One of Our Aircraft Is Missing

Last updated

One of Our Aircraft Is Missing
One of Our Aircraft poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Michael Powell
Emeric Pressburger
Written byMichael Powell
Emeric Pressburger
Produced byMichael Powell
Emeric Pressburger
Stanley Haynes
Starring
Cinematography Ronald Neame
Edited by David Lean
Distributed by Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors
Release date
  • 27 June 1942 (1942-06-27)
Running time
UK: 102 minutes
US: 82 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget£70,000 (est.)
Box office$478,939 (US rentals) [1]

One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (stylised on screen as ......one of our aircraft is missing) is a 1942 British black-and-white war film, mainly set in the German-occupied Netherlands. [2] It was the fourth collaboration between the British writer-director-producer team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger and the first film they made under the banner of The Archers.

Contents

Although considered a propaganda film and made under the authority of the Ministry of Information as part of a series of film productions aimed at morale in the United Kingdom, it is elevated by the story and production values above the usual jingoistic fare. [3] Today, One of Our Aircraft Is Missing is considered one of the "best of British films of the era". [4]

A reversal of the plot of Powell and Pressburger's previous film, 49th Parallel (1941), One of Our Aircraft Is Missing has the British trying to escape with the help of various locals. In the 49th Parallel, the Germans stranded in Canada argued and fought amongst themselves, while the British fliers in this film work well together as a team.

Plot

The crew of an Royal Air Force (RAF) Wellington bomber are forced to bail out over the Netherlands near the Zuider Zee after one of their engines is damaged during a night raid on Stuttgart. Five of the six airmen find each other; the sixth goes missing. The first Dutch citizens they encounter, led by English-speaking school teacher Else Meertens, are suspicious at first as no aircraft is reported to have crashed in the Netherlands (the abandoned bomber actually reaches England before crashing). After much debate and some questioning, the Dutch agree to help, despite their fear of German reprisals.

Accompanied by many of the Dutch, the disguised airmen, led by the pilots, bicycle through the countryside to a football match where they are passed along to the local burgomaster. To their astonishment, they discover their missing crewman playing for one of the teams. Reunited, they hide in a truck carrying supplies to Jo de Vries.

De Vries pretends to be pro-German, blaming the British for killing her husband in a bombing raid (whereas he is actually in England working as a radio announcer). She hides them in her mansion, despite the Germans being garrisoned there. Under cover of an air raid, she leads them to a rowing boat. The men row undetected to the sea, but a bridge sentry finally spots them and a shot seriously wounds the oldest man, Sir George Corbett but they reach the North Sea.

They take shelter in a German rescue buoy, where they take two shot-down enemy aviators prisoner but not before one sends a radio message. By chance, two British boats arrive first. Because Corbett cannot be moved, they simply tow the buoy back to England. Three months later, he is fully recovered and the crew board their new four-engine heavy bomber, a Short Stirling.

Cast

As appearing in screen credits (main roles identified):

Production

The title "One of Our Aircraft Is Missing" is taken from a phrase that was often heard in contemporary news reports in the UK after a bombing raid, "one [or often more] of our aircraft failed to return", which originally served as the working title of the screenplay but was then altered to a less-downbeat form. [3] Although the screenplay was not completely developed by the time of production, Powell considered it "half-finished ... it remained (that way) for most of the production." [3] One of the reasons for continual revisions to the screenplay were the constant advances in wartime technology that were occurring.

The Admiralty informed the producers and directors of the use of "lobster pots", floating steel platforms, hitherto unknown to the public, that had been anchored in the North Sea to facilitate rescue of downed airmen. When Powell learned of this innovation, he pointedly rewrote the screenplay to include this refuge as the means to deliver the crew to safety. With help from the Ministry of Information, permission to use these platforms was obtained. [5]

The actors that were gathered for the film included recognised stage and screen talents such as Eric Portman, Hugh Williams and Godfrey Tearle as well as newcomers such as Peter Ustinov making his film debut. Although mainly centred on male roles, Powell encouraged Pressburger to create a number of significant female characters. The result were strong, credible roles for both Pamela Brown and Googie Withers as female Dutch Resistance leaders. [6] The main leads, Hugh Burden, Eric Portman, Hugh Williams, Emrys Jones, Bernard Miles, and Godfrey Tearle, formed the crew of "B for Bertie" and introduced themselves and their characters' positions on board the bomber in a progressive sequence that was filmed, like most of the aircraft interiors, in a Vickers Wellington "shell" supplied by the RAF, with working features such as lighting and electrically powered turrets. [7]

A Vickers Wellington bomber, a type featured in the film Vickers Wellington.jpg
A Vickers Wellington bomber, a type featured in the film

To maintain an aura of authenticity, actual RAF bombers on "ops" (operations) were filmed but the aerial scene of the bombing of Stuttgart was created using a large-scale model at Riverside Studios, Hammersmith. The giant Wellington replica actually covered the entire studio floor and was rigged with lights and fitted for effects shots including explosions. On screen, the effect was striking and realistically duplicated the flight and bombing raid carried out at the start of the film. [8] Much of the outdoor sequences set in the Netherlands were shot at Boston in Lincolnshire, with many of the town's landmarks visible, for example, Shodfriars Quay and the railway swing bridge. Notably, there is no scored music, Powell deliberately strove for "naturalism" relying on natural sounds that would be heard by the characters. [9] The Dutch national anthem, Wilhelmus , is heard during the film as part of the campaign of passive resistance by the population, and the film finishes with the coat of arms of the Netherlands on screen while the opening bars of the anthem are sung by a choir. [10] One of Our Aircraft Is Missing was cut by 20 minutes for its original American release. [11]

Reception

Box office

According to Kinematograph Weekly the film was one of the most popular at the British box office in 1942, after Mrs Miniver, First of the Few, How Green was My Valley, Reap the Wild Wind, Holiday Inn, Captains of the Clouds, and Sergeant York and before Hatter's Castle and Young Mr Pitt. [12]

Awards

Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay, and Ronald Neame (photography) and C. C. Stevens (sound) for Best Effects, Special Effects. [13] Powell's nomination was his only Academy Award nomination – Pressburger won an Academy Award for 49th Parallel and was nominated for The Red Shoes as well. [11]

One of Our Aircraft Is Missing joins other British war films as one of the most "well-remembered, accomplished, and enjoyed" realist films of the period. [14]

In 2014, One of Our Aircraft Is Missing was included in a set of war films packaged together and sold to raise funds for The Royal British Legion veterans organisation. [15]

One of Our Aircraft Is Missing is mentioned in the Dad's Army episode "The Lion Has Phones". When Lance-Corporal Jones tries to ring up GHQ, he mistakenly gets the cinema, whose operator tells him the film is on. There is a mention of Eric Portman and Googie Withers. A poster for the film is on display at the cinema. [16] Correspondingly, in the episode of Dad's Army, "Time on My Hands", Pike knows how to open a parachute because, he says, he's seen it done in One of Our Aircraft Is Missing. [17] The episode "Sons of the Sea" also contains numerous elements from this film. [18]

In the James Bond film From Russia With Love , after dispatching an attack helicopter sent by SPECTRE, 007 observes, "I'd say one of their aircraft is missing."

The title is parodied by many other works: [19]

Related Research Articles

<i>The Red Shoes</i> (1948 film) 1948 film by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger

The Red Shoes is a 1948 British drama film written, directed, and produced by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It follows Victoria Page, an aspiring ballerina who joins the world-renowned Ballet Lermontov, owned and operated by Boris Lermontov, who tests her dedication to the ballet by making her choose between her career and her romance with composer Julian Craster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Powell</span> English film director

Michael Latham Powell was an English filmmaker, celebrated for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger. Through their production company The Archers, they together wrote, produced and directed a series of classic British films, notably The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), A Canterbury Tale (1944), I Know Where I'm Going! (1945), A Matter of Life and Death, Black Narcissus (1947), The Red Shoes (1948), and The Tales of Hoffmann (1951).

<i>A Canterbury Tale</i> 1944 British film

A Canterbury Tale is a 1944 British film by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger starring Eric Portman, Sheila Sim, Dennis Price and Sgt. John Sweet; Esmond Knight provided narration and played two small roles. For the post-war American release, Raymond Massey narrated and Kim Hunter was added to the film. The film was made in black and white, and was the first of two collaborations between Powell and Pressburger and cinematographer Erwin Hillier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emeric Pressburger</span> Hungarian-British screenwriter, director and producer (1902–1988)

Emeric Pressburger was a Hungarian-British screenwriter, film director, and producer. He is best known for his series of film collaborations with Michael Powell, in a collaboration partnership known as the Archers, and produced a series of films, including 49th Parallel (1941), The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), A Matter of Life and Death, Black Narcissus (1947), The Red Shoes (1948), and The Tales of Hoffmann (1951).

<i>A Matter of Life and Death</i> (film) 1946 film by Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell

A Matter of Life and Death is a 1946 British fantasy-romance film set in England during World War II.

<i>The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp</i> 1943 film by Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp is a 1943 British romantic-war film written, produced and directed by the British film-making team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It stars Roger Livesey, Deborah Kerr and Anton Walbrook. The title derives from the satirical Colonel Blimp comic strip by David Low, but the story is original. One film critic has described it as "England's greatest film ever" and it is renowned for its sophistication and directorial brilliance as well as for its script, the performances of its large cast and for its pioneering Technicolor cinematography. Among its distinguished company of actors, particular praise has been reserved for Livesey, Walbrook and Kerr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Googie Withers</span> British actress and entertainer

Georgette Lizette "Googie" Withers, Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) was an English entertainer. She was a dancer and actress, with a lengthy career spanning some nine decades in theatre, film, and television. She was a well-known actress and star of British films during and after the Second World War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Powell and Pressburger</span> British filmmaking duo

The British film-making partnership of Michael Powell (1905–1990) and Emeric Pressburger (1902–1988)—together often known as The Archers, the name of their production company—made a series of influential films in the 1940s and 1950s. Their collaborations—24 films between 1939 and 1972—were mainly derived from original stories by Pressburger with the script written by both Pressburger and Powell. Powell did most of the directing while Pressburger did most of the work of the producer and also assisted with the editing, especially the way the music was used. Unusually, the pair shared a writer-director-producer credit for most of their films. The best-known of these are The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), A Canterbury Tale (1944), I Know Where I'm Going! (1945), A Matter of Life and Death (1946), Black Narcissus (1947), The Red Shoes (1948), and The Tales of Hoffmann (1951).

<i>49th Parallel</i> (film) 1941 film by Michael Powell

49th Parallel is a 1941 British war drama film. It was the third film made by the British filmmaking team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. It was released in the United States as The Invaders. The British Ministry of Information approached Michael Powell to make a propaganda film for them, suggesting he make "a film about mine-sweeping". Instead, Powell decided to make a film to help sway opinion in the then-neutral United States. Said Powell, "I hoped it might scare the pants off the Americans" and thus bring them into the war. Screenwriter Emeric Pressburger remarked, "Goebbels considered himself an expert on propaganda, but I thought I'd show him a thing or two". Powell persuaded the British and Canadian governments and started location filming in 1940, but by the time the film appeared, in March 1942, the United States, which had been trying to stay out of the war in Europe, had been drawn into taking sides against Germany after being attacked three months earlier.

<i>The Silver Fleet</i> 1943 British film

The Silver Fleet is a 1943 British World War II film written and directed by Vernon Sewell and Gordon Wellesley and produced by Powell and Pressburger under the banner of "The Archers".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric Portman</span> English actor

Eric Harold Portman was an English stage and film actor. He is probably best remembered for his roles in three films for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger during the 1940s.

"The Lion Has 'Phones" is the third episode of the third series of the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 21 September 1969.

<i>The Lion Has Wings</i> 1939 British propaganda film

The Lion Has Wings is a 1939 British, black-and-white, documentary-style, propaganda war film that was directed by Adrian Brunel, Brian Desmond Hurst, Alexander Korda and Michael Powell. The film was produced by London Film Productions and Alexander Korda Film Productions and 'was preparing the nation [for war] and shining a light on the power of the RAF'.

<i>Millions Like Us</i> 1943 film

Millions Like Us is a 1943 British propaganda film, showing life in a wartime aircraft factory in documentary detail. It stars Patricia Roc, Gordon Jackson, Anne Crawford, Basil Radford, Naunton Wayne, Moore Marriott and Eric Portman.

<i>The Girl in the Crowd</i> 1935 British film

The Girl in the Crowd is a 1935 British comedy film directed by Michael Powell starring Barry Clifton, Patricia Hilliard, and Googie Withers.

<i>The Love Test</i> 1935 British film

The Love Test is a 1935 British romantic comedy film directed by Michael Powell and starring Judy Gunn, Louis Hayward, David Hutcheson, Googie Withers and Thorley Walters. It was made as a Quota quickie.

Her Last Affaire is a 1935 British drama film directed by Michael Powell and starring Hugh Williams, Viola Keats, Cecil Parker and Googie Withers. The wife of a politician is found dead at a country inn. It was based on the play S.O.S. by Walter Ellis.

<i>White Corridors</i> 1951 British film

White Corridors is a 1951 British drama film directed by Pat Jackson and starring Googie Withers, Godfrey Tearle, James Donald and Petula Clark. It is based on a novel by Helen Ashton. The film is set in a hospital shortly after the establishment of the National Health Service.

<i>Squadron Leader X</i> 1943 British film, now lost

Squadron Leader X is a 1943 British World War II spy drama directed by Lance Comfort and starring Eric Portman and Ann Dvorak. The screenplay was adapted by Miles Malleson and Wolfgang Wilhelm from a short story by Emeric Pressburger. Unfortunately, the BFI National Archive currently considered this film as "missing, believed lost".

Fred Daniels was an English pioneer of still photography in the film industry and recognised by the BFI. Daniels was the first portrait photographer to popularise Powell and Pressburger and created stylised photographs that were developed into publicity material. In a effort to retain creative freedom Daniels maintained copyright of his work and developed hand printed photographs from his small studio. These were often signed works. His portraits will be forever linked to Powell and Pressburger.

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Macnab 1993, p. 163.
  2. ↑ Hill, Peter (28 May 2020). "Meet the parentheses: punctuation in film titles!!". BFI . British Film Institute. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 Powell 1986, p. 388.
  4. ↑ Dolan 1985, p. 63.
  5. ↑ Powell 1986, p. 390.
  6. ↑ Arthur, Nigel. "...One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942)." BFI Screenonline, 13 February 2012. Retrieved: 18 May 2012.
  7. ↑ Powell 1986, p. 393.
  8. ↑ Powell 1986, p. 391.
  9. ↑ Powell 1986, p. 389.
  10. ↑ Furhammar, Leif and Isaksson, Folke (1971), Praeger Publishers, New York (p. 81)
  11. 1 2 "'One of Our Aircraft is Missing'." Archived 20 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine britmovie.co.uk. Retrieved: 10 January 2010.
  12. ↑ Lant, Antonia (1991). Blackout : reinventing women for wartime British cinema. Princeton University Press. p. 231.
  13. ↑ "The 15th Academy Awards (1943) Nominees and Winners." oscars.org. Retrieved: 22 June 2013.
  14. ↑ Clarke 2006, p. 78.
  15. ↑ Robson, Leo. "Thelma Schoonmaker: the queen of the cutting room." FT Magazine, 9 May 2014. Retrieved: 10 May 2014.
  16. ↑ Dad's Army Episode "The Lion Has Phones", 25 September 1969
  17. ↑ Dad's Army Episode "Time on My Hands," 29 December 1972.
  18. ↑ Dad's Army Episode, "Sons of the Sea," 11 December 1969.
  19. ↑ Archons, Last Of The (22 June 2015). "Warp Speed to Nonsense: ST:TAS Season One, Episode Three: One of Our Planets is Missing".

Bibliography

  • Aldgate, Anthony and Jeffrey Richards. Britain Can Take it: British Cinema in the Second World War. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2nd Edition, 1994. ISBN   0-7486-0508-8.
  • Barr, Charles, ed. All Our Yesterdays: 90 Years of British Cinema. London: British Film Institute, 1986. ISBN   0-85170-179-5.
  • Clarke, James. War Films (Virgin Film Series). London: Virgin Books Ltd., 2006. ISBN   978-0-753510-940.
  • Dolan, Edward F. Jr. Hollywood Goes to War. London: Bison Books, 1985. ISBN   0-86124-229-7.
  • Furhammar, Leif and Folke Isaksson. Politics and Film. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1971. ISBN   978-0-2897-9813-3.
  • Hardwick, Jack and Ed Schnepf. "A Viewer's Guide to Aviation Movies". The Making of the Great Aviation Films, General Aviation Series, Volume 2, 1989.
  • Macnab, Geoffrey. J. Arthur Rank and the British Film Industry. London: Routledge, 1993. ISBN   978-0-41507-272-4.
  • Murphy, Robert. British Cinema and the Second World War. London: Continuum, 2000. ISBN   0-8264-5139-X.
  • Powell, Michael. A Life in Movies: An Autobiography. London: Heinemann, 1986. ISBN   0-434-59945-X.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.