English Without Tears
English Without Tears | |
---|---|
Directed by | Harold French |
Produced by | Anatole de Grunwald |
Written by | Terence Rattigan Anatole de Grunwald |
Music by | Nicholas Brodszky |
Cinematography | Bernard Knowles |
Edited by | Alan Jaggs |
Production
company |
|
Release dates
|
28 July 1944 |
Running time
|
89 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
English Without Tears is a 1944 British comedy film directed by Harold French and starring Michael Wilding, Penelope Dudley-Ward and Lilli Palmer.[1] It was also released under the title Her Man Gilbey.
Contents
Plot
Lady Christabel Beauclark (Margaret Rutherford), an english aristocrat, has become a fanatic bird fancier. She is a delegate of the British empire at the League of Nations in Geneva, where she is engaged in a crusade to secure the territorial rights for her beloved British birds, in both Britain and abroad. While she is occupied with this somewhat odd mission, her niece, Joan Heseltine (Penelope Dudley-Ward), has become more and more affectionate towards the family butler, Tom Gilbey (Michael Wilding), who accompanies the delegation in Geneva, to the point of falling head over heels for him. When World War Two starts, Lady Christabel has to give up her quest for the birds' rights, and instead focus on the war at home. The butler, who was quite indifferent to Joan's affections for him, finds himself falling in love with her. Lady Christabel gets her hands full sorting out this unwanted love affair, when the affections of the young woman is no longer unrequited.[2] Joan Heseltine, once a proud woman teaching english to a big class of men, becomes through her love to the butler's son, who during war becomes major a timid and submissive woman working in the army as a typist for him. As if the war not only changed the order of social classes but also reversed the order of sexes in a very rude way he shows all the power of his major job. At New Years Eve in the house of Lady Christabel Beauclark, where a big celebration with the United Nations is held finally Joan and Tom meet on the same level: he apologizing for his rudeness, she telling him he's out of reach, and the final kiss uniting them.
Cast
- Michael Wilding ... Tom Gilbey
- Penelope Dudley-Ward ... Joan Heseltine
- Lilli Palmer ... Brigid Knudsen
- Claude Dauphin ... François de Freycinet
- Albert Lieven ... Felix Dembowski
- Peggy Cummins ... Bobbie Heseltine
- Margaret Rutherford ... Lady Christabel Beauclerk
- Martin Miller ... Schmidt
- Roland Culver ... Sir Cosmo Brandon
- Paul Demel ... M. Saladoff
- Beryl Measor ... Miss Faljambe
- Guy Middleton ... Captain Standish
- Esma Cannon ... Queenie
- Ivor Barnard ... Mr. Quiel
- Paul Bonifas ... Monsieur Rolland
- Richard Turner ... Delivery Man
- André Randall ... Dutch Officer
- Gerard Heinz ... Polish Officer
References
External links
- Use dmy dates from April 2016
- Use British English from April 2016
- English-language films
- 1944 films
- British films
- Films directed by Harold French
- 1940s comedy films
- British comedy films
- Screenplays by Terence Rattigan
- British black-and-white films
- Screenplays by Anatole de Grunwald
- Films produced by Anatole de Grunwald