With the Second World War at its height, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger here made their debut under the title of The Archers with this story of downed Royal Air Force men escaping through occupied Holland.
This is first and foremost a propaganda piece, and as such it works well. Pressburger created a story which at turns makes heroes of British soldiers, reassures and bolsters the civilians back home and, typically for the internationalist Pressburger but rare for propaganda pictures in general, pays tribute to the people of occupied Europe. While it would have been mostly aimed at the British public, and the heroes are British airmen, this is really a picture about the Dutch resistance. However the Dutch nationalism in the film does border on the ridiculous at times, such as when a resistance woman comments that she prefers the taste of Dutch water to French champagne.
The circumstances of the airmen's escape are extremely tame, it has to be said. Forget Steve McQueen on a motorbike here it's all push-bikes, rowing boats and tea with the vicar. As a result the picture doesn't stand up well as pure entertainment. But it seems as if it's the domesticity and sheer ordinariness that Powell and Pressburger are wanting to stress. This film is as much if not more so about the home front as the western front. It's also interesting that the two main Dutch resistance characters are both female. Something Powell and Pressburger stress throughout their propaganda films is the role of women during the war, an aspect often overlooked in the more gung ho war pictures.
Michael Powell's bold and highly cinematic style seems well developed here. Here, even more so than usual in Powell's pictures, the direction is very self-aware and openly pointed at the audience. With the narrative moved along at every turn by text based devices documents revealing the movements of the airmen or the occasional subtitles which directly address the audience and the sweeping, highly-noticeable camera movement, it's almost as if you can feel the director's personality as he guides you through the story. It's the complete opposite of John Ford's "invisible camera" technique, but no less effective in its own way.
This picture also has significance for me as featuring the screen debut of my favourite actor Peter Ustinov, here playing a Dutch priest. It's not a huge part, but he gets enough room to make some funny little gestures and facial expressions that are typical of his style. Had he been given much more screen time he could probably could have stolen the film, even at this young age. Aside from Peter the Great, none of the performances really stand out.
One of Our Aircraft is Missing is an interesting propaganda piece, but it's a weaker Powell and Pressburger film today. Taken out of the context in which it was made it's not particularly enjoyable. It's probably only really of interest for Powell and Pressburger completists or those who have an interest in the specific ground it covers.
This is first and foremost a propaganda piece, and as such it works well. Pressburger created a story which at turns makes heroes of British soldiers, reassures and bolsters the civilians back home and, typically for the internationalist Pressburger but rare for propaganda pictures in general, pays tribute to the people of occupied Europe. While it would have been mostly aimed at the British public, and the heroes are British airmen, this is really a picture about the Dutch resistance. However the Dutch nationalism in the film does border on the ridiculous at times, such as when a resistance woman comments that she prefers the taste of Dutch water to French champagne.
The circumstances of the airmen's escape are extremely tame, it has to be said. Forget Steve McQueen on a motorbike here it's all push-bikes, rowing boats and tea with the vicar. As a result the picture doesn't stand up well as pure entertainment. But it seems as if it's the domesticity and sheer ordinariness that Powell and Pressburger are wanting to stress. This film is as much if not more so about the home front as the western front. It's also interesting that the two main Dutch resistance characters are both female. Something Powell and Pressburger stress throughout their propaganda films is the role of women during the war, an aspect often overlooked in the more gung ho war pictures.
Michael Powell's bold and highly cinematic style seems well developed here. Here, even more so than usual in Powell's pictures, the direction is very self-aware and openly pointed at the audience. With the narrative moved along at every turn by text based devices documents revealing the movements of the airmen or the occasional subtitles which directly address the audience and the sweeping, highly-noticeable camera movement, it's almost as if you can feel the director's personality as he guides you through the story. It's the complete opposite of John Ford's "invisible camera" technique, but no less effective in its own way.
This picture also has significance for me as featuring the screen debut of my favourite actor Peter Ustinov, here playing a Dutch priest. It's not a huge part, but he gets enough room to make some funny little gestures and facial expressions that are typical of his style. Had he been given much more screen time he could probably could have stolen the film, even at this young age. Aside from Peter the Great, none of the performances really stand out.
One of Our Aircraft is Missing is an interesting propaganda piece, but it's a weaker Powell and Pressburger film today. Taken out of the context in which it was made it's not particularly enjoyable. It's probably only really of interest for Powell and Pressburger completists or those who have an interest in the specific ground it covers.