#06 - I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING!
Horo, my nut brown maiden
Hiri, my nut brown maiden
Horo, ro maiden
For she's the maid for me.
I Know Where I'm Going!
1945
Director: Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger
Starring: Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey
This is my favorite romance ever. Just thinking about it makes me sigh contentedly. Where else but in an unassuming 1945 black and white trifle can you get away with a romantic hero named - get this - Torquil?
Wendy Hiller plays Joan, a rather cutthroat young lady, hell-bent on marrying a rich, old, and absent factory owner. She is traveling to the Hebrides in remote Scotland to get married, but bad weather keeps her from boating over to the small island, Kiloran, where she is to wed. Stuck with her is the charming but penniless laird of Kiloran, Torquil MacNeil (Livesey), also trying to get back to Kiloran on his week's leave from the navy. Initially, the two butt heads, but anyone who has ever seen a romantic comedy knows how it will turn out.
Torquil is blown over after meeting Joan.
The first ten minutes of the movie are a bit disconnected from the rest of the film. We see a quick, comical montage of Joan growing up, her materialism obvious from the get-go. We then meet present-day Joan at a smart nightclub in London, telling her father she's getting married. There's swing music, cocktails, and dancing. Is this another Thin Man? Seems it, until Joan gets on a train and arrives in Scotland. All her neatly laid plans quickly unravel, and she stands no chance against the forces of nature - and the heart - that stand to undermine her intentions.
Flat out - I have never seen a more romantic movie - ever. Buck-toothed Livesey is incredibly attractive, helped out by the fact that when he's not wearing a naval officer's uniform, he's tramping around in a kilt. He is kind-hearted, caring, and is instantly and genuinely taken with Joan, spending the entire movie trying to woo her despite her best efforts to rebuke him. He woos her with subtle glances, a shared cigarette, a rendez-vous with a ladder, a plate served... he can't help himself. Hiller is absolutely lovely in soft focus, tweed suits, and shoulder pads. She is so attracted to Torquil MacNeil that she begins desperately trying to avoid him, wishing and praying for the weather to improve so that she can just get to Kiloran and marry her fortune. Her strong resolve crumbles slowly, as she gives in to the inevitable - she can't bring herself to marry for money once she finds love.
Torquil is desperately trying to woo Joan, and finds that ladders help.
Apart from the wonderfully, blissfully romantic main couple, Scotland is truly the star here. This is a real Scotland, full of bad weather, craggy cliffs, rough seas, old castles... it's marvelous. Yet, at the same time, there is something mystical and magical about this Scotland, full of mist and fog and possibilities. Of all the movies I've seen, and I've seen my fair share, this is one of the few for whom I would love, REALLY love, to visit the actual location. Most of the scenes were shot on location, and you can stay in the hotel where a great deal of the action takes place. In one scene, an older lady talks about Scotland with such rapture that it makes me want to book the next plane to Edinburgh.
Pressburger's camera here is gorgeous and fluid, exploring fantastic chiaroscuro shots with gorgeous clouds and waves and fog. The interplay of light and shadow makes it almost look like a noir; you can easily see he was influenced by German Expressionism. Shot after shot could be snapped as a photo. He also made wonderful use of backscreen photography, projecting background footage on a screen and filming the actors in front of the screen. It's not CGI, but it's damn effective, especially considering the movie was shot on location in Scotland BUT Roger Livesey never once stepped foot in Scotland while making the movie. He was doing a stage play in London and couldn't make it to the location for the shoot, so all his scenes had to be re-engineered with body doubles and backscreens. The first time I found out about this, I had already seen the movie twice and couldn't tell AT ALL.
The music is out of this world, authentic Scotland all the way. The traditional folk song "Horo, My Nut Brown Maiden" plays a prominent role in the film, so I've posted the lyrics as my quote from the film. When you hear it at the end of the film, it sends a thrill down the spine. I want to go to a ceilidh and dance to it!
Our couple is finally united in Moy Castle
This film is woefully underseen. If this is the first you've heard of it - or you've only heard of it because I've ranted and raved about it in the past - please, check it out. It's a gorgeous, lovely film, lighter than air, but full to the brim of romance.
Hiri, my nut brown maiden
Horo, ro maiden
For she's the maid for me.
I Know Where I'm Going!
1945
Director: Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger
Starring: Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey
This is my favorite romance ever. Just thinking about it makes me sigh contentedly. Where else but in an unassuming 1945 black and white trifle can you get away with a romantic hero named - get this - Torquil?
Wendy Hiller plays Joan, a rather cutthroat young lady, hell-bent on marrying a rich, old, and absent factory owner. She is traveling to the Hebrides in remote Scotland to get married, but bad weather keeps her from boating over to the small island, Kiloran, where she is to wed. Stuck with her is the charming but penniless laird of Kiloran, Torquil MacNeil (Livesey), also trying to get back to Kiloran on his week's leave from the navy. Initially, the two butt heads, but anyone who has ever seen a romantic comedy knows how it will turn out.
Torquil is blown over after meeting Joan.
The first ten minutes of the movie are a bit disconnected from the rest of the film. We see a quick, comical montage of Joan growing up, her materialism obvious from the get-go. We then meet present-day Joan at a smart nightclub in London, telling her father she's getting married. There's swing music, cocktails, and dancing. Is this another Thin Man? Seems it, until Joan gets on a train and arrives in Scotland. All her neatly laid plans quickly unravel, and she stands no chance against the forces of nature - and the heart - that stand to undermine her intentions.
Flat out - I have never seen a more romantic movie - ever. Buck-toothed Livesey is incredibly attractive, helped out by the fact that when he's not wearing a naval officer's uniform, he's tramping around in a kilt. He is kind-hearted, caring, and is instantly and genuinely taken with Joan, spending the entire movie trying to woo her despite her best efforts to rebuke him. He woos her with subtle glances, a shared cigarette, a rendez-vous with a ladder, a plate served... he can't help himself. Hiller is absolutely lovely in soft focus, tweed suits, and shoulder pads. She is so attracted to Torquil MacNeil that she begins desperately trying to avoid him, wishing and praying for the weather to improve so that she can just get to Kiloran and marry her fortune. Her strong resolve crumbles slowly, as she gives in to the inevitable - she can't bring herself to marry for money once she finds love.
Torquil is desperately trying to woo Joan, and finds that ladders help.
Apart from the wonderfully, blissfully romantic main couple, Scotland is truly the star here. This is a real Scotland, full of bad weather, craggy cliffs, rough seas, old castles... it's marvelous. Yet, at the same time, there is something mystical and magical about this Scotland, full of mist and fog and possibilities. Of all the movies I've seen, and I've seen my fair share, this is one of the few for whom I would love, REALLY love, to visit the actual location. Most of the scenes were shot on location, and you can stay in the hotel where a great deal of the action takes place. In one scene, an older lady talks about Scotland with such rapture that it makes me want to book the next plane to Edinburgh.
Pressburger's camera here is gorgeous and fluid, exploring fantastic chiaroscuro shots with gorgeous clouds and waves and fog. The interplay of light and shadow makes it almost look like a noir; you can easily see he was influenced by German Expressionism. Shot after shot could be snapped as a photo. He also made wonderful use of backscreen photography, projecting background footage on a screen and filming the actors in front of the screen. It's not CGI, but it's damn effective, especially considering the movie was shot on location in Scotland BUT Roger Livesey never once stepped foot in Scotland while making the movie. He was doing a stage play in London and couldn't make it to the location for the shoot, so all his scenes had to be re-engineered with body doubles and backscreens. The first time I found out about this, I had already seen the movie twice and couldn't tell AT ALL.
The music is out of this world, authentic Scotland all the way. The traditional folk song "Horo, My Nut Brown Maiden" plays a prominent role in the film, so I've posted the lyrics as my quote from the film. When you hear it at the end of the film, it sends a thrill down the spine. I want to go to a ceilidh and dance to it!
Our couple is finally united in Moy Castle
This film is woefully underseen. If this is the first you've heard of it - or you've only heard of it because I've ranted and raved about it in the past - please, check it out. It's a gorgeous, lovely film, lighter than air, but full to the brim of romance.