183. Brief Encounter (1946)

Running Time: 86 minutes
Directed By: David Lean
Written By: Anthony Havelock-Allan, David Lean, from the play Still Life by Noel Coward
Main Cast: Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard, Stanley Holloway, Joyce Carey

ON MY JOURNEY I MET A MAN NAMED 'LEAN'

When I think of David Lean, I think of epic films like "Doctor Zhivago" or "Lawrence of Arabia" (two films that appear later on in the 1001 book). However, from now on when I think of David Lean, I'll certainly not forget to remember "Brief Encounter", the film that I took in tonight and one that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Laura Jesson (Johnson) is a suburban housewife, who's life doesn't have too much excitement outside of her weekly Thursday trips to Milford, her neighboring town, for which she takes a train to go to the grocer's, have lunch and catch a movie. On one particular Thursday, while standing on the platform awaiting her train, Laura gets some debris in her eye. Rushing back into the station's refreshment room, she asks for a glass of water to bathe her eye, but instead gets the kind help of a stranger, a doctor who happens to be in the room and helps her cure her eye problem. She thanks him and leaves and the next Thursday runs into him again as he is on his way to the hospital and she on her way to the grocer's. The following Thursday, they meet again, in a crowded restaurant that they've both chosen for lunch, and due to the overwhelming crowd, Laura extends her one person table to the doctor, who introduces himself as Alec (Howard), a married, general practitioner. The chit chat, make inside jokes about the band that's playing at the restaurant and eventually decide to take in a movie together that afternoon.

They continue to meet every Thursday, engaging in various different activities, such as going to the pictures, going for walks, taking boat rides and just talking. They soon realize that despite their marriages, they have unavoidably fallen in love with one another. Laura begins to lie to her husband, telling him that she was with female friends of hers, and then calling the female friends to arrange alibis. On another Thursday, Alec borrows a car from a colleague, Stephen, and the two take a drive through the country, returning back to the city and Stephen's flat. Alec offers Laura the chance to join him in his colleagues' flat and at first she declines, only to return back to the apartment. Nothing ends up happening, as Stephen returns home and Laura is forced out the back way, leaving her to miss her train and forcing her to call her husband and make up yet another lie. This event forces the twosome to realize that their love can never be and in not wanting to disturb either persons' family, Alec decides to take a job that has been offered to him in South Africa.

I've mentioned before that I'm a sucker for prison movies, well you can also mark me down as being a sucker for movies told in flashback. I don't know what it is about that element of storytelling, but it almost always appeals to me and "Brief Encounter" is no exception. In this films case, I particularly love the way that the entire movie is told from the perspective of Laura, as if she were confessing the entire, sordid affair to her husband, a character that deserves sympathy but gets none here, because the affair and love that is developing is so fairy tale-esque. Aside from the fine acting performances, I also enjoyed the use of the camera, lighting and music, as Piano Concerto No. 2 was a perfect selection and the shadows on the wall as Laura and Alec round a corner at the train station, are two unforgettable elements about the entire picture. If I had to nitpick about anything at all, I would say that the scene where Alec and Stephen have a brief conversation is totally out of place, especially seeing as how everything is from the P.O.V. of Laura and Laura wasn't present for the conversation in question.

This movie is a great piece of storytelling, as the entire premise is so fantastical that it's easy to get caught up in it. This is what movies are all about, when you can totally let go and find yourself standing on a train station platform, the wind of a speeding train blowing against your face and witnessing a great love affair unfold before your eyes. In fact, I think that if any picture can really define the word "movie", then this would be the one and this would also be a prime candidate to show to someone who doesn't appreciate the art of black & white cinema.

RATING: 7/10 Wow, you'd think after all that praise, I would've went a little higher. No, a '7' seems like a good choice, but don't get me wrong this is a great film.

MOVIES WATCHED: 144
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 857

September 14, 2010 3:45am