David Lean Directs Noël Coward

David Lean Directs Noël Coward

In the 1940s, the wit of playwright Noël Coward and the craft of filmmaker David Lean melded harmoniously in one of cinema’s greatest writer-director collaborations. With the wartime military drama sensation In Which We Serve, Coward and Lean (along with producing partners Ronald Neame and Anthony Havelock-Allan) embarked on a series of literate, socially engaged, and enormously entertaining pictures that ranged from domestic epic (This Happy Breed) to whimsical comedy (Blithe Spirit) to poignant romance (Brief Encounter). These films created a lasting testament to Coward’s artistic legacy and introduced Lean’s visionary talents to the world.

Film Info

  • Spine #603

Films In This Set

Special Features

  • New high-definition digital transfers of the BFI National Archive’s 2008 restorations, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks on the Blu-ray editions
  • Audio commentary on Brief Encounter by film historian Bruce Eder
  • New interviews with Noël Coward scholar Barry Day on all of the films
  • Interview with cinematographer-screenwriter-producer Ronald Neame from 2010
  • Short documentaries from 2000 on the making of In Which We Serve and Brief Encounter
  • David Lean: A Self Portrait, a 1971 television documentary on Lean’s career
  • Episode of the British television series The Southbank Show from 1992 on the life and career of Coward
  • Audio recording of a 1969 conversation between Richard Attenborough and Coward at London’s National Film Theatre
  • Trailers
  • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • PLUS: A booklet featuring new essays by Ian Christie, Terrence Rafferty, Farran Smith Nehme, Geoffrey O’Brien, and Kevin Brownlow

    New covers by F. Ron Miller

Purchase Options

Films In This Set

David Lean Directs Noël Coward

Special Features

  • New high-definition digital transfers of the BFI National Archive’s 2008 restorations, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks on the Blu-ray editions
  • Audio commentary on Brief Encounter by film historian Bruce Eder
  • New interviews with Noël Coward scholar Barry Day on all of the films
  • Interview with cinematographer-screenwriter-producer Ronald Neame from 2010
  • Short documentaries from 2000 on the making of In Which We Serve and Brief Encounter
  • David Lean: A Self Portrait, a 1971 television documentary on Lean’s career
  • Episode of the British television series The Southbank Show from 1992 on the life and career of Coward
  • Audio recording of a 1969 conversation between Richard Attenborough and Coward at London’s National Film Theatre
  • Trailers
  • English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
  • PLUS: A booklet featuring new essays by Ian Christie, Terrence Rafferty, Farran Smith Nehme, Geoffrey O’Brien, and Kevin Brownlow

    New covers by F. Ron Miller