Landfall

'Landfall' is a far from routine WW2 drama about tall, dashing, good-natured R. A. Pilot Rick (Michael Denison) who misidentifies a submarine while out on a routine patrol, thereby sinking a British vessel in error. Increasingly distraught, Rick descends ever deeper into despond, but after accepting the risky post of testing the prototype of a magnetically controlled missile, some fresh evidence concerning the sunken submarine is discovered that sheds some welcome positive light on the tragic incident. 'Landfall' is that truly rare bird, a vintage wartime feature that not only works splendidly as thrilling military drama, but is no less affecting as a far from saccharine, delightfully romantic love story betwixt the heroic pilot Rick and his beautiful raven haired Mona (Patricia Plunkett). Michael Denison and Patricia Plunkett make an appealing screen couple and are quite wonderful in their roles, with versatile director Ken Annakin handling the action deftly, keeping things moving along at an agreeable pace, and the rousing score by Philip Green is especially beguiling.

More than a war movie, this is a class-cross romance with barmaid Mona falling for dashing flight lieutenant Rick. Like most run-of-the-mill romances, this one has obstacles to overcome and they happen to be wartime obstacles.

The Rick character is a bit too breeze and flippant at first, except when he gets into serious trouble for sinking a submarine that could have been British. After a short separation, Rick goes back to his base, where Mona didn't stop "investigating" what really happened.

The most dated part of the story is how meekly Mona behaves with the "men" (the officers in charge of Rick's case) and how she did not ever reveal anything to him about the part she had in the story.

It seemed a lot longer than it actually was, maybe because of a sticked-on side plot with Rick's friendly songwriting pilot who composes a song about Mona.

This is an acceptable WWII film that I watched courtesy of Talking Pictures TV channel, with the scenes featuring aircraft offering something for aviation enthusiasts.

The first few minutes plodded a bit with one protracted discussion between Rick and Mona and then another between Rick and newly-arrived pilot Binks; the "musical" efforts of the latter were almost irritating. But unlike another reviewer here on IMDb I thought there was good chemistry between Rick and Mona - and between Rick and Binks.

Denison's initial breeziness irked somewhat, but he performed well enough after he thought he'd sunk a British submarine. The sub-theme of class difference didn't quite work because Patricia Plunkett as Mona seemed too superior for a barmaid working in a pub popular with servicemen.

The actors playing senior naval and air-force officers were effective.

After I'd watched the film I thought that it seemed very much like a plot by Nevil Shute, and a check of IMDb showed that it was.

Described by the late David Shipman as "a dreadful film" this earlier adaptation of a novel by Nevil Shute further demonstrates his preoccupation with the office politics of aviation in which Michael Denison - like James Stewart in the later 'No Highway' - falls foul of the authorities over a difference of opinion which results in him being hauled over the coals for causing grievous disruption for jumping the gun to destructive effect.

Although this film was made after the war the story takes place in 1940, with the tone less heroic and the emphasis more on events on the ground than in the air.

Being something of a Nevil Shute devotee, I have been trying to track down a copy of this film for some time and finally succeeded.

This is one of Shute's simpler stories but in common with most of his novels, it concerns the issues of good people doing a job well. It should be read, or viewed, bearing in mind the time that it was written and the social and political climate of the time.

Landfall is no exception to this caveat applicable to many films of the time. I was relieved to find that this was a straightforward adaptation of the novel and was told without any twists and turns and unnecessary changes to the plot (unlike "Far Country" - a mangled adaptation of a later Shute novel).

I was also pleasantly surprised to find that the acting was much better than I expected in a 1949 film of this type. The issues of class difference were nicely handled and the story is just enough to fill the time. The main protagonists are portrayed well by the leads, particularly Patricia Plunkett, who resists the temptation to overdo the differences between her barmaid character and her flying officer boyfriend. A few of the lesser parts are a little conventionally and slightly woodenly handled but the ensemble of Maurice Denham, Kathleen Harrison, Nora Swinburne and Margaretta Scott are reliable.

The early flying scenes are reasonably convincing but they go downhill somewhat with the special (or not so special) effects in the bomb trials. This really doesn't matter too much in the context of this type of film where the important aspects are the story and the character development.

A simple story, well told. It would be nice to see it added to the collection of available classic movies on DVD.