In Which We Serve (1942)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Directors:

Noel Coward
David Lean

Writer:

Noel Coward (writer)

Release Date:

23 December 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

IT STANDS ALONE - The Greatest Of All Motion Pictures! [Australia theatrical]

Plot:

This "story of a ship," the British destroyer HMS Torrin, is told in flash backs by survivors as they cling to a life raft. |

Plot Keywords:

Destroyer | Ship Sinking | Lifeboat | Knitting | British Navy

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Noel Coward	...	Captain E. V. Kinross R.N. / Captain 'D'
Derek Elphinstone	...	No. 1
Michael Wilding	...	Flags
Robert Sansom	...	Guns
Philip Friend	...	Torps
Ballard Berkeley	...	Engineer Commander
Hubert Gregg	...	Pilot
James Donald	...	Doc
Michael Whittaker	...	Sub
Kenneth Carten	...	Sub-Lieutenant R.N.V.R.
John Varley	...	Secco
Bernard Miles	...	Chief Petty Officer Hardy / Walter Hardy
Caven Watson	...	Brodie
John Mills	...	Ordinary Seaman Blake / Shorty Blake
Geoffrey Hibbert	...	Joey Mackeridge

Runtime:

USA:115 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Sound System)

Certification:

UK:U | Australia:G | Finland:S

Filming Locations:

D and P Studios, Denham Studios, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Two Cities Films

Trivia:

Celia Johnson's screen debut.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the scene in which two Army officers returning from Dunkirk join Kinross on the bridge of his ship, the way the cigarette smoke rises betrays the fact this scene was shot indoors.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Voice: [voiceover] This is the story of a ship...
[long sequence of ship-building and launch]

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 100 Greatest War Films (2005) (TV)

The Ship Comes First ***

When "In Which We Serve" was made in 1942, England was in the midst of its finest hour. We see a film of honor, devotion, and loyalty to the realm.

It is basically the story of a boat being torpedoed and the flashbacks of 3 sailors aboard the doomed wreckage.

Noel Coward, a brilliant talent, did not perform well here. His scenes with his children appear awkward and he is unusually cold towards them. While a war is going on, that strong sentiment of a loving friendly tie is missing.

Kudos go to Celia Johnson, as Alix, his wife in the film. She states in a memorable way that in the navy, devotion to the ship comes first. John Mills is also effective as a navy man. In a heart-wrenching scene, he must tell a fellow shipman that his wife and mother-in-law have been killed in the blitz.

The ending is poignantly done. A tear will come to the eye as Coward says goodbye to those who survived the torpedoed ship.

A film of valor and of the human spirit. England was certainly at its finest hour.