Waterloo Road (film) - Alchetron, The Free Social Encyclopedia

Waterloo road 1944 ted purvis at the alcazar

Waterloo Road (1945) is a British film based on the Waterloo area of South London, starring John Mills, Stewart Granger, and Alistair Sim, and directed by Sidney Gilliat. Per the British Film Institute database, this is the third in an "unofficial trilogy" by Gilliat, preceded by Millions Like Us (1943) and Two Thousand Women (1944).

Waterloo road

Plot

John Mills plays an AWOL soldier who returns to south London to save his wife from the advances of a philandering draft-dodger played by Stewart Granger.

Cast

John Mills as Jim Colter

Stewart Granger as Ted Purvis

Alastair Sim as Dr. Montgomery

Joy Shelton as Tillie Colter

Alison Leggatt as Ruby

Beatrice Varley as Mrs. Colter

George Carney as Tom Mason

Leslie Bradley as Mike Duggan

Jean Kent as Toni

Ben Williams as Corporal Lewis

Anna Konstam as May

Vera Frances as Vera Colter

Production

The film was originally known as Blue for Waterloo.

Stewart Granger later said the film was one of his favorites as his role "was a heel, but a real character". He says the film was made in ten days while he was also making Love Story. He was particularly proud of the fight scene with John Mills.

Sidney Gilliat says he was taken off the film before it was finished. Production was stopped and there were still some exteriors to be shot. Ted Black had gone and the Ostrers put the film at the end of the dubbing schedule. However Earl St John who was in charge of Odeon cinemas liked the film and got the dubbing done.

Gilliat says the idea of using Alastair Sim's character as a commentator was his, though based on the original Val Valentine story. However he thought the device "proved a bit of a mess".

Reception

According to Kinematograph Weekly the film performed well at the British box office in 1945.

References

Waterloo Road (film) Wikipedia

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Waterloo Road (film) IMDb Waterloo Road (film) themoviedb.org