Directed by:
Jean RenoirCinematography:
Claude RenoirCast:
Esmond Knight, Arthur Shields, Adrienne Corri, Nora Swinburne, Suprova Mukerjee, Radha, Thomas E. Breen, Patricia Walters, Trilak JetleyPlots(1)
Described by Renoir as, "an Occidental meditation on the Orient," the film adopts the languid rhythms of the East, as it tells the story of three adolescent girls coming of age in West Bengal after WWII. Harriet (Patricia Walters), a self-conscious aspiring writer, Melanie (Radha), a quiet Anglo-Indian girl, and Valerie (Adrienne Corri), an imperious beauty, are three friends united by their infatuation with Captain John (Thomas E. Breen), a WWII veteran who has moved into their neighborhood. Yet his melancholy, caused by losing his leg in the war, renders him impervious to their attempts to attract his attention. Patricia's amused but understanding parents (Nora Swinburne, Esmond Knight) try to distract her with involvement in the small events of daily life. But even with her parents, tragedy can strike, as it does for Patricia, turning her world upside down. Only then can she begin to understand the Captain, and finally penetrate his isolation, achieving a kind of love far different than what she had imagined. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Cast
Esmond Knight
UK
Best movies:
The Red Shoes (1948)
Anne of the Thousand Days (1969)
Hamlet (1948)
Arthur Shields
Ireland
Best movies:
The Keys of the Kingdom (1944)
The People Against O'Hara (1951)
Gentleman Jim (1942)
Adrienne Corri
UK
Best movies:
Doctor Zhivago (1965)
A Clockwork Orange (1971)
Quo Vadis (1951)
Nora Swinburne
UK
Best movies:
Anne of the Thousand Days (1969)
The Citadel (1938)
Quo Vadis (1951)
Suprova Mukerjee
Best movies:
The River (1951)
Thomas E. Breen
USA
Best movies:
Battleground (1949)
The River (1951)
Patricia Walters
India
Best movies:
The River (1951)
Trilak Jetley
Best movies:
The River (1951)