A Captive Heart

Prisoners of war spend much of captive life waiting. The second world war started with the capture of thousands of British troops. They wait for life to continue, letters to come and post to be delivered. We live through the lives of 3 groups of very different men caught up in it. Two friends who work together are caught up in it together. Three officers are trapped over seeing their soilders and one man is pretending to be another to escape from the Nazis. The person he is pretending to be is a man, who is not like in his home. Now he has to become this man to survive.

Basil Dreadon made great British films. Genre films like the amazing Dead of night, issues films like the staggering Victim and of course the war with The Captive Heart. It is less balanced than the previous two, this is due to his age and experience. That said his work on Dead of night was only a piece of it ( It was a portmanteau film). The other issue is it is a rip roaring feel good post war film. This makes it quite dry in its narrative and arch but wait. It is an amazing piece of film making. It is a work that has great auteur points. Camera pans, music overlays, framing that pulls tension and interests.

The new transfer looks beautiful and it exploits the great film makers work. The said thing is that the dvd is under treated. It has nothing of value to add to the power and glory of the content in the film. Wait though I thought it is the film that works. That explains it.