Forgotten British Films…

The Way Ahead 1944 The other evening I decided to dust off and blow the cobwebs away from this 70 year old film from my collection and give it another airing. I must confess its a long time since I last watched this movie and found it quite refreshing and inspiring. Set during the 2nd World War, it tells the story of seven new recruits to the British Army in 1940, none of them too keen on the idea of being in the army at all. Gripe after gripe, and going through tough basic training with a very correct officer and sgt, they begin to settle down and are soon ready to take part and fight in the invasion of North Africa. The film features David Niven as the officer and William Hartnell (later to become the first Dr.Who) as the Sgt. There is a host of well known faces among the supporting actors, many later to become household names, and the film was made by the great and talented director Carol Reed with a lively script and strong characterizations.