''Went the Day Well?'' is a 1942 British

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about navy, naval, air force, air, or army, land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle s ...

adapted from a story by

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

and directed by

Alberto Cavalcanti Alberto de Almeida Cavalcanti (February 6, 1897 – August 23, 1982) was a Brazilian-born film director and producer. He was often credited under the single name "Cavalcanti". Early life Cavalcanti was born in Rio de Janeiro, the son of ...

. It was produced by Michael Balcon of

Ealing Studios Ealing Studios is a television and film production company and facilities provider at Ealing Green in West London. Will Barker bought the White Lodge on Ealing Green in 1902 as a base for film making, and films have been made on the site ever ...

and served as unofficial propaganda for the war effort. The film shows a Southern English village taken over by German paratroopers, reflecting the greatest potential nightmare for the British public of the time, although the threat of German invasion had largely receded by that point. The film is notable for its unusually frank, for the time, depiction of ruthless violence.

Plot

The story is told in flashback by a villager (

Mervyn Johns Mervyn Johns (born David Mervyn John; 18 February 18996 September 1992) was a Welsh stage, film and television character actor who became a star of British films during the Second World War. Johns was known for his "mostly mild-mannered, lugubri ...

). During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, a group of seemingly authentic British soldiers arrive in the small, fictitious

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

village of Bramley End. It is the

Whitsun Whitsun (also Whitsunday or Whit Sunday) is the name used in Britain, and other countries among Anglicans and Methodists, for the Christian High Holy Day of Pentecost. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the ...

weekend, life is even quieter than usual and there is almost no road traffic. At first they are welcomed by the villagers, until doubts set in about their true purpose and identity. After they are revealed to be

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

soldiers intended to form the vanguard of an invasion of Britain, they round up the residents and hold them captive in the local church. The vicar is shot while sounding the church bell in alarm. To reach the outside world, many of the villagers take action. Such plans include writing a message on an egg and giving them to the local paper boy for his mother but they are crushed when Mrs Fraser's cousin runs over them. Mrs Fraser then puts a note in Cousin Maude's pocket but she uses it to wedge her car window; her dog, Edward, then chews it to shreds after it blows onto the back seat. Mrs Collins, the postmistress, manages to kill a German with a hatchet and tries to telephone for help but the girls on the

telephone exchange telephone exchange, telephone switch, or central office is a telecommunications system used in the public switched telephone network (PSTN) or in large enterprises. It interconnects telephone subscriber lines or virtual circuits of digital syste ...

see her light and decide that she can wait. Mrs Collins waits and is killed by another German who walks into the shop. The girl at the exchange then picks up the phone but gets no response. The captive civilians attempt to warn the local

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting w ...

, but are betrayed by the village squire, who is revealed to be a collaborator with the Germans. Members of the local Home Guard are ambushed and shot by the Germans. A young boy, George, escapes from the church. He is shot in the leg by a German but manages to alert the British Army. British soldiers arrive and are helped by some of the villagers, including a group of Women's Land Army girls, who have managed to escape, barricade themselves in and arm themselves. They defeat the Germans after a short battle. The squire is shot dead by the vicar's daughter, who discovers his treachery as he attempts to let the Germans into the barricaded house. During the battle, many of the villagers who left to fight are wounded or killed; Mrs Fraser saves the children from a grenade by smothering it and Tom's father is shot in the arm and wrenches his ankle as he falls. The British troops then arrive at Bramley End. The villager retelling the story to the camera shows the Germans' grave in the churchyard and explains proudly "Yes, that's the only bit of England they got".

Cast

* Leslie Banks as Oliver Wilsford, the treacherous squire * C. V. France as the Reverend Ashton, the vicar * Valerie Taylor as Nora Ashton, the vicar's daughter * Marie Lohr as Mrs Fraser *

Basil Sydney Basil Sydney (23 April 1894 – 10 January 1968) was an English stage and screen actor. Career Sydney made his name in 1915 in the London stage hit ''Romance'' by Edward Sheldon, with Broadway star Doris Keane, and he costarred with Keane in t ...

as Kommandant Ortler, alias Major Hammond * David Farrar as Lt. Jung, alias Lt. Maxwell *

Harry Fowler Henry James Fowler, MBE (10 December 1926 – 4 January 2012) was an English character actor in film and television. Over a career lasting more than six decades, he made nearly 200 appearances on screen. Personal life Fowler was born in Lambe ...

as George Truscott *

Elizabeth Allan Elizabeth Allan (9 April 1910 – 27 July 1990) was an English stage and film actress who worked in both Britain and Hollywood, where she appeared in 50 films. Life and career Allan was born in Skegness, Lincolnshire in 1910 and educated in D ...

as Peggy Pryde (a Land Army Girl) *

Frank Lawton Frank Lawton Mokeley (30 September 1904 – 10 June 1969) was an English actor. His parents were stage players Daisy May Collier and Frank Lawton (I). His first major screen credit was ''Young Woodley'' (1930). In the mid-1930s, Lawton appe ...

as Tom Sturry *

Thora Hird Dame Thora Hird (28 May 1911 – 15 March 2003) was an English actress and comedian, presenter and writer. In a career spanning over 70 years, she appeared in more than 100 film and television roles, becoming a household name and a Briti ...

as Ivy Dawking (a Land Army Girl) *

Muriel George Muriel George (29 August 1883 – 22 October 1965) was an English singer and film actress. She appeared in 55 films between 1932 and 1955. She also appeared on the variety stage and sang on radio with her second husband Ernest Butcher for thir ...

as Mrs Collins, the postmistress * Patricia Hayes as Daisy *

as Charles Sims * Norman Pierce as Jim Sturry * Kathleen Boutall as Mrs Sturry *

Hilda Bayley Hilda Christabel Bailey (29 June 1888 – 26 May 1971) was a British theatre and film actress. On stage from 1913, she was in both stage and film versions of ''Carnival'' in 1918 and 1921, respectively; and in the controversial crime film ''Coca ...

as Cousin Maude * Edward Rigby as Bill Purvis, the poacher *

Ellis Irving Edward Willliam Ellis Irving (2 January 1902 – 27 March 1983) was an Australian film actor who appeared in a number of British films. He was married to the British stage and screen actress Sophie Stewart., ''...Mr. Ellis Irving. is visiting Aus ...

as Harry Drew * Irene Arnold as Mrs Drew *

Norman Shelley Norman Shelley (16 February 1903 – 21 August 1980) was a British actor, best known for his work in radio, in particular for the BBC's ''Children's Hour''. He also had a recurring role as Colonel Danby in the long-running radio soap opera ''T ...

as Bob Owen *

Grace Arnold Grace Arnold (19 September 1894 – 26 February 1979) was an English actress. Selected filmography * ''Guilt'' (1931) * '' Men Without Honour'' (1939) - Mrs. Hardy * ''Crimes at the Dark House'' (1940) - Maid (uncredited) * ''Spare a Copper'' ...

as Mrs Owen * Philippa Hiatt as Mrs Bates * Lillian Ellias as Bridget *

Gerald Moore Gerald Moore CBE (30 July 1899 – 13 March 1987) was an English classical pianist best known for his career as a collaborative pianist for many distinguished musicians. Among those with whom he was closely associated were Dietrich Fischer-Di ...

as Johnnie Wade *

Charles Paton Charles Ernest Paton (31 July 1874 – 10 April 1970) was an English film actor. He joined the circus at 14, and had early stage and music hall experience. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1927 and 1952, including ''Freedom of the ...

as Harry Brown * Josephine Middleton as Mrs Carter * Anthony Pilbeam as Ted Garbett * Arthur Ridley as Father Owen *

Mavis Villiers Mavis Villiers (born Mavis Clare Cooney; 10 December 190923 February 1976) was an Australian-born British actress of stage, film and television. Her parents were John Cooney and Clara Smythe. Her brother, Cecil Cooney, was a camera operator an ...

as Violet * Josie Welsford as June *

John Slater John Slater may refer to: Business and government *John Slater (industrialist) (1776–1843), (American) father of John Fox Slater, brother and partner of Samuel Slater *John Fox Slater (1815–1884), American philanthropist, son of John Slater ( ...

as German sergeant * James Donald as German corporal * Men of the

Gloucestershire Regiment The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the ...

Production

Writing

The film was based on a short story by the author

entitled "The Lieutenant Died Last". The film's title is based on an epitaph written by the classical scholar

John Maxwell Edmonds John Maxwell Edmonds (21 January 1875 – 18 March 1958) was an English classicist, poet and dramatist and the author of several celebrated martial epitaphs. Biography Edmonds was born in Stroud, Gloucestershire on 21 January 1875. His father ...

. It originally appeared in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...

'' on 6 February 1918 entitled "Four Epitaphs". "Went the day well" also appeared in an unidentified newspaper cutting in a scrapbook now held in the RAF Museum (AC97/127/50), and in a collection of First World War poems collated by

Vivien Noakes Vivien Noakes (née Langley; 16 February 1937 – 17 February 2011) was a British biographer, editor and critic, an expert on Edward Lear and the literature of the First World War. She was a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Early l ...

Casting

This was the first significant role of

's career, and one of the last for C. V. France.

Filming

Exterior scenes were shot on location in the village of

Turville Turville is a village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the Chiltern Hills, west of High Wycombe, east-southeast of Watlington, north of Henley-on-Thames and 2 miles (3 km) from the Oxfordshire border. The name is Anglo- ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-e ...

Reception

The film reinforced the message that civilians should be vigilant against

fifth column A fifth column is any group of people who undermine a larger group or nation from within, usually in favor of an enemy group or another nation. According to Harris Mylonas and Scott Radnitz, "fifth columns" are “domestic actors who work to un ...

ists and that "careless talk costs lives". By the time the film was released the threat of invasion had subsided somewhat but it was still seen as an effective piece of propaganda and its reputation has grown over the years. It has been noted that by opening and closing in a predicted future where not only had the war been won but a (fictitious) full-scale German invasion of Britain defeated and by presenting a scenario where all echelons of British society unite for the common good (the lady of the manor sacrifices herself without hesitation, for example), the film's message was morale-boosting and positive rather than scaremongering. Anthony Quinn, a film critic for ''

The Independent on Sunday ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was published ...

'', commented in 2010, "It subtly captures an immemorial quality of English rural life—the church, the local gossip, the sense of community—and that streak of native 'pluck' that people believed would see off

Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

Legacy

In 2005 it was named as one of the "100 Greatest War Films" in a poll by Britain's

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

. The 1975 book, '' The Eagle Has Landed'' and the later film use some of the same ideas. In July 2010,

StudioCanal StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., Canal+ Production, and Canal+ Image and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film production and distribution company that owns ...

and the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

National Archive released a restoration of the ''Went the Day Well?'' to significant critical acclaim. Tom Huddleston of ''

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an engine ...

'' termed it "jawdroppingly subversive. Cavalcanti establishes, with loving care and the occasional wry wink, the ultimate bucolic English scene, then takes an almost sadistic delight in tearing it to bloody shreds in an orgy of shockingly blunt, matter-of-fact violence". When the restored film opened at

Film Forum Film Forum is a nonprofit movie theater at 209 West Houston Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. It began in 1970 as an alternative screening space for independent films, with 50 folding chairs, one projector and a $19,000 annual budget. Kare ...

in New York City in 2011,

A. O. Scott Anthony Oliver Scott (born July 10, 1966) is an American journalist and cultural critic. He has been chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' since 2004, a title he shares with Manohla Dargis. Early life Scott was born on July 10, 1966 in ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called it "undeservedly forgotten... me-front propaganda has rarely seemed so cutthroat or so cunning".

Home media

The film was released on a Manufactured-on-Demand DVD on 9 July 2015. It was released on Blu-ray in July 2011 by Vintage Classics and subsequently in a set called "Their Finest Hour: 5 British WWII Classics" in March 2020.

References

Sources

* Houston, Penelope. ''Went the Day Well?'' London: BFI, 1992,

External links

* {{Michael Balcon 1942 films 1942 war films British black-and-white films British war films British World War II propaganda films Ealing Studios films Fictional invasions of England Films based on short fiction Films based on works by Graham Greene Films directed by Alberto Cavalcanti Films produced by Michael Balcon Films scored by William Walton Films set in 1942 Films set in England Films set on the home front during World War II Films shot in England