Thelma Scoonmaker
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp
Special Guest Thelma Schoonmaker
Thelma Schoonmaker, the three-time Academy Award winning film editor (Raging Bull, The Aviator, The Departed) is best known for her long-time collaboration with Martin Scorsese. Widely regarded as one of the greatest editors of all time, she has also played a vital role in preserving the legacy of her late husband Michael Powell, the legendary British director. It is a great honor to welcome Schoonmaker to the Barrymore Film Center, where she will present a newly restored version of her favorite of Powell’s films, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp. The screening will be followed by a conversation moderated by David Schwartz, the Barrymore Film Center’s Director of Film Programming.
1943 | NR | 163 min | Epic, Drama, Romance, War | DCP
From the Boer War through World War II, a soldier rises through the ranks in the British military.
Considered by many to be the finest British film ever made, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is a stirring masterpiece like no other. Roger Livesey dynamically embodies outmoded English militarism as the indelible General Clive Candy, who barely survives four decades of tumultuous British history, 1902 to 1942, only to see the world change irrevocably before his eyes. Anton Walbrook and Deborah Kerr provide unforgettable support, he as a German enemy turned lifelong friend of Candy’s and she as young women of three consecutive generations—a socially committed governess, a sweet-souled war nurse, and a modern-thinking army driver—who inspire him. Colonel Blimp is both moving and slyly satirical, an incomparable film about war, love, aging, and obsolescence, shot in gorgeous Technicolor. (Film note from The Criterion Collection).
Director: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Writers: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Stars: Roger Livesey, Deborah Kerr, Anton Walbrook