An Inspector Calls - 60th Anniversary Edition

Based on the classic stage play by J.B. Priestley, this 1954 film adaptation of An Inspector Calls features Edinburgh-born actor Alastair Sim in the title role. The story takes place on a single night in 1912 and centres on the wealthy Birling family, who celebrate their daughter’s engagement. Their evening is interrupted by the arrival of the mysterious ‘Inspector Poole’, leading to revelations that will change the life of each family member forever.

When Sheila Birling (Eileen Moore), the daughter of wealthy mill owner and politician Arthur Birling (Arthur Young), gets engaged to Gerald Croft (Brian Worth), the son of his competitor, the Birlings and Gerald celebrate the occasion. Other members of the family include Arthur’s wife Sybil (Olga Lindo), and their son Eric (Bryan Forbes) – whose drinking problem is ignored especially by Sybil.

Suddenly, Inspector Poole (Alastair Sim) appears in the dining room, seemingly out of nowhere. This differs from the play in so far that in the play, the inspector enters the Birling home through the front door. Also, in the play the inspector’s name is Goole.
Not giving an answer as to how he got into the building, Inspector Poole explains to the family that he investigates the death of a young working class woman called Eva Smith (Jane Wenham), who committed suicide by drinking a strong disinfectant. Poole further explains that the deceased left a diary in which the names of the Birling family were mentioned. At first, Arthur does not seem to recollect the name Eva Smith, however, when the inspector shows him a photo he remembers that Eva Smith used to be a worker in his mill… but he fired her 18 months ago due to her complaint over low wages.

Her prompt dismissal set in motion a whole chain of misfortunes for the young woman, who is only mentioned in the play, but we see her in various flashback sequences in the film. After having been fired, Eva managed to find employment in a department store when one day, Sheila and mother Sybil walked in to buy a hat. Because of a disagreement over a hat, Sheila let her anger and jealousy out on pretty Eva, who promptly got fired for the second time. Destitute and without income, she changed her name to Daisy Renton, and it was in that incarnation that she met Sheila’s fiancé Gerald in a theatre bar… Gerald not only took pity on her but made her his mistress supported her financially until his status forced him to stop. When it becomes clear that Eva and Daisy were the same person, Sheila, although grateful that Gerald admitted to what he did, breaks off her engagement to him. The ashamed Gerald leaves the house.

Meanwhile, Arthur becomes irritated by the ‘interrogation’, while his wife makes it clear that she won’t tolerate any more questions. Too bad, for it is Sybil that Poole questions next. At first she denies to have had any contact with the dead girl, but Poole sees through her lies. Eventually, she admits that she is the head of a charity committee, and that Eva once came to her for help. However, she was turned away after it had emerged that Eva was, at that point, pregnant.
That leaves only one more family member to interrogate, and that is Eric. Poole states that he has just heard Eric come through the door, though he says so before Eric actually does come through the door! Finally, after probing the young man, Eric breaks down and confesses that he had an affair with Eva and drunkenly forced himself upon her, leaving her pregnant and stealing money from his father to pay her off.

As it would seem, each family member – unbeknownst to each other - contributed to the young woman’s death by their thoughtless and selfish actions. Meanwhile and by chance, Gerald finds out from a local policeman that there is no Inspector Poole in Brumley; there never was anyone with such name. When Gerald returns to the Birling home to bring the news, they are overjoyed as they now assume the strange ‘inspector’ simply had them on. A call to the local infirmary confirms this, as there was no recent suicide reported, let alone that of a young girl.

When Arthur Birling asks Poole to wait in the study while discussing with his family what to do with the stranger, the phone rings. It is the local police, informing the family that a young girl had just been found dead, and that they are going to send someone to the Birling family to question them. When a shocked Arthur opens the door to the study, he finds only an empty chair – Inspector Poole has disappeared as mysteriously as he had arrived. It is never explained who he really is, although it is clear that his purpose was to extract confessions from the Birlings, ultimately leading to their public disgrace.

J.B. Priestley’s play has been hailed as a scathing critique of the hypocrisies of Victorian and Edwardian society, and it was one of his most successful works.

To celebrate the 60th Anniversary release of the film, Studiocanal presents An Inspector Calls fully restored on DVD, Blu-ray and EST, including an interview with actress Jane Wenham as a brand new bonus feature.