The Immortal Cinema of Powell and Pressburger | BFI video essay

Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's films, though made in the 1940s and 1950s, are hugely influential to this day. Their unconventional style has spread far beyond film, inspiring musicians, dancers, cartoonists and video game developers.
In this video essay Lara Callaghan explores how the work of one of Britain's greatest film-making partnerships influenced modern culture as varied as Matthew Bourne's ballet, Kate Bush's music, the gaming world of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and jokes on The Simpsons.
This video was made in support of the BFI's three-month retrospective on Powell and Pressburger, Cinema Unbound: The Creative Worlds of Powell + Pressburger. For more information and tickets:
whatson.bfi.org.uk/Online/def...
For more on Lara's work: www.laracallaghan.co.uk/
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[@merlinstwin7373]

I Know Where I'm Going, my fave film of all time, followed by A Matter of Life and Death. Powell and Pressburger were responsible for so many quiet but brilliant gems.

[@kle0patr0s]

I remember A Matter of Life and Death having a truly mesmerizing and transformative effect on me when I first saw it as a small boy many, many years ago. One that still echoes through what I truly enjoy in all the arts to this day. Powell and Pressburger were masters of the cinematic art and I am so grateful for their work. Great video.

[@delboydare]

Glorious. Thank you.

[@thouchild]

My favorites!! My dad raised me on them, and they’ve never let me go. Adore the sensitivity and thoughtfulness of this treatment. Thank you so very much!! 🥰🙏🎞️🩰🏔️✝️💕

[@selfloveliv]

loved this 👏🏻👏🏻

[@ERKT98]

Really interesting analysis! Loved it!

[@eoc3195]

So interesting, love the amazing sets! ❤

[@shanacarter]

At the 2:00 mark, I believe "(indistinct)" should be "Hein Heckroth's" in the captions.

[@lesleyjames8843]

Fascinating

[@ThePigman6]

Great analysis of these cinematic giants!

[@dostrov]

The Powell and Pressburger films are masterpieces, but the narrative here is often ludicrous. Yes, where would Paddington 2 be without P&P films? Not a question that needs any serious consideration...and yet here it is anyways. Still, the images from the P&P films here are among the most iconic, and they are, as they will always be, breathtakingly beautiful.

[@Xalira]

I have only seen The Red Shoes but I've seen most of the recent films that have been featured in this video, so I look forward to delving a bit deeper into their work. Just one thing: when it comes to Paddington 2, we cannot forget how “white” the first film was, the effort that was made in the second film to better represent the local community (following a backlash) is noticeable. So not sure it proves the point (esp sinceboth films were made by the same team).

[@GabrielGarcia-qr5wm]

Love the video, but the person can speak a little bit louder

[@mcolville]

I believe they record these videos in secret, and have to hide in a closet, speak very softly and very close to the microphone, for fear of someone discovering them.

[@bennozoid1]

hahahahahah! @@mcolville

[@antoinepetrov]

​@@mcolvilleyes, or during a screening of a film

[@seriousoldman8997]

A lifetime on headphones ?

[@olliehall5737]

Love Powell & Pressburger, love the BFI, but this ‘essay’ and voiceover can go kick rocks haha… who signed this off? 😂

[@Geronimo_Jehoshaphat]

You're probably giving the subsequent influence of legitimate visionary Michael Powell a bit too much credit, and certainly giving Emeric Pressburger entirely too much credit. The artistic ideas and techniques in those works didn't just spontaneously conjure in a vacuum coined by Powell & Pressburger as though before them was only void awaiting them to forge the way forward.

[@zoetropeguardian]

They had a massive influence. Martin Scorsese, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, Brian de Palma, etc. have all cited them as an influence at one point or another. Michael Powell's solo work on The Thief of Baghdad was a major influence for visual effects we know today as it was the first film to use blue screen for example. Just as The Red Shoes and A Matter of Life and Death had breakthroughs as well. It's hard to see it now with how far technological advances have come but you can see the influence of Powell and Pressburger far and wide.

[@Geronimo_Jehoshaphat]

@@zoetropeguardian Anyone worth their salt is influenced by anything relevant and everything excellent that came before them. The issue I take is that this video essay seems bound and determined to stretch credulity by presuming it's some sort of foregone conclusion that every trivial instance of the most rudimentary long inherited aesthetic language invocation in theme, composition, lighting, color or wardrobe ALL must obviously be pastiche homage derivates of the sole titans in the field Powell/Pressburger. By these criteria, a man in a fairly regular jacket is directly attributable to Powell/Pressburger because they also once had a man in a jacket. It's absurd.

[@zoetropeguardian]

@@Geronimo_Jehoshaphat Fair points actually. I certainly understand what you mean now. My apologies for not understanding right away. I see it often with Star Wars fans who like to say what Disney are doing with it are the same things George did. The context and meanings have been all but lost as he never was copying and pasting but expanding the canvas. It went beyond the surface but instead was about getting to the root of why something was in the original work he was paying homage to and how it could fit into the story he was telling. This is missed by Disney and fans alike in favour of surface level 'callbacks' that have no depth.

[@antoinepetrov]

​@@Geronimo_Jehoshaphatthat's cause Brits want to raise their only great filmmakers to a mythical level, I understand them. If their film industry wasn't as centralised, they wouldn't be trying so hard, would be more like France

[@Geronimo_Jehoshaphat]

@@antoinepetrov Oh I don't know about all that. There's plenty of British directors to legitimately admire... David Lean Alfred Hitchcock Charlie Chaplin Carol Reed Michael Powell Richard Attenborough Mike Hodges Peter Hunt John Glen Terence Young Guy Hamilton John Boorman Ridley Scott Tony Scott Adrian Lyne Hugh Hudson Alan Parker Roland Joffe John Schlesinger Nicholas Roeg Ken Russell Ken Loach James Ivory Mike Leigh Mike Figgis Peter Greenaway Michael Winterbottom Richard Marquand Michael Apted Mike Newell Michael Caton-Jones Neil Jordan Jon Amiel Anthony Minghella John Madden Stephen Hopkins Guy Ritchie Danny Boyle Sam Mendes Christopher Nolan Joe Wright Edgar Wright Paul Greengrass Jonathan Glazer Tony Kaye Martin McDonagh John Michael McDonagh Matthew Vaughn Stephen Poliakoff Tom Hooper Kenneth Branaugh Roger Spottiswoode Steve McQueen David Yates Joe Cornish Ralph Fiennes There's more than a few all time greats on that list of competent British filmmakers.

[@KendonMcMahon-kc9nq]

Not enough credit is given British film makers and history,have a look at Mathew sweets British silent cinema and truly,madly cheaply.interesting look at British films.

[@bennozoid1]

Great edit but the voice-over isn't great for various reasons. No need to be so gentle and mysterious!

[@ajdc88]

why are you whsipering?

[@bobbyjosson4663]

I found this a ghastly tribute, linking the marvels of Powell and Pressburger with the trashy, camp, poorly blocked drivel of the of today's, generally, worthless trash,

[@seriousoldman8997]

Well, yeah, but you could have not held back...

[@TiberioTrip]

There are plenty of adults who need voice over work. It is insufferable and unethical to have a child do this, who should be in school or out playing, not taking jobs from adults. And if someone comes back here and says that’s not a little girl’s voice, then I say you can and should hire absolutely anyone else.