Sons of the Sea is a 1939 British colour drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Leslie Banks, Kay Walsh, Mackenzie Ward and Cecil Parker.[2]
| Sons of the Sea | |
|---|---|
.jpg) British trade ad | |
| Directed by | Maurice Elvey |
| Written by | George Barraud Gerald Elliott (screenplay) (as W.G. Elliott) Maurice Elvey (screenplay) Reginald Long (dialogue) D. William Woolf (scenario) |
| Produced by | K.C. Alexander |
| Starring | Leslie Banks Kay Walsh Mackenzie Ward Cecil Parker |
| Cinematography | Eric Cross |
| Edited by | Douglas Myers |
Production company | British Consolidated |
| Distributed by | Grand National Pictures (UK) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 82 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Plot edit
In Britain in 1939, the head of Dartmouth Naval College is murdered. His successor, Captain Hyde, believes that he himself was in fact the intended target of the assassination. He soon begins to realise that both British and foreign intelligence agents are at work. He enlists the help of his son, a reluctant sea cadet, to smoke them out.
Cast edit
- Leslie Banks as Captain Hyde
- Kay Walsh as Alison Devar
- Mackenzie Ward as Newton Hulls
- Cecil Parker as Commander Herbert
- Simon Lack as Philip Hyde
- Ellen Pollock as Margaret Hulls
- Peter Shaw as John Strepte
- Nigel Stock as Rudd
- Kynaston Reeves as Professor Devar
- Charles Eaton as Commander-in-Chief
Production edit
Sons of the Sea was filmed during the summer of 1939, just before the outbreak of the Second World War, something explored in the themes of the film.The film's credits claim the film was "Made with full Admiralty co-operation".
It is the only feature film to be shot using the Dufaycolor process,[3] with a limited colour palette.[4] Since restoration, it has been shown on BBC television[5] and more recently on Talking Pictures TV.
Reception edit
The film premiered in London on 11 March 1940, at the then recently opened Cinephone cinema at 241 Oxford Street,[citation needed] with the attendance of the main star, Leslie Banks.[1]
Today's Cinema's reviewer commented that "With its topically appealing title, its surge of espionage incident, its stirring angles of filial devotion and its panoramic backgrounds of cadets on parade performing this or that manoeuvre, the development has all the essentials which make for popular success."[6]
References edit
- ^ a b The Times, 11 March 1940, page 6: Cinephone, premiere "Sons of the Sea" Linked 2018-08-17
- ^ "Sons of the Sea (1939)". BFI. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012.
- ^ "BFI Screenonline: Cinematography Tour". screenonline.org.uk.
- ^ Street, Sarah (2012). Colour Films in Britain: The Negotiation of Innovation 1900-1955. British Film Institute/Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.3366/jbctv.2014.0234. ISBN 9781844573127. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ MJ Simpson (25 April 2015). "MJ Simpson: film reviews and interviews". mjsimpson-films.blogspot.co.uk.
- ^ MacKenzie, S. P. (1 May 2001). British War Films 1939-45. Continnuum-3PL. p. 18. ISBN 9781852852580. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
External links edit
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