Herbert William Compton Bennett (15 January 1900 – 11 August 1974), better known as Compton Bennett, was an
English film director, writer and producer. He is perhaps best known for directing the 1945 film ''
The Seventh Veil'' and the 1950 version of the film ''
King Solomon's Mines
''King Solomon's Mines'' is an 1885 popular fiction, popular novel by the English Victorian literature, Victorian adventure writer and fable, fabulist Sir H. Rider Haggard. Published by Cassell and Company, it tells of an expedition through an ...
'', an adaptation of an
Allan Quatermain
Allan Quatermain is the protagonist of H. Rider Haggard's 1885 novel ''King Solomon's Mines'', its one sequel '' Allan Quatermain'' (1887), twelve prequel novels and four prequel short stories, totalling eighteen works. An English professio ...
story.
Biography
Bennett was born in
Tunbridge Wells, England. At the beginning of his career, he worked as a band leader and a commercial artist before trying his hand at amateur filmmaking. One of these early films helped him land a job at
Alexander Korda
Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; ; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956) 's
London Films
London Films Productions is a British film and television production company founded in 1932 by Alexander Korda and from 1936 based at Denham Film Studios in Buckinghamshire, near London. The company's productions included '' The Private Li ...
in 1932. There, he became a film editor; later he would help make instructional and
propaganda film
A propaganda film is a film that involves some form of propaganda. Propaganda films spread and promote certain ideas that are usually religious, political, or cultural in nature. A propaganda film is made with the intent that the viewer will ad ...
s for the British armed forces during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
Bennett's films tended to be sombre, but were very popular with the moviegoing public. In 1946, Bennett accepted an invitation to go to
Hollywood
Hollywood usually refers to:
* Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California
* Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States
Hollywood may also refer to:
Places United States
* Hollywood District (disambiguation)
* Hollywood ...
for Universal.
It was, however, during this time that he directed ''King Solomon's Mines''. He was replaced during filming by Andrew Marton.
[King Solomon's Mines: Part I
Behlmer, Rudy. American Cinematographer; Hollywood Vol. 70, Iss. 5, (May 1989): 38–44.]
Bennett eventually returned to the UK. From 1954 to 1957, he left film work to pursue interests in the theatre and television, but produced four films in 1957, ''After the Ball'', ''Man-Eater'', ''That Woman Opposite'' and ''The Flying Scot''. Although he continued to write and direct for film and television, his subsequent productions were not as well received.
Bennett died in Sussex, England at the age of 74.
Appraisal
Bennett said he "leapt to fame as director of ''The Seventh Veil'', spent the rest of his career being found out, of which ''It Started in Paradise'' is a key example."
Filmography
*''The Fox Hunt'' (1936) (documentary) – editor
*''Goofer Trouble'' (1940)(documentary) – editor
*''Find, Fix and Strike'' (1942) (documentary) – writer, director
* ''
The Big Blockade
''The Big Blockade'' was a 1942 British black-and-white war propaganda film in the style of dramatised documentary. It was film director, directed by Charles Frend and starred Will Hay, Leslie Banks, Michael Redgrave and John Mills. It was film ...
'' (1942) – editor
* ''
The Flemish Farm'' (1943) – editor
*''Men of Rochdale'' (1944) (documentary) – director
* ''
29 Acacia Avenue'' (1945) aka ''The Facts of Love'' – editor, producer
* ''
The Seventh Veil'' (1945) – director
* ''
The Years Between'' (1946) – director
*''
Daybreak'' (1948) – director
* ''
My Own True Love
''My Own True Love'' is a 1949 American drama film directed by Compton Bennett and written by Arthur Kober, Josef Mischel and Theodore Strauss. The film stars Phyllis Calvert, Melvyn Douglas, Wanda Hendrix, Philip Friend, Binnie Barnes and Alan N ...
'' (1949) – director
* ''
That Forsyte Woman'' (1949) aka ''The Forsyte Saga'' – director
*''
King Solomon's Mines
''King Solomon's Mines'' is an 1885 popular fiction, popular novel by the English Victorian literature, Victorian adventure writer and fable, fabulist Sir H. Rider Haggard. Published by Cassell and Company, it tells of an expedition through an ...
'' (1950) – director
* ''
So Little Time
''So Little Time'' is an American sitcom starring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in their third and final television series (after ''Full House'' and '' Two of a Kind'').
It aired on Fox Family: the first half of the series aired from June 2 to ...
'' (1952) – director
* ''
The Gift Horse'' (1952) aka ''Glory at Sea'' – director
* ''
It Started in Paradise
''It Started in Paradise'' is a 1952 British drama film directed by Compton Bennett and starring Jane Hylton, Martita Hunt and Muriel Pavlow.
Set in the world of haute couture, the storyline concerns an established master of her craft being u ...
'' (1952) – director
* ''
Desperate Moment'' (1953) – director
* ''
Man-Eater'' (1957) – director, producer
* ''
That Woman Opposite'' (1957) aka ''City After Midnight'' – writer, director
* ''
After the Ball'' (1957) – director
* ''
The Flying Scot'' (1957) aka ''The Mailbag Robbery'' – director, producer
*''
White Hunter'' (1958) (TV series) – director, producer (episodes edited together as feature ''Man-Eater'')
*''
The Four Just Men'' (1959) (TV series) – director
* ''
Beyond the Curtain'' (1960) – director
*''
The Adventures of Robin Hood
''The Adventures of Robin Hood'' is a 1938 American Epic film, epic swashbuckler film from Warner Bros. Pictures. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis and Henry Blanke, directed by Michael Curtiz and William Keighley, and written by Norman Reilly Ra ...
'' (1960) (TV series) – director
*''First Left Past Aden'' (1961) (documentary) – director
*''
How to Undress in Public Without Undue Embarrassment'' (1965) – creator, director, producer
*''
Brett'' (1971) (TV series) – creator
References
External links
BritMovie biography*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Compton
English film directors
English film producers
English male screenwriters
British propagandists
British propaganda film directors
1900 births
1974 deaths
People from Royal Tunbridge Wells
20th-century English screenwriters
20th-century English male writers
20th-century English businesspeople