World War II: English Movie Studios--Individual Pre-War Films (1920s-30s)


Figure 1.--

We have only limited information about British films made about war and the Germans before the War, but we have started to collect information. And now have a list of pertinent films dealing with war, spying, sabatoge, and or the Germans. As far as we can tell, while films were made which were anti-German, we only see clearly anti-Nazi from British studios after the outbreak of World War II. A British reader tells us, "There are several films produced in the 1930's which were not anti-war but the veiled anti-Germany films. I use this phrase to indicate a 1930s belief of a country that is cultured on the surface but barbaric underneath. This appears to be the general sentiment at the time in 1930s Britain. While there are not many films about Nazi goings on there were anti-German films produced in the 1930s. Many were about World War I. None of these films actually points a finger at Nazi Germany but the veiled insinuations grows stronger as towards the end of the 1930s than at its beginning. All the time the growing message is wake up Britain things are afoot in German. Act now to prevent another World War I carnage." Our impression was this was a minority view expoused by backbenchers like Winston Churchill. It certainly was not the position of the British Government. And a growing convinction was that the poor Germans had been mistreated after World War I and the NAZIs were only attempoting to achieve what was rightly theirs. Chamberlain was clearly affected by this point of view. While the British film makers did not depoict the NAZIs, to their credit they did not push this point of view. It was tacitly reflected, however, in anti-war films like 'Things to Come'. Of course after hostilities started a steady stream of anti-NAZI films were unleashed. Sadly even these films did not begin to present the true horror of the NAZI regime.

Silent Films (1920s)

British studios of course made a lot of films during the 1920s. They were almost all silent films. At this time, however, we know veryb little about these films and how they delt with World War I or issues like war in general and spending for national defense.

Dawn (1928)

'Dawn' is the first film about Nurse Edith Cavel who was shot by the Germans for what they called spying. In fact her activities were more aimed at helping captured British soldiers escape. 'Dawn' was released in 1928. It was one of the last silent films made in Britain. It was directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Sybil Thorndike, Gordon Craig and Marie Ault. It was produced by Wilcox for his British & Dominions Film Corporation. 'Dawn' was based on a play by Reginald Berkeley. The film tells the story of British World War I martyr nurse Edith Cavell. Sybil Thorndike stars as Cavell, a nurse who risked her own life by rescuing British Prisoners of War from the Germans. When Cavell was captured and sentenced to be executed, it sparked international outrage, even from neutral nations. It was one of the most controversial British films of the 1920s. The title refers to the fact that Cavel was shot by a German firing squad at dawn. Dawn was heavily censored because of its brutal depiction of warfare and anti-German sentiments. Wilcox returned to the subject in 1939 with another version of of the Cavell story starring Anna Neagle.

The 39 Steps (1935)

The Hitchcock film 'The 39 Steps' is about a ordinary man in London going about his business. He attemps to asust a stranger who happens to be a counterespionage agent. When spies kill the agent, he is accused and must go on the run. This is the first of spy films. But there is nothing here about the NAZI regime. It does portray Germans as cultivated, but ruthless, cunning and treaturous characters--true enemies of Britain.

Forever England (1935)

'Forever England' is a 1935 film set during World War I. A British naval officer single handedly sinks a German raider sinking Alled merchant ships.

Secret Agent (1936)

'The Secret Agent' is a World War I spy film about British intelligence operations in Switzerland.

Sabatoge (1936)

Hitchcock produced "Sabotage" (1936). "Sabatoge" was about terrorism, but it was not an anti-NAZI film. The political orientation of the saboteurs are not clearly developed, but the suggestionn is more Communist thn NAZI. The plotters are foreign, but have more of a Communist than a NAZI feel about them. This British thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock has a British school boy, Stevie (Desmond Tester). I'd say he was about 13 years old. He features prominently and wears a short pants suit throughout as was common in Britain during the 1930s. It is presumably his school uniform as he wears it with a school cap that has a "B" shield. Interesting how boys used to dress up, he never appears without his tie on, even in the evening. I one scene he pulls up his knee socks smartly and even brushes his shoes on the back of his socks. Unfortunately he gets blown up by a bomb. Several other school boys appear in shorts in various street scenes, but only Stevie has a real role.

Things to Come (1936)

This is a science fiction film about the future. It is not easily recognizable as such as there are no sleek space ships and light sabers. That is because it began in the near future--1940. And 1940 was only 4 years away when the film was made. The film is remarkably preshent. The film "Things to Come" (1936) is based on H.G. Well's futuristic book of the same title. This is a very early an inflential sci-fi film. The film was produced by Alexander Korda, one of the fathers of modern science fiction. It was directed by William Cameron Menzies, noted for making epic films. The great horror at the time was the specter of another world war. The British in 1936 were disturbed by the rise of Hitler in Germany, but few British leaders were yet aware of the danger. Churchill was still out of Government and looked at as a irresponsible crank from an earlier generation, much as some Americans in 2009 view Vice President Chaney. The film is not about children, but there are some haunting images of children. At the beginning of the film there are scenes with children. It is Christmas time in Everytown somewhere near London and the South of England. Everyone is making merry despite a looming political crisis. We see a boy in a schoo cap looking at a toys. Then we see a Christmas party and children are plaving with a variety of army toys. Finally a war comes which leads to a World War lasting 40 or 50 years. No where does the idea emerge that Britain will almost lose the coming war in 9 months. The film is beautifully shot, creating haunting images. When the war comes a small boy wearing a British Army Tommie metal helmet says goodbye to his father. As the boy plays the drums and marches up and down the street the back ground show soldiers gong to war. 'Things to Come' showed the horrors of war and a war which lasted for decades and in the process of time the world forgot what the causes of the conflict were about. This was at a time when the NAZI regime was establishing itself and the differences between totalitarian NAZI Germany and the democracies were becoming increasingly apparent. Many in England still felt that War rather than the NAZIs were the greatest danger.

Our Fighting Navy/Torpedoed (1937)

A South American country has a revolution. Expats seek safety in the British Embassy. The Revolutionary army uses the former regines navel vessels to bombard the British Embassey. The Royal Navy steams to the rescue. They sink the navel ship bombarding the British embassy. Images of navel vessels sailing the seven seas looking very impressive and reassuring that Britain has a mighty fleet. Actually as aesult of inter-War budget cuts, the Royal Navy had been substantially reduced. The enemy battleship is really the Royal Oak. In the film it is blown to bits by tordedoes. In the early stages of World War II a German U-Boat sailed into Scapa Flow and sunk the Royal Oak with torpedoes. This was a propaganda coup for the Germans at the onset of the War, although Arl Royal was at the time an aging ship. The leading actors are American. These were used in the hope that the film would have a better chance of being shown in the United States. It was shown with the title 'Torpedoed'. We are not sure about the inspiration for the film. The title suggests that someonewanted to show case the importance of the Royal Navy. The plot suggests that they wanted to do this without making a provocative anti-German statement. We are not sure who wasresponsible for this film. It is possible that Navy advocates played a role in it, but we are not sure.

Who Goes Next (1938)

A group of British Officers captured during World war I plan to escape from their German POW camp. Introduce the idea of German prison camps for a variety of reasons not just for jailing enemy combatants until the conflict is over but the veiled suggestion for political reasons as well.

The Lion Has Wings (1939)

Korder produced "The Lion Has Wings" (1939).

Nurse Edith Cavell (1939)

'Nurse Edith Cavel was based on a true story about a nurse who help repatriate Belguim and British troops to to their own lines during World war I. The soldiers were often wounded when Cavel found them. She nursed them back to health and spear headed an underground escape route to allied lines. Right under the noses of the 'Bosh'. There is a scene in which an German officer is asked to post a letter to Cavel which secretly tells her that the escapees have reached safety. Of course the whole operation is uncovered by a ruthless German commander. Cavel is tried and found guilty and executed. This suggested the barbaric Germans because the film indicates it is uncivilised to execute a woman. The film strongly suggests at an allied military court would have imprisoned a female convicted for this crime rather than execute her. This film could eaily have been made during World War I or the 1920s. There is nothing touching on the nature of the NAZI regime.

The Spy in Black (1939)

'The Spy in Black' is about a World War I spy ring which operated in England. The story concerns the abduction of a primary school teacher on her way to teach on the Scottish islands were the British Fleet is based. The spy ring substitutes a female German agent. British police soon arrests this agent and substitutes a husband and wife counter-intelligence team. The wife becomes the school teacher who the German U-Boat commander contacts. The spy ring includes an aristocratic dowager with German sympathies. She is the ruthless head of the organisation. Her operatives are also cultivated intelligent but ruthless chaps whose intellects make them worthy protagenists to the British counter intelligence. They realise what has happened. They are trying to carry out acts of sabatage on the British Fleet. This includes radio intelligence to U Boats in wait for Britsh war ships leaving Skapa Flow. The film is also called 'U-Boat 29'.

Q Planes (1939)

'Q Planes' was shown as 'Clouds Over Europe' in the United States. It is about 'German' scientists which have invented a ray gun that can knock out aeroplanes. The spies operate on mainland Britain and send information to the ship which has the apperatus to down aircraft. The ship targets test flights of secret equipment. The ray gun is switched on as areoplanes approach. The light rays cause the aeroplanes electrics to fail and the pilot ditches the plane near what he thinks is a merchant ship so they can be rescued. This is the enemy Q. ship. The film is full of anti-German sentiment. It is set in contempory 1930s England and its message is that Germany is up to diabolical mischief.






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Created: 8:40 PM 2/16/2012
Last updated: 6:45 AM 2/17/2012