An Inspector Calls

I first saw this film when I was ll years old and have never forgotten it. If I had my way, it would be required viewing in every school in the U.S.. The period atmosphere is superb and the acting first rate. A well shaded performance by Jane Wenham who plays the pivotal role. The haunting theme music, I have tried unsuccessfully to obtain.

JB Priestley usually had a moralising theme to his plays.As a Socialist he wanted to show his audience the social ills in society and prick their conscience.This film, which my son studied for his English GCSE was made into a film in 1954 with Alistair Sim in the title role.To help my son get a better understanding we all went up to the West End to see the play acted by professionals.It has a haunting theme about the social ills in the Edwardian society of 1912 when a girl first loses her job at the factory when asking for higher wages by the father, loses her second job courtesy of the daughter, loses her flat courtesy of the daughter's fiancé, is made pregnant by the son and finally is refused genuine charity by the mother.

My son returned the favour by giving me a DVD version of the film when I expressed a wish to see it, since one sees so few worthy films on TV these days compared to all the modern rubbish shown.There is rather a ghostly denouement to the film and twist which Priestley cleverly writes into the plot.Although Alistair Sim is only on screen for a short time he effortlessly steals your attention.

Alistair Sim is brilliant in the title role. This is a filmed stage play, but in absolutely the best possible connotations of the phrase; it gives the viewer the sense of intimacy and participation one gets from watching live theater. The tale itself basically combines a bit of "Tales From The Unexplained" with Noel Coward and Aesop's Fables with a dash of Hitchcock for good measure. More than that I shall not say except all four of the family members' supporting performances are excellent. When this inspector calls, he is not soon forgotten.

I've just seen An Inspector Calls for the first time and found it very enjoyable. The ending was a bit of a surprise.

The Birlings, a rich English family are having dinner one evening when a copper calls round to see them and tell them about a girl who has just been found dead. At first, they deny they knew her but each member of the family did know her and had a different connection with her. These include being a former lover and a former employee. Later on, we learn the truth and there is something strange about the Inspector...

The Inspector is played brilliantly by the great Alastair Sim (Scrooge) and the rest of the cast includes Arthur Young and Brian Forbes.

This is a must see, especially for old movie fans. Brilliant.

Rating: 4 stars out of 5.

This film is one of my top favourites and each successive viewing makes me like it more and more. Perhaps I have a partiality for Priestly as I adored as well "Last Holiday". Whether it is the superb black-and-white photography, the plaintive theme music by Francis Chagrin ( Eva's Theme ), the masterly way in which the plot unfolds as the film progresses, the surprise ending ... all contribute to make this a small masterpiece which is never to be forgotten once seen.

Basically, a wealthy family in the early part of the 20th century are having a little celebration at home when proceedings are interrupted by a rather mysterious police inspector who says he has come to interrogate them about a young lady who has just died through suicide in an infirmery. When the young lady's name is pronounced, this doesn't ring any bells with those present but - this is where the fun starts and you can just see it coming - the inspector proceeds, via flashbacks, to establish a connection between all present and the unfortunate young lady who has passed on ...... The plot is excellently made, and build up to a final climax with brio. They just don't make films like this any more !

The film has now been available for about 18 months ( October 2007 ) on a DVD in the UK only which while sporting an excellent copy of the film, offers no subtitles or other languages and no interesting extras for the viewer. This is a bit of a shame for a film which, to me at least is to be considered as a small masterpiece of British Cinema. The theme music is also now available on a Francis Chagrin CD.