In honor of the centennial of World War I, TCM is showing many (many, many) movies set during World War I. And it is so interesting to see movies about World War I, made during World War II (especially British films). I watched a movie tonight called British Intelligence (starring Margaret Lindsey and Boris Karlof [with a limp, a facial scar, and a French accent]). There were so many veiled references to Hitler, it was practically a propaganda movie. There were several mentions of a man thinking he was better than others, and put himself above everyone (as well as lines similar to "it has happened in the past, it is happening now, and it will happen in the future"). Those British Intelligence officers were practically clairvoyant.
As a side note, the other World War I movies I've been watching/planning to watch include Ever in my Heart (which was unexpectedly depressing) and The Dark Journey (also known as Those Anxious Years). And all those movies feature women either as spies or dealing with the consequences of being married to a spy. I really think that women had much more interesting roles back then. And really, I think the term "a woman's picture" shouldn't be quite so derogatory. Sure, while a lot of those pictures quickly veered in to over-drawn/over-wrought melodrama, some of them were very subtle and often featured women doing what every was necessary to survive (especially during wartime), like Since You Went Away and Mrs. Minever.
2 comments:
Your commentary is very insightful, my dear!
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