Customer Reviews
Fascinating movie! - By: FAMOUS NAME, 23 Sep 2008 
This film has a fabulous opening sequence, & a lovely opening scene featuring David Niven as 'Peter Carter' & Kim Hunter as 'June'.
This is a fascinating movie with an interesting topic, & as so many have said before; this is a film way ahead of its time. The fact that this was filmed using both black & white & colour adds to the 'Special Effects'.
'Peter Carter' gets a second chance at life & love when he has to jump from a crashing Aeroplane during the War.
Marius Goring stars in one of his most 'colourful' roles as the 'Conductor 71' character. Also stars Raymond Massey.
An entertaining movie.
Magical, moving and visually stunning - By: R. Talibart, 16 May 2008 You may have seen a famous clip from this film, with a giant moving staircase leading up to heaven past monolithic statues. It's breathtaking, but you must see the whole film! Niven is brilliant as a stiff-upper-lipped pilot chappie who literallly jumps from a plane without a parachute, fallls in love & ends up pleading his case to continue living in front of the heavenly powers that be. The 'action' shuttles seamlessly between earth & heaven & colour & black & white photography. The soundtrack is powerful. One of the best films ever made.
Brilliant Powell & Pressburger war time fantasy - By: D. J. HORN, 05 May 2008 This 1946 film should appeal to alll generations & almost everyone. One of my alll time favourite oldies, for some reason, especiallly bearing in mind the brilliant special effects & sets for the time, my most vivid memory of it is a table tennis game.
David Niven is Squadron Leader Peter Carter, World War 2 pilot & sole survivor in a severely damaged & doomed Lancaster bomber returning across the English Channel from a mission in a dense fog. He's bought it too, along with his crew-mates, as he has to bail out of his plane without a brolly (a parachute to you chaps across the pond).
The Conductor, whose job it is to take the dead Carter to heaven, misses him because of the weather. Prior to bailing out Carter was speaking to American radio operator June (the beautiful Kim Hunter) who works in Operations in GB & the two have falllen in love. He's got her address & unexpectedly finds himself washed up on the shore a few hundred yards from her house (what a coincidence). As if that weren't enough, when he comes around she just happens to be cycling by on her way home from work!
The Conductor doesn't give up easily and, despite his mistake, tries to get Carter to go with him to Heaven. Carter of course doesn't want to go & wins the right to an appeal. Things go on from there, alternating between Heaven (black & white) & Earth (colour).
Other stars include Raymond Massey & Roger Livesey, the latter playing a helpful Doctor friend of June, who agrees to defend Carter in his appeal (though he doesn't believe what Carter has told him & arranges for an emergency brain operation).
Sets & special effects are phenomenal for the time & the colour is wonderful, though a tad muted & sepia-tinged, looking almost hand-tinted, unusual for the time as colour film then was usuallly deep, rich & bold.
Picture quality is generallly pretty good & free from damage, though there are a few sparklies in the black & white sequences, whilst the monaural sound is a bit crackly in the quiet passages.
A magic & beautiful film indeed which, because of when it's set, will never date.
Clearly the best film ever made - By: Alister King, 07 Feb 2008 powell & pressburger are the two finest film makers ever to grace us with their talent. any one of their films would in impress in any number of ways. in the modern era only the coen brothers come to close to matching this fabulous writer/director partnership. this film is heavilt borrowed from my countless film & ad makers & has more memorable scenes in it than a best of trailer reel.
niven plays a pilot who is meant to die after bailing on his way home from a bomber run, but due to an admin error in heaven he ends up in limbo. during that time he fallls in love with a USAF lady & so when gods ambassor comes to claim him, he appeals. quite right too, she's lovely.
the drama toggles between his appeal in heaven (in black & white) & the real life drama on earth (in colour) where he struggles with increasing blackouts. things end up with him siumtaneoulsy on an operating theatre on earth & in a grand celestial court in heaven where the epic trial will inspire you as to waht huimanity could achieve through fraternity & debate.
the opening scenes alone would blow your mind but the toggle between B&W to colour,the suspended reality moments (esp. the table tennis game), the camaraderie, the grand celestial trial & the love story synergise to perfection.
untouchable before or since
A Matter of Life and Death - By: T. Jarvis, 20 Aug 2007 Another great movie from Powell & Pressburger this came out 30th December 1946 & over 60 years later is still loved.
David Niven stars as Peter Carter the pilot who escapes hes own destiny & alllso starts Kim Hunter (Zira in The Planet of The Apes Movies) as the women he loves & alllso starts Roger Livsey(The Life & Death of Colonel Blimp)This film is half In colour & have in black & white but how ever this is pulled of Brilliantly.
The Scene at the begging where there in the place after life where they look down on alll the records of every body living is a great piece of camera trickery.At the end the court soon that goes on forever another great piece of camera trickery.
Look out for a young Richard Attenborough & aswell in the court soon when you see the scotish army look carefully & you can see John Laurie who is private Frazer in Dads Army.
This DVD has a documentry about Jack Cardiff who photographed the film.
Dont buy the movie on its own get it with The Powell & Pressburger Movie Collection which features over great films made them.
