This is an anti-war film as so many were of this particular period. England lost a generation of young men in WWI, and in the end nothing seemed to be really accomplished and thus their films reflected the attitudes of the times.
The year is 1950 and the world has been divided into large continental and in some cases multi-continental federations. Problems begin during a card game gone bad between guards of the United States of Europe and the Empire States of the Atlantic along the border. The dispute enlarges as prohibition has apparently continued in the land controlled by the United States and a couple smuggling liquor is killed at the same border where the guards are fighting when they are discovered and try to make a run for it. The guards then begin to shoot each other.
Munitions companies take advantage of the unrest and perform acts of sabotage, blaming it on the other federation. Meanwhile, in London, the Federation of Peace - I guess this is a take on the failed League of Nations - tries to stop war. At the center of this is pacifist Dr. Seymour and his daughter Evelyn (Benita Hume), who is also a pacifist and in love with Michael Deane, a commander of European forces. The President of Europe orders a mobilization, which includes the women. However, apparently women are not drafted into combat but manufacturing of armaments.
Evelyn limits her efforts first at trying to convince Michael, and when that fails, she then mobilizes the women against cooperating with the war effort. Her dad, however, is more ambitious, when the president refuses to not declare war, Evelyn's pacifist dad shoots him! Dr. Seymour goes on trial for "high treason" - and the dead president doesn't help matters. Seymour refuses to speak in his own defense with the sun casting a shadow of a cross near Dr. Seymour in the courtroom. Excuse me, but if the film is trying to equate Seymour with Christ, let me remind folks that as far as I know, Jesus never killed anybody when he didn't get his way. I'll let you watch and see how this all turns out.
It is always fun to see how folks from the distant past picture the world of the more recent past. They usually get things so wrong. They get television right, but they get the fact that prohibition has lasted 17 years longer than it did wrong, and they certainly get wrong that you could ever hold together a federation made of Europe, India, the Middle East, Canada, Africa and Australia. There would be any number of civil wars among these peoples alone. These futuristic people have machines that dress them and machines that play musical instruments for them in the night clubs, but nobody ever thought of simulating the musical instruments themselves? I'd give this one a try if it ever comes your way. The assumptions about the future, the naiveté, the camp symbolism, and most of all those marvelous miniature models of flying machines are worth your time even if the whole thing is a hoot.
The year is 1950 and the world has been divided into large continental and in some cases multi-continental federations. Problems begin during a card game gone bad between guards of the United States of Europe and the Empire States of the Atlantic along the border. The dispute enlarges as prohibition has apparently continued in the land controlled by the United States and a couple smuggling liquor is killed at the same border where the guards are fighting when they are discovered and try to make a run for it. The guards then begin to shoot each other.
Munitions companies take advantage of the unrest and perform acts of sabotage, blaming it on the other federation. Meanwhile, in London, the Federation of Peace - I guess this is a take on the failed League of Nations - tries to stop war. At the center of this is pacifist Dr. Seymour and his daughter Evelyn (Benita Hume), who is also a pacifist and in love with Michael Deane, a commander of European forces. The President of Europe orders a mobilization, which includes the women. However, apparently women are not drafted into combat but manufacturing of armaments.
Evelyn limits her efforts first at trying to convince Michael, and when that fails, she then mobilizes the women against cooperating with the war effort. Her dad, however, is more ambitious, when the president refuses to not declare war, Evelyn's pacifist dad shoots him! Dr. Seymour goes on trial for "high treason" - and the dead president doesn't help matters. Seymour refuses to speak in his own defense with the sun casting a shadow of a cross near Dr. Seymour in the courtroom. Excuse me, but if the film is trying to equate Seymour with Christ, let me remind folks that as far as I know, Jesus never killed anybody when he didn't get his way. I'll let you watch and see how this all turns out.
It is always fun to see how folks from the distant past picture the world of the more recent past. They usually get things so wrong. They get television right, but they get the fact that prohibition has lasted 17 years longer than it did wrong, and they certainly get wrong that you could ever hold together a federation made of Europe, India, the Middle East, Canada, Africa and Australia. There would be any number of civil wars among these peoples alone. These futuristic people have machines that dress them and machines that play musical instruments for them in the night clubs, but nobody ever thought of simulating the musical instruments themselves? I'd give this one a try if it ever comes your way. The assumptions about the future, the naiveté, the camp symbolism, and most of all those marvelous miniature models of flying machines are worth your time even if the whole thing is a hoot.