Michael Powell (1905-1990) grew up in Kent and became fascinated by film-makers
like Gance and Griffith while still a schoolboy at Dulwich College. His
father moved to France and in 1925 found him a humble job with Rex Ingram's
MGM unit based near Nice, where he was able to sample many aspects of movie-making
before returning to England in 1928. Soon established as a prolific director
of mainly low-budget thrillers, he revealed his ambition with The Edge
of the World (1937), which led to a contract with Korda's London Films,
a share of directing duties on the spectacular Thief of Bagdad, and the
start of a twenty-year partnership with the writer Emeric Pressburger on
The Spy in Black (1939).
Together they created some of the most original film contributions to the
war effort, including 49th Parallel (1941), The Life and Death
of Colonel Blimp (1943), A Canterbury Tale (1944), I Know
Where I'm Going! (1945) and A Matter of Life and Death (1946).
The Archers, as Powell and Pressburger now signed their joint films, continued
to exploit Technicolor and a vein of metaphysical melodrama in Black
Narcissus (1947) and The Red Shoes (1948), before renewed crisis
in the British film industry forced them into the compromised co-productions
of Gone to Earth and The Elusive Pimpernel (both 1950).
The Tales of Hoffmann (1951) marked the artistic climax of their
'total cinema', but led to three years of failed projects. After Oh Rosalinda!!
(1955) and two nostalgic war films, The Battle of the River Plate
and Ill Met by Moonlight (both 1956), the partnership ended.
Powell found scant backing in Britain for his romantic vision, so he went
to Spain for Luna de Miel (1959), Germany for Bluebeard's Castle
(1964) and Australia for They're a Weird Mob (1966) and Age
of Consent (1969). His later career suffered from the scandal of
Peeping Tom (1960), which offended many, while also inspiring younger
British and American film-makers- including Martin Scorsese, who helped
secure its re-release and became an eloquent champion of Powell and Pressburger's
work. Powell's last decade saw impressive restorations of his major films
by the National Film Archive, tributes and retrospectives around the world,
and the first volume of his autobiography, A Life in Movies (1986).
