Turn of the Tide

Few people have actually seen this title that holds a prominent position in the history of the British cinema as the film that drew J.Arthur Rank into the industry. The authentic location footage shot by the distinguished Austrian cameraman Franz Planer in exotic North Yorkshire depicting the fictional fishing village of Bramblewick repeatedly clashes with the studio exteriors depicting the village itself, the contrast heightened by the vertiginous Soviet-style cutting in the earlier scenes then all the rage in British films; although the tempo of the piece settles down eventually.

The 'foreign' interlopers the Lunns from twenty miles up the coast are the first to use new-fangled engines on their boats, while tugboats are depicted as brash new competitors during a salvage operation. The sense of a long vanished era is further reinforced by the sums of money discussed; "ten quid's ten quid remember" one character says. An almost unrecognisably young and slender Niall MacGinnis makes his debut here; he made an even longer trek soon afterwards to the Shetland island of Foula to make Michael Powell's 'Edge of the World'.

I visited the scene of the location work for ToftheT a few years ago and interviewed the camera operator Eric Cross then 91 on Beta SP, Robin Hood's Bay the small North Yorkshire fishing village has in fact changed v.little since- but the fishing industry is finished. The original story was based on a Leo Walmsley novel and the feuding families it portrays are real - and are around the area today still. I think influenced by the documentary movement of the time-Flaherty especially, this film conveys a superb sense of realism and the dialogue is unusual for British films of this time that dealt with the working class - it is naturalistic and convincing. The British cinema was notorious for its stereotyping of the working classes, ToftheT is sympathetic and not at all patronising. This was J Arthur Rank's first baby and it strongly reflects his methodist values which makes it a valuable piece to study on many levels. Rank could not get the film distributed, his frustration with the system led him to actually buy up a major distributor: GDF and so began the Rank film empire.

Andrew Youdell of the BFI is the ToftheT champion and is mainly responsible for the recent revival.

TURN OF THE TIDE is a splendid British film about rival families in a fishing village in Yorkshire. Filmed in and around Whitby, there are some stunning panoramas of sea and cliffs and stone houses built on water's edge. The Fosdyck family is headed by mean old Isaac (J. Fisher White) who seethes at the very thought of those "foreigners" the Lunns (they came from 20 miles away) in his village and competing for fish. But his granddaughter (Geraldine Fitzgerald) causes him more grief when she starts going out with one of the Lunns (Niall MacGinnis). But the younger family members grudgingly get along as they battle the sea for their livelihood. But old Isaac keeps causing trouble by cutting fishing lines and such. Storyline is familiar, but the film is very watchable because of the location shooting and excellent village sets. John Garrick is the nominal star as the head Lunn, but the film is mostly an ensemble piece. Moore Marriott, Wilfrid Lawson, Joan Maude, Hilda Davies, Sam Livesey, and young Derek Blomfield round out the cast. The ending is not unexpected but is quite satisfying. J. Fisher White steals the show.

This film feels much more modern than one typically made only 6 years after the introduction of the talkies. The actors do not adopt the theatrical stances commonly found in films of this age, the sets are well detailed and much use is made of atmospheric external cinematography.

The plot involving love of a couple between two feuding families is hardly innovative and the only downside I find is the somewhat cod (excuse the pun) Yorkshire accents and use of the descriptive but cliched word "Champion"!

For his first venture into features, J. Arthur Rank's organization produced this movie from Leo Walmsey's novel THREE FEVERS. He assembled a cast that would become distinguished, and some fine behind-the-camera talent, including cinematographer Franz Planer.

The story is a complicated one about two competing families of fishers. There's a lot of location shooting around Whitby, and Planer took advantage for a telling mix of shots of the unforgiving sea, rustic bypaths and some strong portrait photography; the best shots are still shots of people, singly, and in three-shots that are typically rough and beautiful.

Watching this, I was reminded of Michael Powell's breakthrough movie, THE EDGE OF THE WORLD; although this one has a more conventional series of plot points, the rough, wild beauty and real world problems of its cast make this a startlingly fine movie.

Rank was so annoyed at the studio facilities at Elstree, he built Pinewood. Here was a man who understood that in order to compete, he had to offer the best product he could.