Life in Her Hands
Life in Her Hands | |
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Directed by | Philip Leacock[1] |
Written by | |
Produced by | Frederick Wilson |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Fred Gamage[1] |
Edited by | Jocelyn Jackson[1] |
Music by | Clifton Parker[2] |
Production company | |
Distributed by | United Artists |
Release date | June 1951 |
Running time | 57 minutes[1] |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Life in Her Hands is a 1951
Byron, well known at the time for her role in the 1947 film
Background
Life in Her Hands was sponsored by the Ministry of Labour as part of a national campaign to increase the recruitment of nurses following the Second World War.
Documents at the
Synopsis
The protagonist Anne Peters is played by Kathleen Byron, who had become well known for her role as Sister Ruth in the 1947 film Black Narcissus.[2] In Life in Her Hands, her character becomes a nurse to assuage her guilt after her husband dies in a car accident in which she was driving and for which she blames herself.[7] The story of her guilt and how she comes to terms with it forms the fictional content of the film.[4] She takes up the profession at an older age than normal and despite warnings from her middle-class family about the intensive training that will be required.[4] Byron plays Peters as vulnerable but resilient, with intense emotions that are accentuated by a combination of music and close-up shots.[2]
Through a series of vignettes, the day-to-day life of a nurse in a British hospital in the immediate post-war years is revealed, showing the strict hierarchy of nursing roles, lingering shortages, difficulties in dealing with boisterous male working-class patients, and gender divisions.[2] The film also devoted significant amounts of time to the benefits of nursing in accordance with its purpose of promoting the profession as an attractive career option for women.[2]
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With night sister
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With male patient
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Nursing work
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With doctor, sister and patient
Production
Life in Her Hands was directed by Philip Leacock.[8] Anthony Steven and Monica Dickens, the great-granddaughter of Charles Dickens, wrote the script; she had published in 1942 One Pair of Feet about her war service as a nurse.[2][4] The film was scored by Clifton Parker.[9] Kathleen Byron was cast as the protagonist and other actors included Bernadette O'Farrell and Jenny Laird.[3][4]
The cast includes:
- Kathleen Byron as nurse Ann Peters.[1]
- Bernadette O'Farrell as nurse Mary Gordon.[1]
- Jacqueline Charles as nurse Michele Rennie.[1]
- Jenny Laird as Matron.[1]
- Robert Long as Jack Wilson.[1]
- Grace Gavin as Sister McTavish.[1]
- Jean Anderson as Night Sister.[1]
- Joan Maude as Sister Tutor.[1]
- Elwyn Brook-Jones as Surgeon.[1]
- Iris Ballard as Nurse Soper.[1]
- Grace Arnold as Children's Sister.[1]
- Susan Richmond as Mrs. Wilson.[1]
- Audrey Teasdale as Aggie Arthurs.[1]
- Michael Ward as Ralph.[1]
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Kathleen Byron
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Bernadette O'Farrell
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Jacqueline Charles
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Jenny Laird
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Joan Maude
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Jean Anderson
Reception and legacy
The Monthly Film Bulletin reported the film as "combining impersonal information with a personal fictional story".[4] A sister at the Liverpool Royal Infirmary felt that Hollywood films about Edith Cavell and Florence Nightingale had greater impact than a film like Life in Her Hands.[4]
The British Film Institute has noted the expense and trouble taken in making the film despite it not being released as a main feature. It was one of the last films made by the Crown Film Unit which was closed the following year to save money, later British government-sponsored films being commissioned from private studios.[3] The film was shown again in 2018 at the BFI Southbank to celebrate the seventieth anniversary of the National Health Service.[10]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v British Film and Television Yearbook. British and American Film Press. 1952. p. 36.
- ^ a b c d e f g McGahan, Katy. "BFI Screenonline: Life In Her Hands (1951)". www.screenonline.org.uk. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Watch Life in Her Hands". BFI Player. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-415-18455-7.
- ^ a b Chibnall & McFarlane p.217
- ^ Russell, Patrick (6 July 2018). "The National Archives - The NHS on film". The National Archives blog. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- LCCN 2019041715.
- ^ Chibnall & McFarlane p.33
- ^ Chibnall & McFarlane p.171
- ^ McFarlane, Josie (19 June 2018). "Taking The Pulse Of The Nation BFI Celebrates 70 Years Of The NHS On Film". Keep The Faith ® The UK's Black and multi-ethnic Christian magazine. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
Bibliography
- Chibnall, Steve & McFarlane, Brian. The British 'B' Film. Palgrave MacMillan, 2009.
External links
- Life in Her Hands at IMDb