Journey's End

In a trench in France in 1918, British officers wait for a German attack. Stanhope, who commands the company, has been at the front for three years and drinks to stay upright. Raleigh, a young officer newly posted, has admired him since school and is engaged to his sister. Stanhope cannot bear being seen in this state by him. The film is not interested in war. It is interested in protecting a reputation: Stanhope's real fear is not dying but the people at home learning what he has become. It takes place almost entirely in the dugout and the battle is mostly heard from outside. The form comes from the stage: one set, long speeches, a fixed camera. The limits of early sound are plain, but the enclosure is used deliberately here. It is James Whale's first film. He had staged the same play in London and on Broadway and came to Hollywood on that success; he insisted on Colin Clive, who had played Stanhope on the British stage, and the actor took leave from the production to travel over. The film was a large critical and commercial success and launched the film careers of both men. Who it is for: viewers who like First World War narratives and play adaptations. Who it is not for: anyone expecting movement. The film is nearly eventless, technically dated, and there is not a single female character.