In Which We Serve
In Which We Serve is a
1942 war film written by and starring
Noel Coward, and directed by Coward and
David Lean, both making their directorial debut.
The film tells the story of the British destroyer HMS
Torrin, as told in flashbacks by the survivors as they cling to a life raft. The story is loosely based on the exploits of Captain Lord
Louis Mountbatten, who commanded the destroyer
HMS Kelly, sunk during the
battle of Crete. Mountbatten's detractors disparaged the movie, dubbing it
In Which We Sink. Coward played Captain Edward Kinross, commanding a destroyer flotilla ("Captain D") - and the cap he wears belonged indeed to Captain Mountbatten;
Celia Johnson played his wife, Alix.
The
Torrin is rushed into commission in the summer 1939 as the possibility of war becomes a near-certainty. The ship's company spends a relatively quiet Christmas, but in 1940, the
Torrin takes part in a naval battle off the coast of Norway in which the ship is damaged. In this action, one of the sailors runs away from his gun. When the ship reaches shore, Captain Kinross noted of the 243 men in the crew, all but one performed well. "One, however, did not." Although the sailor is brought on charges, Kinross lets him off with a caution, because as Captain he should have been able to make the young sailor understand his duty and he did not. The sailor is haunted by his cowardice.
The
Torrin also takes part in the
Dunkirk evacuation of the
British Expeditionary Force, rescuing members of the
Coldstream Guards. The
Torrin is sunk off the coast of Crete in 1941. Only about 90 of the crew survived; the survivors are sent off to join other ships, leaving the Captain alone with his officers.
The characters reflect British society of the time, deeply divided by class or by sex. Nevertheless, each man and woman is dedicated to doing what they must to make it through the war.
The cast included
Richard Attenborough (in his film debut),
John Mills as Ordinary Seaman "Shorty" Blake,
Bernard Miles as Chief Petty Officer Walter Hardy,
Ann Stephens as Lavinia Kinross and
Daniel Massey as Bobby Kinross.
The attention to detail in the film is notable. Naval jargon, naval uniforms and naval practice are exemplary and it is exceptional that, in addition to the commissioned officers credited as naval advisers, the first naval adviser listed is a junior rating - Able Seaman T W J Lawlor. This serves to explain, perhaps, how both the wardroom and lower deck scenes, and the scripts, are so authentic.
In Which We Serve won an Honorary
Academy Award, presented to Coward for "his outstanding production achievement". It was also nominated for Oscars for
Best Picture and
Best Writing, Original Screenplay.
