Rent The Day Will Dawn (1942)

3.1 of 5 from 52 ratings
1h 35min
Rent The Day Will Dawn (aka The Avengers) Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental
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Synopsis:
September 1939, the Germans are invading Poland, and as Britain declares war a leading national newspaper posts its journalists to the European countries that have yet to fall under Nazi rule. Colin Metcalf (Hugh Williams) is sent to Norway but his ship comes under attack from a German U Boat and he soon learns of the Nazi plot to invade. Having escaped from the Nazis, Metcalf returns to his newspaper in England and writes a series of articles on his Norwegian experiences. These soon attract the attention of Naval Intelligence in London where he is recruited for a dangerous mission.
Metcalf must return to Norway, link up with the resistance, and assist with the destruction of the German U Boat base that is responsible for the sinking of the North Atlantic convoys. The outcome of his perilous assignment could change the course of the Battle of the Atlantic!
Actors:
, , , , , , , , Elizabeth Mann, , , , , ,
Directors:
Producers:
Paul Soskin
Writers:
Frank Owen, Terence Rattigan, Anatole de Grunwald, Patrick Kirwan
Aka:
The Avengers
Studio:
Strawberrry
Genres:
Action & Adventure, Drama
Collections:
British WWII Films: The Home Front and Europe, Drama Films & TV, Top 10 British Actresses of the 1940s, Top 10 British War Films (1939-45), Top Films
BBFC:
Release Date:
25/05/2015
Run Time:
95 minutes
Languages:
English Mono
Subtitles:
None
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.33:1 / 4:3
Colour:
B & W

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Reviews (1) of The Day Will Dawn

War Propaganda. - The Day Will Dawn review by Steve

Spoiler Alert
12/04/2023

British B directors also did their duty on the propaganda front in WWII, armed with newsreel footage and small budgets. Their films were made quickly on limited studio sets, but often there was talent available, working for the cause. Harold French’s film is the best of these, with a good script co-written by Terence Rattigan.

With the war going poorly these films often dwelt on the European resistance. This is set in Norway with Hugh Williams as a dilettante reporter who gets it together to attack German U-boats harboured in the fjords, The familiar story gets stuck in morale boosting rhetoric early on but is dealt a shot of adrenaline at half way as Hugh parachutes back to lead the underground.

Williams is an insipid lead, but there’s a pre-stardom Deborah Kerr, and Ralph Richardson in a conspicuous cameo. British films could always count on a good cast of support actors, and Finlay Currie stands out as tough but paternal sea captain. Francis Sullivan plays yet another sadistic Nazi. The war is in its fourth year, and the screen Germans are now much more ruthless.

Due to budget constraints, most of the action takes place off screen. Curiously, the film ends with a British invasion of Norway that never happened. But maybe this fiction gave the home front more hope than reality could. Today, the strength of the wartime B films is that they betray a feeling of national anxiety. Everything is still to be fought for.

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