John Sutro Movies
John Sutro began the 1940s as one of the more successful independent film producers in England, with his first movie, 49th Parallel, becoming a hit on both sides of the Atlantic. A descendant of playwright Alfred Sutro (1863-1933) -- one of the most successful dramatists of the early 20th century and responsible for such works as The Perplexed Husband and Aglavaine and Selysette (the latter in collaboration with Maurice Maeterlinck et al.) -- John Richard Sutro was born in 1903 and educated at Rugby and Trinity College, Oxford. His attention was far more devoted to socializing than academics; as a result, he was a non-descript student, albeit a fondly remembered friend to many and popular among his peers, a circle that included Evelyn Waugh, Kenneth Clark, and Alfred Duff Cooper (later Winston Chuchill's minister of information), among numerous other men of letters and the arts. Sutro gravitated toward the entertainment industry and, among other activities, founded his own production company, Ortus Films, and served as a member of the board of directors of both London Films and Filippo del Guidice's Two Cities Films. He also dabbled in acting and other performing arts. In 1940, it was Sutro who got Michael Powell together with Kenneth Clark and, later, persuaded the Ministry of Information to back Powell on the production of 49th Parallel, the movie that established the director's production partnership with Emeric Pressburger. The movie was officially a production of Ortus Films and he later found the money with which to buy out the British government's position in the movie, with General Film Distributors buying Ortus out, as well. His later British productions included the ambitious dramas The Way Ahead (1944), in partnership with Norman Walker, and Men of Two Worlds (1946). Sutro was later involved in a string of unsuccessful Italian co-productions and left the movie business from the early '50s until the 1960s, when he translated the scripts for Roman Polanski's Cul-de-Sac (1966) and The Fearless Vampire Killers (1967). He died in 1985 in Monaco at the age of 82. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide- 1951
Cheer the Brave is a minor British domestic comedy, good for a few laughs during its scant 62 minutes. Elsie Randolph plays the domineering wife of downtrodden Geoffrey Keen. As if wifey isn't enough of a terror, Keen has to contend with mother-in-law Marie Ault. Keen finally gets the gumption to skeedaddle when Randolph's first husband Jack McNaughton make a return appearance. Cheer the Brave was the first directorial effort of former editor Kenneth Hume, who also wrote and produced it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1951
In this comedy, a braggart and his new bride head for a honeymoon in Italy. There they go to the small village the groom claims to have freed all by himself. Unfortunately, the villagers are most unhappy to see him. Before he can safely continue his honeymoon, he must clear his name with them. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1950
Gina Lollobridgida was a virtual unknown in the U.S. when Campagne a Martello was released to English-speaking countries in 1950. Critics said then what they'd say later: as an actress, Gina was very pretty. The story concerns an Italian prostitute named Agostina (Lollobridgida) who is left without a steady source of income when the American GIs go home. Returning to her own island village, Agostina is secure in the knowledge that she has a sizeable financial nest egg waiting for her. Alas, the money has been rerouted to a home for orphaned and illegitimate children. Incurring the wrath of the locals by demanding that her money be returned, Agostina eventually sees the error of her ways. Director Luigi Zampa shot this film at the same time as an English version with different actors. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gina Lollobrigida, Eduardo de Filippo, (more)
- 1949
Based on a play by Pepine de Felipe, Her Favorite Husband is a British comedy set in Italy. Housewife Jean Kent is bemused by her husband Robert Beatty, who is not quite himself these days. In truth, he is not himself at all: Jean's husband has been replaced by a lookalike gangster who is plotting a big bank robbery. Once she tumbles to the truth, Kent is alternately repulsed and fascinated by her "new" spouse. Not exactly Shakespeare, Her Favorite Husband is a genial romp distinguished by a sizeable supporting cast of familiar British players. The film was released in the U.S. as The Taming of Dorothy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Kent, Robert Beatty, (more)
- 1949
A composer discovers that the inspiration for his greatest work may come at the expense of his marriage in this romantic drama with music. Richard Wilder (Michael Dennison) was a pilot with the RAF during World War II and was shot down over the Dolomite Mountains of Italy during a mission. Wilder's life was saved by Alida (Valentina Cortese), a beautiful woman working with the anti-fascist resistance who rescued him after his crash. After the war comes to a close, Wilder returns home to England and his wife Ann (Dulcie Gray), where he begins writing an opera based on the legends of Dolemite, as passed along by the peasants of the region. However, his home in England does not prove to be a conducive creative environment, so he travels back to Italy, where he spends time with Alida and is able to complete his work. However, he begins to fall in love with Alida, and he soon finds that he must choose between his muse and his spouse. Acclaimed classical vocalist Tito Gobbi appears as himself and sings several selections. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dulcie Gray, Michael Denison, (more)
- 1946
Of the many films (English and American) bearing the title Carnival, only one was based on the Compton MacKenzie novel of the same name. This 1946 melodrama stars Sally Gray as a 19th century ballet dancer who makes an unfortunate career move by marrying a taciturn Cornish farmer (Bernard Miles). Sally soon longs for the bright lights of the big city, and for the arms of her artist lover (Michael Wilding). Her husband is all too aware of this; and when the lover comes calling to renew the affair, the husband shoots Gray to death. The first film version of Compton MacKenzie's Carnival was filmed in 1931 as Dance Pretty Lady. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Dennis Arundell, Marie Ault, (more)
- 1946
An aboriginal man is torn between the modern world in which he lives and the ancient culture in which he was brought up in this British drama. Kisenga (Robert Adams) is a musician and composer who has risen from his humble birth in a primitive African tribe to popular and critical success in Europe. However, when he learns that a conjurer, Magole (Orlando Martins), has put a dangerous spell on his tribe, he rushes home to offer help to his loved ones. Kisenga confronts Magole, who responds by placing a curse on Kisenga that will cause his death the next time the moon is full. Despite the education he received in Europe, Kisenga is still ruled by the superstitions of his tribespeople, and his new friends have a difficult time convincing him that his fears are groundless. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Portman, Phyllis Calvert, (more)
- 1944
The Immortal Battalion has a bit of a convoluted history. It started life as a training film, The New Lot, which ran 44 minutes. When Winston Churchill approached David Niven about creating a film that would do for the British Army what In Which We Serve had done for the Royal Navy, he contacted Carol Reed and suggested expanding The New Lot. The result, written by Eric Ambler and Peter Ustinov, was the acclaimed The Way Ahead. For its U.S. release, Way Ahead was edited to a shorter length and retitled The Immortal Battalion. In either of its feature length forms, the film is concerned with the training of a bunch of raw recruits into a capable and efficient fighting regiment. Niven stars as Jim Perry, a lieutenant and former ordinary guy who finds that he must learn to take a tough line in order to make his wildly diverse crew come together and understand the importance both of the war and of their place in it. Although it takes time and constant effort on the part of Perry and his sergeant, the eight men eventually overcome their different backgrounds and feelings, and transform themselves into a unit which performs its tasks with admirable skill and dexterity, preparing them for their battle against the Desert Fox in Africa. Told in a semi-documentary style, Battalion also features the screen debut of Trevor Howard. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Niven, Raymond Huntley, (more)
49th Parallel is a British wartime entreaty for Empire solidarity, concentrating on rousing the patriotic fervor of the citizens of Canada. A group of Nazi naval officers and crewmen are stranded on Canadian soil (we have no sympathy for the castaways, inasmuch as we have just seen them refusing food and water to a group of torpedoed British seamen). Led by lieutenant Eric Portman, the Nazis try to stir up sympathy amongst the Canadians, beginning with apolitical Quebeckian trapper Laurence Olivier. Failing to convert Olivier--even by force--the Germans move on to a Hutterite farming community, where again they are unsuccessful in winning adherents (though, conversely, German seaman Niall Mac Ginnis defects to the other side). They then cross the path of professorial author Leslie Howard, who is living amongst the Indians to soak up "local color". Even Howard proves too formidable for the Nazis, and by film's end the surviving invaders are hiding out in a train, where they are discovered and captured by AWOL Canadian soldier Raymond Massey. Most TV viewers know 49th Parallel under its alternate title, The Invaders. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Leslie Howard, Raymond Massey, (more)
