In Which We Serve

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In Which We Serve ★★★½ 1943

Much stiff upper-lipping in this classic that captures the spirit of the British Navy during WWII. The sinking of the destroyer HMS Torrin during the Battle of Crete is told via flashbacks, with an emphasis on realism that was unusual in wartime flag wavers. Features the film debuts of Johnson and Attenborough, and the first Lean directorial effort. Coward received a special Oscar for his “outstanding production achievement,” having scripted, scored, co-directed, and costarred. 114m/B VHS, DVD . GB Noel Coward, John Mills, Bernard Miles, Celia Johnson, Kay Walsh, James Donald, Richard Attenborough, Michael Wilding, George Carney, Gerald Case, John Varley; D: David Lean, Noel Coward; W: Noel Coward; C: Ronald Neame; M: Noel Coward. N.Y. Film Critics ‘42: Film.