly appreciated during their career by the critics of their native country. But time allows an opportunity for second look in order to consider a greater appreciation. "Made In England" is an excellent, helpful guide into the cinema of Powell and Pressburger and a wonderful encouragement into seeking out their movies.