The Captive Heart
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| The Captive Heart | |
|---|---|
 VHS cover for The Captive Heart |
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| Directed by | Basil Dearden |
| Produced by | Michael Balcon |
| Written by | Patrick Kirwan Angus MacPhail Guy Morgan |
| Starring | Michael Redgrave Rachel Kempson |
| Music by | Alan Rawsthorne |
| Cinematography | Douglas Slocombe |
| Editing by | Charles Hasse |
| Distributed by | Associated British Film Distributors Ltd. |
| Release date(s) | April 29, 1946 (UK release) |
| Running time | 104 min |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
The Captive Heart is a 1946 British war drama, directed by Basil Dearden for Ealing Studios.
[edit] Plot
Set in a German POW camp after the Battle of Dunkirk in World War II, the plot centers on one of the prisoners. Captain Karel Hasek (Michael Redgrave), a Czech soldier who has escaped from a concentration camp and assumed the identity of a dead British prisoner, Captain Geoffrey Mitchell.
Initially keeping to his false identity, he is soon unmasked by his fellow soldiers, suspicious of his command of the German language, but for safety, the SBO commands them to maintain the fiction. To avoid being detected, he corresponds with Mitchell's wife Celia (Rachel Kempson). Prior to the war, the Mitchells had a cool relationship, but the letters rekindle Celia's love.
When a Gestapo officer visits the camp, he thinks he recognises Hasek and the latter realises it is only a matter of time before he is unmasked. A plan is hatched to place Hasek's name on a list of soldiers already approved for repatriation.
After Hasek "returns" to England, he meets Celia and breaks the news of her husband's death. She realises that she has come to love Hasek and they decide to stay together.
The film cast includes many fine character actors and many of the camp population were serving soldiers.
[edit] Cast
- Michael Redgrave — Capt. Karel Hasek, alias Geoffrey Mitchell
- Rachel Kempson — Celia Mitchell
- Frederick Leister — Mr. Mowbray
- Mervyn Johns — Pvt. Don Evans
- Rachel Thomas — Di Evans
- Jack Warner — Cpl. Ted Horsfall
- Gladys Henson — Flo Horsfall
- James Harcourt — Doctor
- Gordon Jackson — Lt. David Lennox
- Elliott Mason — Mrs. Lennox
- Margot Fitzsimons — Elspeth McDougall
- David Keir — Mr. McDougall
- Derek Bond — Lt. Stephen Harley
- Jane Barrett — Caroline Harley
- Meriel Forbes — Beryl Curtiss
- Jimmy Hanley — Pvt. Mathews
