A Night to Remember (1958)

 

A Night to Remember (1958)

Director: Roy Baker

Stars: Kenneth More, Michael Goodliffe, Laurence Naismith

Short Review, no spoilers

Sometimes the very facts of an incident are tragic enough, requiring no sentimental embellishment or special effects bedazzlement. This is how we find A Night to Remember, a film that documents the notorious sinking of the Titanic in 1912 in detailed and humanistic fashion. We see what happened to the many not the few, with the curious divisions between rich and poor, and women and men, in a manner that draws upon our natural sympathies rather than those manipulated by narrative devices. As briskly edited and broadly attentive to a vast ensemble of characters as the film is, it is far more powerful as a result, and a stand-out of the disaster movie genre.

Full Review (spoilers)

In an early scene of A Night to Remember, the second captain jokes with his wife over a soap advert that is promoted via a link to the Titanic’s voyage to America. A pompous couple sharing the train carriage chastise him for his flippancy, asking if he is either a foreigner or a ‘radical’. This shows the extent of the Titanic as a symbol of national pride and mechanical progress, and is an early hint at what subtly pervades the whole film in terms of social criticism. It is to say that, of the numerous mistakes made, the sociological is a vital point - the promotion of pride, wealth, status and progress embodied in the ship overshadowed the practical and safe planning of a vast ocean voyage transporting two thousand people with ultimately devastating consequences.

From then on, the film flits from scenario to scenario, addressing the all kinds of folk that made up the passengers of the famously ‘unsinkable’ Titanic, from the run-up to boarding before a devastating real time account of the ship’s final hours. We see the coach drawn elite who are bid adieu by common school girls, who are themselves dismissed as merely ensuring their annual Christmas turkey; the homely goodbye between the second captain and his wife; and the farewell party of well-wishers from an Irish village as migrants embark upon a new life in America.

On board, we see the various facets of society as they are placed on the ship – the wealthiest passengers in first and second class, the coal shovellers and poor folk down below, and the rest of the crew including wireless operators and of course the captain, as well as the builder of the ship who still scans construction plans for flaws. The irony of this latter action as well as others is exploited throughout to elicit winces of recognition however, knowing the outcome makes the unfolding of events no less tense or tragic, and perhaps even amplifies our emotional investment.

Perhaps some of the most painful facts pertain to the contrast between the actions of the crew of the Carpathia, a ship with no chance of reaching the Titanic before it would sink but with a captain doing everything possible to assist without hesitation, and those of the Californian, who were far closer by all accounts but who, for whatever reason/s, failed to assist until it was long too late. It is crushing to witness, but the film plays out the tragedy as even-handedly as drama can allow, acknowledging human folly and the horror of a catastrophe made up of a myriad of accidents and errors.

An excellent job is done in terms of effects (filming in black and white likely helped) - artificiality is disguised well and in fact blends impressively with the mostly human-based action that the film revolves around. Translating well the thorough research of the book it is based on, the film uses technical detail as convincing background to the foregrounded play of human nature, keeping the film convincingly authentic without sacrificing compelling drama.

Kenneth More as the second captain is top billing and the closest to a lead hero but ultimately it is very much an ensemble piece. Dignity and level-headedness in dealing with the unfolding crisis also come across inspiringly in the performances of Laurence Naismith as the captain and Michael Goodliffe as the ship builder along with however, a haunted look of responsibility visible in both men. A chef who takes to drink is the closest thing to comedy, although inevitably this comes with an edge of melancholy. Couples and families deal with what is likely to be everlasting separation, while the poor fight to be afforded the chance for survival as the rich bitch peevishly and outrageously until the end, even as the ship goes down in screams. The crew are shown as professionally brave and there is something authentically reassuring in their stoicism, more than in the fantasy swaggering heroism of typical movie life savers. Of course, as a balanced observation of human nature there is also cowardice, but we see it with sadness rather than judgement. The desperation spills over as the ship gives her last gasps, and we witness the lunacy of a fight for survival. There are opposite examples again though - just as one is following the ‘every man for himself’ ethos, he eventually hesitates to help a woman in plight; an elderly man takes a lost child in his arms and holds him until the end; and a violinist in the loneliest of images is rejoined by his fellow musicians to play with him as the ship goes down.

A gripping masterclass in editing and tension building, while keeping a firm grip on the human side of this tragic disaster - don’t bother with that fluffy James Cameron movie, this is far classier stuff.