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angelophileIt's one of those BBC movies that pretty much went unnoticed after it was initially shown as part of the 50th Anniversary of the D-Day Landings. Despite direction from Charles Sturridge (Brideshead Revisited) and a stellar international cast (Alec Guinness, Leo McKern, Lauren Bacall, John Randolph, Jeanne Morreau, Edward Herrmann, Geraldine Chaplin) I had to ship my copy of the DVD in from Canada, where it was shown as part of Masterpiece Theatre, I believe.
It's a shame, because despite the unpretentious sentimentality of the work, the actors all deliver what have to be up there with their finest performances. And when you're talking about Alec Guinness, that's praise indeed. Guinness plays Amos, the brain-damaged innocent, delivering a performance that coveys a wealth of emotion with barely a word, while McKern and Randolph play equally irascible vets from either side of the pond, both seeming to re-discover the girl they lost their hearts to 50 years before. It's sentimental, but the impeccable performances ensure it never seems schmaltzy. And without fail I tear up every... single.. time I watch the film.
It's a shame, because despite the unpretentious sentimentality of the work, the actors all deliver what have to be up there with their finest performances. And when you're talking about Alec Guinness, that's praise indeed. Guinness plays Amos, the brain-damaged innocent, delivering a performance that coveys a wealth of emotion with barely a word, while McKern and Randolph play equally irascible vets from either side of the pond, both seeming to re-discover the girl they lost their hearts to 50 years before. It's sentimental, but the impeccable performances ensure it never seems schmaltzy. And without fail I tear up every... single.. time I watch the film.
