Here's a film that is a jewel in the cinematic firmament. I've come to expect good things from The Archers (Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger), but, even so, was surprised that this film, Stairway to Heaven, is such a treasure. It's a stylish and heartwarming romantic fantasy that combines a superlative, witty script with magical sets, beautiful Technicolor cinematography, and great performances. It's also very revealing about the state of the Anglo-American alliance in the immediate aftermath of World War II.

Historical Background: The remarkable partnership between Michael Powell (1905-1990) and Emeric Pressburger (1902-1988) began when both were newcomers working for Alexander Korda's London Films in the late thirties. Pressburger was a Hungarian refugee and a screenwriter with excellent literary imagination. Powell had a rich visual imagination as a filmmaker. The pair first worked together on Spy in Black (1939) and One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1941). In 1942, they broke off from London Films to form their own production company, The Archers. There, they produced some of the greatest British films of the forties and early fifties, including The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), I Know Where I'm Going (1945), Black Narcissus (1946), Stairway to Heaven (1946), The Red Shoes (1948), and Tales of Hoffman (1951).

Stairway to Heaven was originally entitled A Matter of Life and Death but was given the title used here in the Epinions' database for its American release. The film was commissioned by the British Ministry of Information, which was concerned about deterioration in Anglo-American cooperation in the postwar era. The film, therefore, had a propaganda intent, but it so thoroughly transcends that limited purpose as to stand full height as a classy work of art. American audiences of the time loved the film, so one could argue that it ended up achieving its intended purpose. The reception among British audiences was more mixed, with some detractors feeling that the film had an anti-British sentiment. Even though the propaganda value of the film has receded into history, audiences on both sides of the Atlantic still rightly cherish the film for its romance, visual inventiveness, outstanding cinematography, and British humor and wit. This film is a genuine classic.

The Story: When the airplane flown by RAF Squadron Leader Peter Carter is hit by enemy fire and catches fire, Carter orders his crew to bail out, except for Bob Trotshaw (Robert Coote), who is dead. There's one parachute too few because of the damage, so Carter is down to just two grim options: jump without a chute or burn up in the plane. He's got a few last minutes to radio information about his situation and manages to reach an American WREN, June (Kim Hunter), on the other end of the transmission. He gives her instructions to contact his mother and sisters in London. Carter, who is also a published poet, quotes some appropriate lines of British poetry. June is touched by Peter's courage and charm and he by her soothing, sympathetic voice. Peter learns that the Boston-born June is living at Leewood House, in Leewood Burrough, on the coast of England. Too soon, however, he has to sign off, saying, "June, you're life, and I'm leaving you."

Meanwhile, far above in the celestial domain, Bob Trotshaw has reached Heaven's reception center and is awaiting the imminent arrival of his friend, Peter. Peter, however, does not show up. Instead, he awakens on a beach, in England, having washed up onshore from the Channel waters. Peter encounters a naked lad tending goats (Pan, perhaps?) and asks where he is. As luck would have it, he has washed up on the very Leewood beach where June likes to ride her bicycle. Soon, Peter finds June peddling toward her home. They immediately recognize one another and fall hopelessly in love.

In the Heavens above, the grave error is uncovered some twenty hours after Peter was supposed to die. Conductor 71 (Marius Goring), a delightfully foppish French aristocrat who lost his head during the French Revolution, admits to losing Peter in the dense English fog. It's been a thousand years since the last such mistake, but these things sometimes happen. Seventy-one is immediately dispatched to earth to retrieve the lost package. The angel appears to Peter, conveniently stopping the passage of time so that June will be oblivious to the man-talk. Peter understands that he's supposed to be dead but refuses to accompany the angel, resting his case on a legal technicality. Heaven's negligence has resulted in a material change in Peter's circumstances (he's now head-over-heels in love) and he is no longer ready to die. There's nothing for Conductor 71 to do but to report back to the outer stratosphere for further instructions.

When time recommences, Peter describes his experience to June, who quite sensibly interprets the event as a hallucination and an indication that Peter has suffered a head trauma. June arranges for Peter to be seen by the village physician, Dr. Frank Reeves (Robert Livesey), who happens to have considerable expertise in neurology. Peter's symptoms (such as smelling fried onions during his "hallucinations") suggest to Dr. Reeves a particular kind of brain lesion that will require surgical intervention. Surprisingly, however, Reeves does not dismiss the substance of Carter's delusions as immaterial. Reeves has a personal interest in the afterlife.

Soon, Conductor 71 reappears to Peter, again freezing time so that June and Frank are unaware of his presence. He informs Peter that he's to be allowed to appeal his case before the Celestial Court. The prosecuting attorney will by Abraham Farlan (Raymond Massey), a Boston lawyer and American patriot, who was killed in 1775 at Concord by a British bullet and who is thus understandably rather antagonistic toward British culture and political motivations. Peter will need to select a defense attorney and can choose from any of the great legal minds who ever lived. Conductor 71 suggests Lincoln, Plato, or Richelieu, but Peter wants someone more up-to-date with modern notions of romance. When Frank learns about the latest message from Conductor 71, he concludes that winning the case in the Celestial Court is the key to Peter's survival.

I'll only add that the celestial trial takes place while Peter is under anesthesia for the neurological surgery that he requires. Peter's life obviously hangs in the balance, to an equal measure in each of the venues. The rest I'll leave for you to discover for yourself, including the identity of Peter's surprise defense attorney in the heavens.

Themes: The central philosophical question in the film is whether love trumps the laws of Heaven, especially when the negligence of Heaven is itself responsible for allowing that love to take root. This being a romantic fantasy, can the answer really be in doubt? "Love rules the court, the camp, the globe, the men below and saints above, for love is Heaven and Heaven is love."

The central propaganda concern is whether two nations with cultural differences and a history of antagonism, out of which one of the two nations was born, overcome those differences and work together in a spirit of cooperation. Since this film was funded by the Ministry of Information to ease discord among the allies, can the answer to that question be in doubt? The English obsession with cricket may be as foreign to Americans as the blues are to the English (or as they were in 1946), but the two countries speak almost the same language and shared some crucial political objectives during much of the twentieth century. They also share some elements of common heritage, since many American schoolchildren still grow up reading Shakespeare, A.A. Milne, Keats, Burns, and other English writers. We can appreciate and respect one another, even if we can't always understand each other's interests. This film is a welcome plea to respect cultural diversity, even if the case at hand happens to be limited to just two English-speaking cultures.

Production Values: The script for this film is among the finest that Emeric Pressburger ever wrote. The story is delightfully inventive and loaded with literary and historical references. Powell then provided the perfect style to showcase Pressburger's substance. Even the opening disclaimer is quite witty. One nice touch in the script is that Pressburger walks a fine line between the supernatural and perfectly rational explanations for all that transpires. The fantasy segments set in the heavens can be interpreted either as authentic or as hallucinations experienced by the brain-damaged Peter Carter. Pressburger deftly portrays Heaven as an efficient, smoothly operating bureaucracy where new arrivals are dealt with promptly and courteously. Now that would be Heaven!

The photography is lush, both for the earthly arena and the heavenly sphere. Set designer Alfred Junge treats us to a fantastic visual realization of heaven's antechamber and the majestic marble automated staircase connecting it to the earthly realm. These are supplemented with long pans across the cosmos, revealing its infinite dimensions, and the giant amphitheater of the celestial court, nestled inside a vacant galaxy. The earthly scenes are filmed in the rich, oversaturated Technicolor for which The Archers had become famous, while the heavenly sets are filmed in beautiful monochrome. Several times, the images fade seamlessly between the two schemes. The mixing of color with monochrome does not always work well in cinema (e.g., If…), but cinematographer Jack Cardiff uses the idea to great effect.

The chemistry between David Niven and Kim Hunter is palpable, even if their romantic interludes are a smaller part of the film than is typical for romantic fantasies. The opening scene is exceptionally touching. I don't remember any other film drawing tears from my eyes so early in the film. Niven is a quintessential "stiff Brit," from an American viewpoint, which gives credibility to the film's essential thesis. Kim Hunter, in her own way, is every bit as American as Niven is British. If these two can appreciate one another, why not their respective nations? Niven's great career included performances in Dodsworth (1936), The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), The Prisoner of Zenda (1937), The Dawn Patrol (1938), Wuthering Heights (1939), The Way Ahead (1944), Around the World in 80 Days (1956), Separate Tables (1958), The Guns of Navarone (1961), The Pink Panther (1964), Casino Royale (1967), and Murder by Death (1976). Kim Hunter was best known for her roles in The Seventh Victim (1943), A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), Planet of the Apes (1968), and The Swimmer (1968).

Roger Livesey's role as Frank Reeves is every bit as important as that of the two romantic leads. His silky voice gives him all the bedside manner that a good doctor should have. Livesey had already appeared in Rembrandt (1936), Drums (1938), The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), and I Know Where I'm Going (1945), and subsequently worked in The Entertainer (1960). The present film also boasts excellent supporting performances from Marius Goring as Conductor 71, Robert Coote as Bob Trotshaw, and Raymond Massey as Abraham Farlan. I particularly enjoyed Goring as the foppish Frenchman.

Bottom-Line: My Nostalgia Family Video has no extras but provides an excellent digital transfer, which is what you should most want for this fine film. This is a delightful work of art, cleverly blending fantasy and reality with great visual imagination and utmost good taste. The members of the British Film Institute (BFI) ranked it as the twentieth best British film all-time. Among the films that I've seen by the team of Powell and Pressburger, I'd personally rank this one tied for second, behind The Red Shoes (which the BFI ranks ninth best among all British films), and tied with I Know Where I'm Going, for which I have a special fondness. Stairway to Heaven (a.k.a. A Matter of Life and Death) is quite simply one of the most enchanting films you'll ever come across. There have been plenty of heaven-and-earth films, but none better than this one.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good Date Movie
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 9 - 12