The Sound Barrier (film)
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| The Sound Barrier | |
|---|---|
 Ann Todd in The Sound Barrier |
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| Directed by | David Lean |
| Produced by | David Lean |
| Written by | Terence Rattigan |
| Starring | Ralph Richardson Ann Todd Nigel Patrick John Justin Denholm Elliott |
| Distributed by | London Films British Lion Films United Artists |
| Release date(s) | 1952 |
| Running time | 118 m 109 m (U.S.) |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Sound Barrier is a 1952 film directed by David Lean. It is a fictional story based around attempts by aircraft designers and test pilots to break the 'sound barrier'. In the US it was retitled Breaking the Sound Barrier.
The plot involves the owner of an aircraft company John Ridgefield (Richardson) and the company's hopes for a new jet fighter aircraft, the "Promethius". Nigel Patrick plays Tony Garthwaite, a test pilot employed by Ridgefield, and Ann Todd, his wife.
The film explores the problems faced by the then-new jet aircraft in encountering the sound barrier and the dangers involved.
Contents |
[edit] Cast
- Ralph Richardson (John Ridgefield)
- Ann Todd (Susan Garthwaite)
- Nigel Patrick (Tony Garthwaite)
- John Justin (Philip Peel)
- Denholm Elliott (Christopher Ridgefield)
- Joseph Tomelty (Will Sparks)
- Dinah Sheridan (Jess Peel)
- Jack Allen (Windy Williams)
- Anthony Snell (Peter Makepeace)
- Donald Harron (ATA officer)
- Vincent Holman (Factor)
- Ralph Michael (Fletcher)
- Douglas Muir (Controller)
- Leslie Phillips (Controller)
[edit] Awards
[edit] Academy Awards
- Winner Best Sound Recording
- Nominee Best story written directly for the screen
[edit] BAFTA Awards
- Winner Best Film
- Winner Best British Film
- Winner Best British Actor (Ralph Richardson)
- Nominee Best British Actor (Nigel Patrick)
- Nominee Best British Actress (Ann Todd)
[edit] US National Board of Review
- Winner Best Actor (Ralph Richardson), Best Director, Best Foreign Film
[edit] New York Critics Circle
- Winner Best Actor (Ralph Richardson)
[edit] Trivia
- The Prometheus jet aircraft used in the film was an early example of the Supermarine Swift.
- Sound recordist - John Westcott (Jack) Davies (8 Oct 1914 to present)
- At the time the film was made jet travel was just being made available to the public in the form of the de Havilland Comet, which appears in the film at the point where Tony Garthwaite (Patrick) flies Susan (Todd) from England to Egypt in a two-seat de Havilland Vampire, returning later the same day, a graphic illustration of the possibilities of the new jet technology.
- The DH 108 was not actually the first aircraft to break the sound barrier, and test pilot Geoffrey de Havilland (whom the movie's protagonist was modeled afer) was flying his father's DH 108 Swallow and would perish as part of the effort, contrary to the movie. The sound barrier would actually be broken by Major General Chuck Yeager of the United States Air Force in 1947. According to Yeager, any pilot who attempted to break the sound barrier in the manner portrayed in the movie would have been killed.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ Yeager, Chuck and Janos, Leo. Yeager: An Autobiography. Pages 206-207 (paperback). New York: Bantam Books, 1986. ISBN 0-553-25674-2.
