The Man in the White Suit (1951)

Country of Origin: UK
Year of Production: 1951
Running Times: 85 mins
Format: black and white     35mm
Ratio: 1.37:1
Sound: mono

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Company: Ealing Studios
Producer: Michael Balcon
Associate Producer: Sidney Cole
Production Supervisor: Hal Mason
Unit Production Manager: L.C. Rudkin

SCRIPT
Script: John Dighton, Roger MacDougall, Alexander Mackendrick
Play: Roger MacDougall

DIRECTION
Director: Alexander Mackendrick
Assistant Director: David Peers

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Douglas Slocombe
Additional Photographer: Lionel Banes
Camera Operator: Jeff Seaholme

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Editor: Bernard Gribble

MUSIC
Music: Benjamin Frankel
Conductor: Ernest Irving

SOUND
Sound Supervisor: Stephen Dalby
Sound Recordist: Arthur Bradburn
Sound Editor: Mary Habberfield

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up: Harry Frampton, Ernest Taylor
Hair: Barbara Barnard
Costume Designer: Anthony Mendleson

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: Sydney Pearson

VISUAL EFFECTS
Special Processes: Geoffrey Dickinson

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Art Director: Jim Morahan

MISCELLANEOUS
Continuity: Felicia Manheim
Scientific Advisor: Geoffrey Myers

LOCATIONS
Studio: Ealing Studios, London, England

CAST
Alec Guinness (Sidney Stratton)
Joan Greenwood (Daphne Birnley)
Cecil Parker (Alan Birnley)
Michael Gough (Michael Corland)
Ernest Thesiger (Sir John Kierlaw)
Howard Marion Crawford (Cranford)
Henry Mollison (Hoskins)
Vida Hope (Bertha)
Patric Doonan (Frank)
Duncan Lamont (Harry)
Harold Goodwin (lab technician at Corland Mill)
Colin Gordon (Hill)
Joan Harben (Miss Johnson)
Arthur Howard (Roberts)
Roddy Hughes (Green)
Stuart Latham (Harrison)
Miles Malleson (the tailor)
Edie Martin (Mrs Watson)
Mandy Miller (Gladdie)
Charlotte Mitchell (mill girl)
Olaf Olsen (Knudsen)
Desmond Roberts (Mannering)
Ewan Roberts (Fotheringay)
John Rudling (Wilson)
Charles Saynor (Pete)
Russell Waters (Davidson)
Brian Worth (King)
George Benson (the lodger)
Frank Atkinson (the baker)
Charles Cullum (1st company director)
F.B.J. Sharp (2nd company director)
Scott Harold (Express reporter)
Jack Howarth (receptionist at Corland Mill)
Jack McNaughton (taxi driver)
Judith Furse (Nurse Gamage)
Billy Russell (nightwatchman at Birnley's)
Alan Haines (reporter - uncredited)
Arthur Mullard (uncredited)

PLOT SUMMARY

Quiet, lonely inventor Sidney Stratton creates a revolutionary new fabric which never gets dirty or wears out. But far from being greeted as a genius, Stratton finds himself and his invention facing resistance from both the powerful textile mill owners (who fear that the fabric will put them out of business) and their equally powerful workers (who fear that it will cost them their jobs).

CAPSULE REVIEW

An uncharacteristically dark satire from Ealing, The Man in the White Suit is as subtle as it is scathing, with no easy moral closures. Although very much a product of its time – the labour relations theme looks terribly dated now – the underlying themes of scientific progress creating more problems than it solves and of human self-interest over-riding all other concerns are timeless and universal enough to ensure the films longevity. Very funny, beautifully acted – especially by Guinness – and shot through with a keen intelligence, The man in the White Suit is a dark gem in the Ealing crown.

UK
Theatrical Distributor: GFD Ltd

USA
Theatrical Distributor: Universal International Pictures
Video Distributor: HBO Home Video
DVD Distributor: Anchor Bay (DV11476)

Finland
Rating: K-8

1952
BAFTA Awards, UK
Best British Film - nominated
Best Film from any Source – nominated

1953
Academy Awards, USA
Best Writing, Screenplay (Roger MacDougall, John Dighton, Alexander Mackendrick) - nominated

TIMELINE

1951
August
Day Unknown: UK – theatrical release

1952
March
31: USA – theatrical release in New York City

April
Day Unknown: USA – wider theatrical release

July
7: Denmark – theatrical release

1959
October
2: Finland – theatrical release

2002
September
10: USA - DVD release (Anchor Bay (DV11476))

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

El hombre vestido de blanco - Spanish title
L'homme au complet blanc - French title
Der Mann im weißen Anzug - German title
Mies valkoisessa puvussa - Finnish title
Lo scandalo del vestito bianco - Italian title

LINKS

FOOTAGE INCLUDED IN
Forever Ealing (2002)

KEYWORDS

inventions, inventors, play into film, satire, scientists, unions

Last Updated: 15 October, 2008