Customer Reviews

Festival of Britain [VHS]

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Three films included here. First is a Humphrey Jennings short from 1950, FAMILY PORTRAIT. It's a post-war pep talk for Britons still feeling war fatigue: remember, the Brits were still rationing petrol until 1950, and food rationing wasn't lifted until 1953. Like his 1942 morale builder Listen to Britain, FAMILY PORTRAIT shows an uplifting array of scenes from around the country. Beautiful and historic landscapes, industrial and scientific triumphs, cultural touchstones, and a citizenry across classes who exhibit grit, grace, and tenacity. Unlike the pure marriage of sound and images that was Listen to Britain, FAMILY PORTRAIT is emphatically narrated.

Next up is DAVID, "a true story" from 1951 Wales. Told in docu-drama style by filmmaker Paul Dickson, this weaves together the Welsh touchstones of coal mining, education, and poetry, and is interesting viewing for anyone who has enjoyed To Serve Them All My Days or How Green Was My Valley.

The third short is WAVERLEY STEPS: A VISIT TO EDINBURGH. From director John Eldridge, this half hour "pulls away from the documentary impulse" to stage scripted vignettes throughout the city. The Kino catalogue calls it a "city symphony" film in the tradition of Berlin: Symphony of a City. The Kino catalogue writer also remarks that it opens the way for the "Free Cinema" movement of filmmakers like Lindsay Anderson and Tony Richardson, who were shortly thereafter to follow the example here of pulling drama out of the soundstage manor house and putting it in the streets and homes of the people.

You can buy a new copy direct from Kino for $24.95 plus shipping. (Free shipping for orders over $50.)