The Purple Plain
| The Purple Plain | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Directed by | Robert Parrish |
| Screenplay by | Eric Ambler |
| Produced by | John Bryan |
| Starring | Gregory Peck Win Min Than Maurice Denham Lyndon Brook Bernard Lee |
| Cinematography | Geoffrey Unsworth |
| Edited by | Clive Donner |
| Music by | John Veale |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | General Film Distributors (UK) United Artists (US) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1.3 million (US)[1] |
The Purple Plain is a 1954 British war film, directed by Robert Parrish, with Gregory Peck playing a Canadian pilot serving in the Royal Air Force in Burma in the closing months of the World War II, who is battling with depression after having lost his wife. It was nominated for two BAFTA awards.
Plot
The protagonist is Bill Forrester (Gregory Peck), a Canadian pilot serving in the Royal Air Force in Burma, who flies a Mosquito, a two-seat fighter bomber. Forrester is emotionally distraught after losing his new wife in the ‘’Blitz’’ in London and has become self destructive, seeking to end his life in action. "You'd think that would be easy in a war", he explains to a Burmese woman, Anna, "but I just kept getting medals instead." With Anna's support, Bill begins to recover his emotional stability.
Forrester and his navigator, Carrington (Lyndon Brook), on a routine non-combat flight to Myitkyina, with Flight Lieutenant Blore (Maurice Denham) as passenger in the Mosquito's bomb bay, is forced to go down in a remote desert area of Burma's central plain. When the three men struggle to survive in the hostile environment, the self destructive Bill finally realises that he can depend on support from others and that he may have someone to live for. Blore, however, abandons them and commits suicide.
Production
The Purple Plain is regarded generally as historically accurate with good production values and attention to detail, and depicts the native Burmese in a respectful manner. The film is based on the 1947 novel The Purple Plain by H. E. Bates,[2] one of three novels he wrote after his travels to Burma and India in 1945, on military assignment to write short pieces portraying the Burmese war for American readers. The novel was first serialised in the Saturday Evening Post in September and October 1947.[3] The film script was written by novelist Eric Ambler in consultation with Bates.
The film was produced with a relatively modest budget by Two Cities Films and was directed by the American director Robert Parrish and colour photography was by Geoffrey Unsworth. The film was shot in Sigiriya, in what was then Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), and utilised several locations later used in Bridge on the River Kwai. The aircraft in the film were repainted in accurate camouflage and markings, and were provided through the cooperation of the Royal Air Force, which also provided several staff on-site during the filming. Some of these are credited as extras.
Anna is played by Win Min Than, who was born Helga Johnston,[4] the wife of Burmese politician and businessman Bo Setkya (1916-1969; aka Thakin Aung Than, Bo Set Kya or Set-kya), in her only film role.[5][6] Her father was Australian and her mother Burmese. In 1964 she shaved her head and became a Buddhist nun in Rangoon, adopting the name Daw Wanthalamar. Her husband had fled the country, went underground, and had not been heard of since General Ne Win had taken over the country in March 1962.[7][8] She left the convent a year later and went into business selling gourds.[4] Both Bo Set Kya and Ne Win were members of the Thirty Comrades.[9]
Reception
The Purple Plain was successful at the box office, being the 11th most popular film in Britain in 1954.[10] It was ultimately nominated in the category of ‘’Best British film’’ of 1954 at the 8th British Academy Film Awards, while actor Maurice Denham was nominated for the award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his performance as Blore.
Cast
- Gregory Peck - Squadron Leader Bill Forrester
- Win Min Than - Anna
- Maurice Denham - Flight Lieutenant Blore
- Lyndon Brook - Flying Officer Carrington (navigator)
- Brenda De Banzie - Miss McNab
- Bernard Lee - Dr. Harris
- Anthony Bushell - Wing Commander Aldridge
- Josephine Griffin - Mrs. Forrester
- Ram Gopal - Mr. Phang
- Dorothy Alison - Nurse
- Peter Arne - Flight Lieutenant
- Jack McNaughton - Sergeant Brown
- Lane Meddick - Radio Operator
- Harold Siddons - Navigator Williams
- John A. Tinn - Burmese Jeweler
Literary source
- Bates, H. E.. The Purple Plain. London: Michael Joseph (publisher). 1947. ISBN 978-0-7451-6934-7.
References
- ^ 'The Top Box-Office Hits of 1955', Variety Weekly, January 25, 1956
- ^ "BFI | Film & TV Database | The Purple Plain (1954)". Ftvdb.bfi.org.uk. 2009-04-16. Retrieved 2010-03-10.
- ^ H.E. Bates Companion: The Purple Plain Retrieved 2011-09-02
- ^ a b "Bits Of Show Business", The Milwaukee Journal, March 18, 1965
- ^ IMDb: Bio for Win Min Than Retrieved 2011-09-10
- ^ Der Speigel 1954-05-19: Win Min Than Translated to English usung Google Translate. Retrieved 2011-08-31
- ^ "Eurasian Beauty Will Enter Convent", The Age, Australian Associate Press, June 29, 1964
- ^ "Actress Enters Buddhist Convent", The Palm Beach Post, United Press International, June 27, 1964
- ^ Yawnghwe, Chao Tzang (2010), The Shan of Burma: Memoirs of a Shan Exile, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, p. 228, ISBN 978-981-230-396-7
- ^ "U.S. STAR HEADS FILM POLL". The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1931 - 1954). Adelaide, SA: National Library of Australia. 31 December 1954. p. 11. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
External links
- The Purple Plain at IMDb
- H.E. Bates Companion: The Purple Plain, article about the novel, retrieved 2011-09-02
