Brief Encounter [Criterion Collection]

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Based on Noël Coward's play "Still Life," Brief Encounter is a romantic, bittersweet drama about two married people who meet by chance in a London railway station and carry on an intense love affair. Sentimental yet down-to-earth and set in pre-World War II England, the film follows British housewife Laura Jesson (Celia Johnson), who is on her way home, but catches a cinder in her eye. By chance, she meets Dr. Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard), who removes it for her. The two talk for a few minutes and strike immediate sparks, but they end up catching different trains. However, both return to the station once a week to meet and, as the film progresses, they grow closer, sharing stories, hopes, and fears about their lives, marriages, and children. One day, when Alec's train is late, both become frantic that they will miss each other. When they finally find each other, they realize that they are in love. But what should be a joyous realization is fraught with tragedy, since both care greatly for their families. Howard and Johnson give flawless performances as two practical, married people who find themselves in a situation in which they know they can never be happy. ~ Don Kaye, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 (Pre-1954 Standard)
• Audio: PCM Mono
• Screen: Pan and Scan, Black and White
• Subtitle: English
• Features:
  • • Luminous digital transfer, with restored image and sound
    • Audio commentary by film historian Bruce Eder
    • Restoration demonstration
    • Original theatrical trailer
    • English subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired

AWARDS

• Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

•     Nominated Best Actress - 1946 (Celia Johnson)
•     Nominated Best Director - 1946 (David Lean)
•     Nominated Best Screenplay - 1946 (Ronald Neame, Anthony Havelock-Allan, David Lean)

• Cannes Film Festival

•     Won Grand Prix - 1946

• National Board of Review

•     Nominated Best Picture - 1946

• New York Film Critics Circle

•     Won Best Actress - 1946 (Celia Johnson)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

  David Lean

• Producer:

  Noël Coward, Anthony Havelock-Allan, Ronald Neame

• Screenwriter:

  Noël Coward

• Play Author:

  Noël Coward

• Screenwriter:

  Anthony Havelock-Allan, Coward Lean, David Lean, Ronald Neame

• Cinematographer:

  Robert Krasker

• Featured Music:

  Sergey Rachmaninov

• Editor:

  Jack Harris

• First Assistant Director:

  George Pollock

REVIEW:

• A model of narrative restraint and emotional power, David Lean's Brief Encounter (1945) won over post-war audiences with its fidelity to the ordinariness of its story and ambiance. Through subtle details of character, manner, expression (and a Rachmaninoff score), Lean reveals the profound impact of unexpected passion on the lives of his middle-class, middle-aged couple, despite the final restoration of routine. Praised for its feeling and its realism, including the lack of Hollywood-ized glamour of its stars Celia Johnson and Trevor Howard, Brief Encounter became a rare foreign import hit. Johnson won the New York Film Critics' Circle award for Best Actress, while the film garnered Oscar nominations for Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Screenplay. It was Lean's first great film, and its intimate romanticism reveals the skill at portraying human relationships that would distinguish his later, spectacular epics, such as Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), Ryan's Daughter (1970), and A Passage to India (1984). ~ Lucia Bozzola, Rovi