Context & Research


Abraham Sofaer as the Judge

THE MOVIE: A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

My Initial Thoughts of the Play

Unlike many plays that are adapted into movies, "A Matter of Life and Death" contradicts this by being an adaptation from the original film that was directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. Although this is its most recognisable name, the United States was the only country to change the title to "Stairway to Heaven", as they believed that no film with the word 'death' in its title would be successful at the time.

"A Matter of Life and Death" is a romantic war film made in 1946, following the tumultuous journey of lovers as Peter Carter (a British RAF pilot) and June (an American Radio Telephone Operator) fight their destiny as he escapes his death and will later plead his case to live on to the heavenly court of the other world. Peter Carter was initially accepting of his demise once he had jumped from his battered plane without a parachute, but unexpectedly he survived the incident and was able to finally meet June in person when he had only heard her voice. However, as his migraines begin to overwhelm him, June and her friends will do anything they can to save him from a fate worse than that. All of the events come down to the final toss of a coin: heads will let him win and tails will result otherwise.

Document including information regarding A Matter of Life and Death

~ Context & Research for A Matter of Life and Death ~

A Trip to the Imperial War Museum

Movie004.mp4

A Vlog covering my trip to The Imperial War Museum, covering different exhibits that I found that are in relation to World War 2.

In the museum, my friend and I found different items from the 1930s and 40s that related to the lifestyle of those during the war and weapons that would have been used on the battlefield. I found this trip very helpful for me because it made the world of the play clearer and more realistic to me in terms of who the characters are and the relevance of events at the time. Despite this, I found it quite difficult to find information that linked to the Britain's legal system or what is was like to be a judge at the time. Nonetheless, I looked around all the exhibits until I could find something remotely related to the law, hence the picture of the gavel and the information around it (which can be found in my folder).

A Trip to the Churchill War Rooms

Movie003.mp4

A Collage of small references to World War 2 and Churchill, before entering the Churchill War Rooms.

After the Imperial War Museum Trip, we made our way over to the Churchill War Rooms, which gave me an insight as to what Churchill was doing during World War 2 and what is was like to work with the government during an urgent event. Given that I didn't think it was appropriate to record again in these rooms, I decided that I would show a few landmarks that commemorate those that were involved in the war and us entering the exhibit. I found this experience quite enlightening because I was able to learn some unusual facts about Churchill and the location that gave me an idea of their personalities and made them more tangible in my mind. Moreover, I think these rooms are relevant to the play because it reminded me of June and the workspace that she would have needed to operate in, and the the atmosphere of the place made me think of how we could transfer this to our play.

Interview with Barrister Kwame Sekyere

Kwame Sekyere Interview.m4a

An Audio File of an Interview I had with Kwame Sekyere, a Barrister in training. I discussed Law from an educational and contextual viewpoint.

I found this call extremely helpful to me because it gave me an extensive and detailed idea of how a courtroom operates and the different avenues of careers that work there. Furthermore, I was able to understand how the Courtroom operates, the influence that Law has on society and how I can adapt this to my character.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

  • Cover Picture

Ytimg.com. (2022). [online] Available at: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/S0veuSLLWZ0/maxresdefault.jpg

  • Abraham Sofaer Picture

Bfi.org.uk. (2022). [online] Available at: https://www2.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/styles/full/public/image/matter-of-life-and-death-a-1946-026-chief-judge.jpg?itok=ErHTP0th

  • Films from The Second World War

Anon, (n.d.). 1940s Movies: Hollywood Goes To War. [online] Available at: https://www.retrowaste.com/1940s/movies-in-the-1940s/