I was leaving TCM on for background noise when this film came on, and it is absolutely charming. Such a sweet little romance with a touch of comedy, if they remade it now they would absolutely screw it up.
I saw that on the schedule but neglected to record it. I just wanted to catch the younger Wendy Hiller in a movie.
I know her from three movies: this one, Pygmalion, and Separate Tables. She is wonderful in all of them. She always seems to play a very determined, self-confident woman but with a soft heart underneath.
Oh yes, and Murder on the Orient Express. She made a wonderful old lady too.
Hiller was astoundingly good in Pygmalion, especially this scene.
This was the film that sent me off on a trip to Skye and Mull a few years ago. I think we actually drove past the dock where some of the scenes were filmed.
What I also remember learning from the DVD I watched this on is that the actor playing the romantic lead never went to Scotland for the location shooting. Whenever you see him and Wendy Hiller outside in the countryside, it’s really someone else.
Between IKWIG, A Matter of Life and Death, The Red Shoes and the truly remarkable The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and Black Narcissus (and more), there’s a strong argument that Powell & Pressburger may have been the greatest film directors of the 40s, in terms of both breadth of material covered and visionary imagery captured. Their influence is certainly profound and their sophistication with few equals. Going is incredibly charming, but informed by a mysticism that captures the power of the setting quite beautifully. They’re all wonderful.
I hunted down all the Archers’ films I could get hold of some years ago, and think that Michael Powell is one of the nearly-forgotten greats of British cinema. Another one worth seeing is “A Canterbury Tale,” set and filmed during WWII.