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Encyclopedia > In Which We Serve
In Which We Serve
Directed by David Lean
Produced by Noel Coward
Written by Noel Coward
Starring Noel Coward
John Mills
Bernard Miles
Celia Johnson
Music by Clifton Parker
Distributed by British Lion
United Artists (U.S.)
Release date(s) September 17, 1942
Running time 115 min
Country U.K.
Language English
IMDb profile

In Which We Serve is a 1942 war film that tells the story of the British destroyer HMS Torrin, as told in flashbacks by the survivors as they cling to a life raft. Image File history File links In_Which_We_Serve_poster. ... Sir David Lean, KBE (March 25, 1908 – April 16, 1991) was an English film director and producer, best remembered for big-screen epics such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai, and Doctor Zhivago . ... Noël Peirce Coward (December 16, 1899 – March 26, 1973) was an Academy Award winning English actor, playwright, and composer of popular music. ... John Mills as Professor Bernard Quatermass in the Thames Television science-fiction serial Quatermass (1979). ... Lord Miles of Blackfriars, born Bernard James Miles (27 September 1907 - 14 June 1991) was an English character actor. ... Dame Celia Johnson (1908-1982) was an English actress, famous for her role in the 1945 film, Brief Encounter, opposite Trevor Howard. ... Clifton Parker (1905 - 1989) was a 20th Century English composer, particularly noted for his film scores. ... British Lion Films Corporation is a film production and distribution company active under several forms since 1919. ... This article is about the film studio. ... is the 260th day of the year (261st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a country in western Europe, and a member of the European Union. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... See also: 1941 in film 1942 1943 in film 1940s in film years in film film // Events Carole Lombard is killed in a plane crash when returning from a War Bond tour. ... The war film is a film genre concerned with warfare, usually about naval, air or land battles, sometimes focusing instead on prisoners of war, covert operations, military training or other related subjects. ...

Contents

Cast, crew, & awards

It was written by and starred Noel Coward, and was directed by Coward and David Lean, both making their directorial debuts. Coward played Captain Edward Kinross, commander of a destroyer flotilla ("Captain D"). Celia Johnson portrayed his wife, Alix. The cast also included Richard Attenborough (in his film debut), John Mills as Ordinary Seaman "Shorty" Blake, Bernard Miles as Chief Petty Officer Walter Hardy, Ann Stephens as Lavinia Kinross and Daniel Massey as Bobby Kinross. Noël Peirce Coward (December 16, 1899 – March 26, 1973) was an Academy Award winning English actor, playwright, and composer of popular music. ... Sir David Lean, KBE (March 25, 1908 – April 16, 1991) was an English film director and producer, best remembered for big-screen epics such as Lawrence of Arabia, The Bridge on the River Kwai, and Doctor Zhivago . ... Dame Celia Johnson (1908-1982) was an English actress, famous for her role in the 1945 film, Brief Encounter, opposite Trevor Howard. ... Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, CBE, KBE (born August 29, 1923) is an English actor, director, producer, and entrepreneur. ... John Mills as Professor Bernard Quatermass in the Thames Television science-fiction serial Quatermass (1979). ... Lord Miles of Blackfriars, born Bernard James Miles (27 September 1907 - 14 June 1991) was an English character actor. ... Ann Stephens (born May 21, 1931 in London) is an British actress, popular in the 1950s. ... Daniel Raymond Massey (October 10, 1933 - March 25, 1998) was a British-Canadian actor; he was educated at Eton College and Kings College, Cambridge. ...


In Which We Serve won an Honorary Academy Award, presented to Coward for "his outstanding production achievement". It was also nominated for Oscars for Best Picture and Best Writing, Original Screenplay. Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. ... // The Academy Award for Best Motion Picture is one of the Academy Awards, awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which are voted on by others within the industry. ... // The Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best script not based upon previously published material. ...


Plot

The Torrin is rushed into commission in the summer of 1939, as the possibility of war becomes a near-certainty. The ship's company spends a relatively quiet Christmas, but in 1940, the Torrin takes part in a naval battle off the coast of Norway in which the ship is damaged. In this action, one of the sailors runs away from his gun. When the ship reaches shore, Captain Kinross noted of the 243 men in the crew, all but one performed well. "One, however, did not." Although the sailor is brought on charges, Kinross lets him off with a caution, because as Captain he should have been able to make the young sailor understand his duty and he did not. The sailor is haunted by his cowardice.


The ship also takes part in the Dunkirk evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force, rescuing members of the Coldstream Guards. The Torrin is sunk off the coast of Crete in 1941. Only about 90 of the crew survive; the survivors are sent off to join other ships, leaving the Captain alone with his officers. French troops rescued by a British merchant ship at Dunkirk British evacuation on Dunkirk beach Operation Dynamo (or Dunkirk Evacuation, the Miracle of Dunkirk or just Dunkirk) was the name given to the World War II mass evacuation of Allied soldiers from May 26 to June 4, 1940, during the... The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was the British army sent to France and Belgium in World War I and British Forces in Europe from 1939–1940 during World War II. The BEF was established by Secretary of State for War Richard Haldane following the Second Boer War in case the... The Coldstream Guards is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division. ...


Historical accuracy

The story is loosely based on the exploits of Captain Lord Louis Mountbatten, who commanded the destroyer HMS Kelly, sunk during the Battle of Crete. Indeed, the cap Coward wore belonged to Mountbatten. Mountbatten's detractors disparaged the movie, dubbing it In Which We Sink. Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas George Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, GCVO, DSO, PC (25 June 1900–27 August 1979) was a British admiral and statesman and an uncle of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. ... HMS Kelly (F01) was a K-class destroyer in Britains Royal Navy. ... Combatants Greece United Kingdom New Zealand Australia Germany Italy Commanders Bernard Freyberg Kurt Student Strength United Kingdom: 15,000 Greece: 11,000 Australia: 7,100 New Zealand: 6,700 Total: 40,000 (10,000 without fighting capability. ...


The characters reflect British society of the time, deeply divided by class or by sex. Nevertheless, each man and woman is dedicated to doing what they must to make it through the war.


The attention to detail in the film is notable. Naval jargon, naval uniforms and naval practice are exemplary and it is exceptional that, in addition to the commissioned officers credited as naval advisers, the first naval adviser listed is a junior rating - Able Seaman T W J Lawlor. This serves to explain, perhaps, how both the wardroom and lower deck scenes, and the scripts, are so authentic.


The Royal Navy deemed Coward's film so authentic, that for the remainder of World War II, future recruits were made to watch the movie as an introduction to Navy life.


Cast notes

  • John Mills's daughter, Juliet Mills, briefly appears as his character's infant child—a son.
  • Daniel Massey, playing the son of Captain Kinross (Noel Coward), appeared as Noel Coward in the 1968 film Star!. Coward was Massey's godfather.

Juliet Mills - Juliet Maryon Mills (born November 21, 1941) is a British character actress, most famous for her roles on shows such as Nanny and the Professor and Passions. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ...

External links

  • In Which We Serve at the Internet Movie Database
  • In Which We Serve at All Movie Guide
  • Classic Film Guide review
  • Audio Podcast: Shire Network News Tom Paine relates "In Which We Serve" to the present and discusses its relevance to today for the podcast Shire Network News (begins at 10 mins into the podcast).
David Lean
1940s In Which We Serve (with Noel Coward) | This Happy Breed | Blithe Spirit | Brief Encounter | Great Expectations | Oliver Twist | The Passionate Friends
1950s Madeleine | The Sound Barrier | Hobson's Choice | Summertime | The Bridge on the River Kwai
1960s Lawrence of Arabia | Doctor Zhivago
1970s Ryan's Daughter
1980s A Passage to India
Television Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's Anchor (1979)

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In Which We Serve - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (540 words)
In Which We Serve is a 1942 war film that tells the story of the British destroyer HMS Torrin, as told in flashbacks by the survivors as they cling to a life raft.
This serves to explain, perhaps, how both the wardroom and lower deck scenes, and the scripts, are so authentic.
In Which We Serve (with Noel Coward)
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