Noel Coward was a toff, one of those elitists who believed they were born to rule and lord it over the lower classes.In his biography Coward was rather upset with the Labour landslide of 1945, not a surprise. It would had hurt him to see the working classes get a taste of power but it also shows how he fundamentally failed to understand the attitude of the British people after all they had endured through the second world war.This is a flag waving propaganda film that Coward co-directed with David Lean. Coward's portrayal of Captain Kinross, commander of the destroyer HMS Torrin is based on the experiences of Lord Mountbatten on the HMS Kelly. Mountbatten was another elitist toff who after the war, royally messed up as the last viceroy of India.In Which We Serve tells the story of several crew members of the Torrin's personal lives in flashback after it has been sunk in the Mediterranean. It is meant to show steely resolve, the stiff upper lip from both the crew and their families. Only Richard Attenborough's cowardly sailor lets the side down.It is a stiff and starch film but rather unsentimental. The film was critically lauded and regarded as a classic but now looks aged and of its era. The story is too thin and Coward, who always loved a sailor was a stiff actor.

Great WW2 naval drama. Starring, produced and directed by Noel Coward, with music written by himself too (though David Lean co- directs and co-edits). Though a fictional story it is based around the true story of HMS Kelly, captained by Lord Louis Mountbatten and sunk off Crete in 1941. Apparently Mountbatten pitched the idea of the story of HMS Kelly being made into a movie to Noel Coward, and provided most of the detail.Great story, well told. Very realistic, down to the military commands and interactions.Great performances all round. Noel Coward is initially irritating - being rather stiff and dour in his role - but his character grows on you.Being made in 1942 as a war propaganda movie, it does have the inevitable one-eyed jingoistic scenes, butt these are mostly fairly subtle, unlike many WW2 movies.

I became an Anglophile during WW2. I was a teener and this movie served Noel Coward's purpose - to show the spirit of the Brits both at home and abroad. The cast was letter perfect, particularly Coward and my all-time favorite Jn. Mills, who made it until he was 98. The 'couples' in the movie, all of them, were perfect matches, particularly Mills and the soft, lovely Kay Walsh, a real 'bring-tears-to-your-eyes' couple. As far as I'm concerned this was the perfect movie. By the way, if the English accent scares you, carry on. The entire cast was easy to understand. "In Which We Serve" will keep you enthralled, top to bottom. Put it on your A-plus list.

In Which We Serve (1942)A curiously different and really moving film about World War II, directed by two top British talents, Noel Coward and David Lean. It's filmed in the thick of the actual naval war and so might be unofficially called a propaganda film. (Though not made by the government, there was a lot of influence and assistance.). It clearly has a sense of presenting the British war effort at its best. But it's also complicated, filled with sadness alongside heroism and, perhaps most of all, selflessness. Both by soldiers and by their women left behind. The war in 1942 was not looking great for the Brits.Coward co-directs but also is the leading man, and he's an established actor from both film and stage at this point. Lean, whose huge career as a director is all ahead of him, is in charge of the action sequences and this is his first attempt at directing--for which he won awards. If there is a sentimental side to some of the Coward directed scenes it's partly because of when it was shot. Try to imagine the audience suffering from bombings and having their loved ones in battle. We see it now with very different eyes.In fact, it is hard to imagine how a wife or mother could watch this at all. The basic structure is that the ship goes out to sea with a bunch of men and then disaster strikes, and the rest of the movie is a series of flashbacks to the home lives of the men, and to the women who are dreading seeing their men go off to sea. It's actually about the very sadness of the people sitting in the audience.The filming is rather different between the two directors. Coward understands a traditional kind of culture well, with conversation and interpersonal nuance. Lean captures a more direct emotional energy, and lots of vivid action. Normally two directors means problems, but here it's divided naturally.Eventually the movie wears its formula, back and forth with flashbacks, pretty hard. But it's so well done you don't much mind. An emotional, finely seen movie, and surprisingly valid even now.