Description
Humphrey Jennings Volume 2:
Fires Were Started (1941-1943)
2 discs, 1 DVD and 1 Blu-Ray; Black & White; Optional subtitles;
Running time approx: 138 minutes.
The second volume of films is a lyrical portrait of the nation at war and includes five films from 1941-1943. It shows Jennings at the peak of his tragically short but outstanding career. From the rousing call to arms of The Heart of Britain and Words for Battle, the poetic evocation of daily life in Listen to Britain, and the powerful drama of Fires Were Started and The Silent Village, the films included in the set offer a lyrical portrait of the nation at war and a moving celebration of ‘Britishness’.
Films: The Heart of Britain (1941) Words for Battle (1941) Listen to Britain (1941) Fires Were Started (1943) The Silent Village (1943)
Extras: This is England (1941, 10 mins): alternate cut of The Heart of Britain. I Was a Fireman (1943, 74 mins): Jennings’ original cut of
Fires Were Started. Illustrated booklet featuring essays, film notes and biographies by Lindsay Anderson, Patrick Russell and Kevin Jackson.
From the British Film Institute, One of Britain’s GREATEST Filmmakers
Widely considered to be one of Britain’s greatest filmmakers, Humphrey Jennings has long been celebrated as the director of works which capture everyday heroism in times of war and peace. Born in Walberswick, Suffolk on 19th August 1907 he was not only a filmmaker but a photographer, literary critic, theatrical designer, poet, painter and theorist of modern art. He died on 24th September 1950 in an accident in Greece, while preparing for a film.
