In Which We Serve (1942)
- Starring:
- Noël Coward, John Mills, (more)
- Director(s):
- Noël Coward, David Lean, (more
- Category:
- War
Member Rating
My RatingSynopsis of In Which We Serve
Few morale-boosting wartime films have retained their power and entertainment value as emphatically as Noël Coward's In Which We Serve. To witness Coward's sober, no-nonsense direction (in collaboration with his co-director/editor, David Lean) and to watch his straightforward portrayal of navy captain Kinross, one would never suspect that he'd built his theatrical reputation upon sophisticated drawing-room comedies and brittle, witty song lyrics. The real star of In Which We Serve is the British destroyer Torrin. Torpedoed in battle, the Torrin miraculously survives, and is brought back to English shores to be repaired. The paint is barely dry and the nuts and bolts barely in place before the Torrin is pressed into duty during the Dunkirk evacuation. The noble vessel is finally sunk after being dive-bombed in Crete, but many of the crew members survive. As they cling to the wreckage awaiting rescue, Coward and his men flash back to their homes and loved ones, and, in so doing, recall anew just why they're fighting and for whom they're fighting. Next to Coward, the single most important of the film's characters is Shorty Blake, played by John Mills. (Trivia note: Mills' infant daughter Juliet Mills appears as Shorty's baby.) Even so, the emphasis in the film is on teamwork; here as elsewhere, there can be no stars in wartime. For many years, the only prints available to television were from the bowdlerized American version, which crudely cut out all "hells" and "damns." Fortunately, this eviscerated American release has since been shelved in favor of the full, glorious 115-minute version. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Complete Cast of In Which We Serve
- Noël Coward - Captain Kinross
- Bernard Miles - Chief Petty Officer Walter Hardy
- Joyce Carey - Mrs. Hardy
- Derek Elphinstone - Number One
- Robert Sansom - "Guns"
- Phillip Friend - "Torps"
- James Donald - Doctor
- Kathleen Harrison - Mrs. Blake
- Johnnie Schofield - Coxswain
- Brefni O'Rourke - Dr. Drake
- Kay Young - Barmaid
- Kenneth Carton - Sub. Lieut. R.N.V.R.
- Michael Whittaker - Sub
- Dora Gregory - Mrs. Lemmon
- John Boxer - Hollett
- Daniel Massey - Bobby Kinross
- Geoffrey Hibbert - Joey Mackeridge
- Jonathan Singer - Moran
- Eileen Peel - Mrs. Farrell
- Everley Gregg - Nurse
- Ann Stephens - Lavinia Kinross
- Barbara Waring - Mrs. Macadoo
- Geraldo's Orchestra - Themselves
- John Mills - Ordinary Seaman Shorty Blake
- Celia Johnson - Alix Kinross
- Kay Walsh - Freda Lewis
- Richard Attenborough - Young Sailor
- Michael Wilding, Sr. - "Flags"
- Ballard Berkeley - Engineer Commander
- George Carney - Mr. Blake
- Hubert Gregg - Pilot
- Penelope Dudley-Ward - Maureen Fenwick
- John Varley - Secco
- Leslie Dwyer - Parkinson
- Charles Russell - Fisher
- Juliet Mills - Frieda's Baby
- Lionel Grose - Reynolds
- Gerald Case - Capt. Jasper Fry
- Roddy Hughes - Photographer
- Caven Watson - Brodie
- Walter Fitzgerald - Col. Lumsden
- Robert Moreton - Coombe
- Norman Pierce - Mr. Satterthwaite
- Wally Patch - Uncle Fred
- Lesley Osmond - Nell Fosdick
- Frederick Piper - Edgecombe
- Director(s):
- David Lean, Noël Coward
- Writer(s):
- Noël Coward
- Producer(s):
- Noël Coward
- Categories:
- War
- 1942 - National Board of Review - Best Acting
- 1942 - National Board of Review - Best Picture
- 1942 - National Board of Review - Best Acting
- 1942 - New York Film Critics Circle - Best Picture
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