Went The Day Well? [1942] [VHS]

The film links well with the Ministry of Information's prerogatives of the time. From 1941 the MoI sought to illustrate the 'people's war', the actions of the population of Britain independent of class, age, gender or regionality (hence a variety of accents within the village) leading to success. That many of the characters make sacrifices emphasises the group heroics the British population are capable of once roused into action. Perhpaps most importantly however, the film sets out to stress the danger of complacency which was thought to be in abundance in Britain at the time. It sought to dispel the myth that invasion would not occur and to invigorate suspicion within the public.

The characteristic violence of the film was a useful mechanism to instill such messages into the public at the time. The close ups of the faces of the villagers when they kill, the slow down of time when Nora (Valerie Taylor) kills Oliver (Leslie Banks) and the murderous actions of the Nazis are all mechanisms designed to cause shock. That such actions take place in the idylic and tranquil village of Bramley End makes the violence all the more shocking, and hits home the fact that invasion was a reality. Though such violence may be lacking in the vigor that contemporary audiences may expect, it was nonethelss a powerful mechanism at the time, wartime film evading the violence inherent in war and death.

That 'The Eagle has Landed' was based on 'Went the Day Well?' illustrates its timelessness of plot and mechanisms, and how it can still appeal to a modern audience. By fulfilling the MoI's perogative of Propaganda disguised through Entertainment, Cavalcanti has created a timeless classic.

It's worth watching just to see Dame Thora Hird Take on the SS with a Tommy Gun...they don't make them like this anymore.

I am sure some of the film was strongly influenced by Steinbeck's novel the moon is down or they both drew from the same source.

Each section of the village plans to resist the invasion and each plan goes wrong. It seems that the Nazis will really win. Set in a perfect English country town, the whole film is quite well paced and the ending is perfectly stirring. The Germans are neither bogeymen or fools, but a strong and determined opponent of freedom.

Good stuff for a winter afternoon and rightly deserving of classic status.