The Sound Barrier
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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) |  22 July 1952 6 November 1952 (NYC only) 21 December 1952 (wide) |
| Running time | 118 m (UK) 109 m (US) |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Sound Barrier is a 1952 film directed by David Lean. It is a fictional story about attempts by aircraft designers and test pilots to break the sound barrier. In the US it was retitled Breaking the Sound Barrier.
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[edit] Synopsis
The plot involves John Ridgefield (Richardson), the owner of an aircraft company and the company's hopes for a new jet fighter aircraft, the "Prometheus." Nigel Patrick plays test pilot Tony Garthwaite, 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.
[edit] Relationship to aviation history
Contrary to what is shown in the film, the DH108 was not the first aircraft to break the sound barrier (although it was the first jet aircraft to do so) and test pilot Geoffrey de Havilland (on whom the movie's protagonist was modeled) was flying his father's DH 108 Swallow, perishing as part of the effort. The sound barrier was actually 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]
At the time the film was made, jet travel was being made available to the public for the first time in the form of the de Havilland Comet, which appears in the film when Tony Garthwaite (Patrick) flies Susan (Todd) from England to Egypt in a two-seater de Havilland Vampire, and returns later the same day, in a graphic illustration of the possibilities of the new jet technology.
The Prometheus jet aircraft that appears in the film was one of the Supermarine Swift prototypes (VV119), itself, a particularily troublesome aircraft design.
[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 from any Source
- 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] References
- ^ Yeager, Chuck and Janos, Leo. Yeager: An Autobiography. P. 206-207. (paperback). New York: Bantam Books, 1986. ISBN 0-553-25674-2.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by La Ronde |
BAFTA Award for Best Film from any Source 1953 |
Succeeded by Forbidden Games |
| Preceded by The Lavender Hill Mob |
BAFTA Award for Best British Film 1953 |
Succeeded by Genevieve |
