Caravan (1946 film)

Caravan

Detail from Italian poster
Directed by Arthur Crabtree
Produced by Harold Huth
Written by Roland Pertwee (writer)
Eleanor Smith
(original novel)
Starring Stewart Granger
Jean Kent
Anne Crawford
Dennis Price
Robert Helpmann
Gerard Heinz
Music by Bretton Byrd (uncredited)
Cinematography Stephen Dade
Cyril J. Knowles (location photography)
Edited by Charles Knott
Distributed by General Film Distributors (UK)
Release dates
 3 June 1946
Running time
 80 minutes
Country United Kingdom
Language English
Box office 649,800 admissions (France)[1]

Caravan is a 1946 British black and white drama film directed by Arthur Crabtree. It was one of the Gainsborough melodramas and is based on a novel Caravan by Eleanor Smith.

Plot

In the late 19th-century, writer Richard Darrell (Stewart Granger) saves Don Carlos (Gerard Heinz) from two robbers. Don Carlos gives Richard the task of taking a valuable necklace to Spain. Bidding farewell to his fiancée, Oriana (Anne Crawford), Richard sets out. On the way, he meets Wycroft (Robert Helpmann), who assaults, robs and nearly kills Richard on behalf of his dastardly master Sir Francis Castteldow (Dennis Price), an aristocrat who plans to steal Oriana from Richard.

Oriana thinks Richard is dead and marries Francis, whilst Richard loses his memory as a result of the assault and marries a gypsy girl, Rosal (Jean Kent). However, everyone will meet again...

Cast

Production

The film was meant to follow The Magic Bow but that was postponed due to an illness to Phyllis Calvert so Caravan had to be rushed into production.[2]

Jean Kent met her future husband during the making of the movie.[3]

Release

The film was one of the most popular British releases of 1946.[4] According to trade papers, the film was a "notable box office attraction" at British cinemas.[5]

It was the most successful film at the British box office in 1946 after The Wicked Lady, The Bells of St Marys, Piccadilly Incident, The Captive Heart and The Road to Utopia.[6]

Stewart Granger later called the movie "terrible".[7]

Critical reception

The New York Times wrote, "Granger and the rest of the cast alternate between grappling with stilted lines and an embarrassingly archaic situation with neither the players nor plot making much entertainment, while "Caravan" moves with the speed of an oxcart.";[8] but TV Guide noted "strong direction, brilliant individual performances, and production values far above the usual run of British films work beautifully together as one melodramatic situation is piled on another." [9]

References

  1. ↑ Box office information for Stewart Granger films in France at Box Office Story
  2. ↑ BUSY BRITONS: Two Down and One to Go By C.A. LEJEUNE. New York Times (1923-Current file) [New York, N.Y] 24 June 1945: 27.
  3. ↑ "FILM CABLE FROM LONDON:.". Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954). Perth, WA: National Library of Australia. 17 March 1946. p. 13 Supplement: The Sunday Times MAGAZINE. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Britain's Best Films.". Sunday Times (Perth, WA : 1902 - 1954). Perth, WA: National Library of Australia. 16 February 1947. p. 12 Supplement: SUPPLEMENT TO THE SUNDAY TIMES. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  5. ↑ Robert Murphy, Realism and Tinsel: Cinema and Society in Britain 1939-48 2003 p209
  6. ↑ "Hollywood Sneaks In 15 Films on '25 Best' List of Arty Britain". The Washington Post. 15 Jan 1947. p. 2.
  7. ↑ Brian MacFarlane, An Autobiography of British Cinema, Methuen 1997 p 230
  8. ↑ A.. W. (1949-04-21). "Movie Review - Caravan - Meredith Documentary, 'A Yank Comes Back,' at Symphony - 'Caravan' at Beacon". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2014-07-24.
  9. ↑ "Caravan Review". Movies.tvguide.com. 2012-11-28. Retrieved 2014-07-24.

External links

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