The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968)

Director:

Tony Richardson

Writer:

Charles Wood (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

11 October 1968 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Tagline:

"Theirs not to reason why..."

Plot:

A chronicle of events that led to the British involvement in the Crimean War against Russia and which...

Plot Keywords:

Crimean War | Anti War | Animated Title Sequence | Political Cartoon | Bare Chested Male

Awards:

Nominated for 6 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Trevor Howard	...	Lord Cardigan
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Mrs. Clarissa Morris
John Gielgud	...	Lord Raglan
Harry Andrews	...	Lord Lucan
Jill Bennett	...	Mrs. Fanny Duberly
David Hemmings	...	Capt. Louis Edward Nolan
Ben Aris	...	Capt. Fitz Maxse
Mickey Baker	...	Trooper Metcalfe (as Micky Baker)
Peter Bowles	...	Paymaster Capt. Henry Duberly
Leo Britt	...	Gen. Scarlett
Mark Burns	...	Capt. William Morris
John J. Carney	...	Trooper Mitchell (as John Carney)
Helen Cherry	...	Lady Scarlett
Chris Chittell	...	Trooper (as Christopher Chittel)
Ambrose Coghill	...	Lt. Col. Douglas
Howard Marion-Crawford	...	Lt. Gen. Sir George Brown
Christopher Cunningham	...	Farrier (as Chris Cunningham)
Mark Dignam	...	Gen. Airey
Michael Dillon	...	Dying Highlander
Alan Dobie	...	Riding Master Mogg
Georges Douking	...	Marshall St. Arnaud
Clive Endersby	...	Trooper
Andrew Faulds	...	Quaker preacher
Derek Fuke	...	Trooper
Willoughby Goddard	...	Squire
Derek Gray	...	Officer
Richard Graydon	...	Lord Bingham
John Hallam	...	Officer
Ian Hanson	...	Singing trooper
Barbara Hicks	...	Mrs. Duberly's maid
Rachel Kempson	...	Mrs. Codrington
T.P. McKenna	...	William Russel
Michael Miller	...	Maj. Gen. Sir John Campbell
Declan Mulholland	...	Farrier
Roger Mutton	...	Cornet Codrington
Valerie Newman	...	Mrs. Mitchell
Roy Pattison	...	Regimental Sergeant Major
Corin Redgrave	...	Capt. Featherstonhaugh
Norman Rossington	...	S.M. Corbett
Dino Shafeek	...	Indian servant
John Trenaman	...	Sgt. Maj. Smith
Colin Vancao	...	Capt. Charteris
Donald Wolfit	...	Macbeth in 'Macbeth'
Peter Woodthorpe	...	Valet
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harry Fielder	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Margaret Flint	...	(uncredited)
Laurence Harvey	...	Russian Prince (uncredited)
James Payne	...	Trooper (uncredited)
Joely Richardson	...	Extra (uncredited)
Natasha Richardson	...	Flower girl at wedding (uncredited)

Directed by
Tony Richardson

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
John Osborne		uncredited
Charles Wood		writer

Produced by
Neil Hartley	....	producer

Original Music by
John Addison

Cinematography by
David Watkin

Film Editing by
Kevin Brownlow
Hugh Raggett

Art Direction by
Edward Marshall

Costume Design by
David Walker

Production Management
Julian Mackintosh	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Clive Reed	....	assistant director

Art Department
Richard Rambaut	....	draughtsman (uncredited)

Sound Department
Kevin Connor	....	sound editor
Gerry Humphreys	....	sound re-recording mixer
Simon Kaye	....	sound

Special Effects by
Robert MacDonald	....	special effects
A. Paul Pollard	....	special effects
Peter Hutchinson	....	special effects assistant (uncredited)

Stunts
Richard Graydon	....	stunt coordinator
John Landis	....	stunt performer
Nosher Powell	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Alan McCabe	....	camera operator
Bernie Prentice	....	gaffer (as Bernard Prentice)

Animation Department
Ted Gerald	....	animation crew
Errol Le Cain	....	animation crew
Pat Savage	....	animation crew (as Patrick Savage)
Richard Williams	....	titles and animation

Editorial Department
Sarah Ellis	....	assistant editor (uncredited)

Other crew
Angela Allen	....	continuity
Geoff Freeman	....	unit publicist
Bob Simmons	....	action sequences by

Production Companies

• Woodfall Film Productions

Distributors

• United Artists (1968) (USA) (theatrical)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1979) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• British Film Institute (BFI) (????) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Lee Lighting  lighting
• Twickenham Film Studios  sound recording

Runtime:

139 min | West Germany:112 min (theatrical version)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo | 6-Track Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Anatolia, Turkey

Company:

Woodfall Film Productions

Trivia:

The uniforms in the battle scenes were distressed, for authenticity. Later, when the London scenes were filmed, fresh uniforms had to be made.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the first battle, the British infantry's bayonets can be seen wriggling as the soldiers advance - showing that they are rubber rather than steel.

Quotes:

Mogg: (when a young officer faints at the sight of a man being flogged): Always one of your younger type of hofficer fetches up or flops over. They fades away like Lily at bedtime.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 100 Greatest War Films (2005) (TV)

Another time, another place

I do find it fascinating to come across obscure, almost forgotten films like this with familiar faces and famous actors in it. It was made ca. 1968, and in the true spirit of '68, it is strongly anti-war, anti-military, and anti-establishment, even though it is set in the Victorian era, the height of the Romantic age, when Military valor was largely celebrated. Military life is here portrayed in terms of ranks of men being bullied and brutalized by each successive rank above them, with the biggest, meanest and stupidest ones at the top.

I found it quite interesting to see the famous charge, celebrated in the romantic verses of Tennyson, portrayed in such a matter-of-fact manner as a series of tactical blunders due to bad communication and incompatible personalities among the commanders. These events were supposedly well-researched, and though I am not informed on the subject, I found this version of events very credible. Even with the high level of weapons and communications technology we have today, this sort of thing still happens. It must have been very common in centuries past.

To me, the dialog of this film and its delivery by the actors is its most remarkable feature. Seeing films that depict distant eras, I've often thought that these eras must have not just looked different from what we are used to, but sounded very different as well. If we were suddenly dropped into Victorian England, we wouldn't always understand what was being said or inferred to us. Words, phrases, gestures, facial expressions or body language that would have obvious meaning in that time and place would be strange to us. The language and syntax would, of course, be different, but so would the rhythm, pace, expressive color and accenting of the way people spoke. `Charge of the Light Brigade' does a remarkable job of not just looking, but sounding like a distant place and time. For a viewer who is not educated in antique British expressions and military jargon, as I am not, it makes watching this film a bit challenging, but it's like spending 130 minutes in the Victorian age as a so-called `fly-on-the-wall,' as the British put it. There was more than one line spoken after which I thought `say what?' But that's OK. It doesn't kill you, just encourages you to think a bit. This aspect of the film looks to be well-researched as well, a superb example of a somewhat talky script in which great care is taken with the language and its use by the actors. The script doesn't serve the purpose of an exposition device for the dumbest members of the audience, a very common vice in films, particularly big-money films engineered to alienate as few people as possible. It's an integral part of a design to recreate an unfamiliar time and place, and as such, a bit uncompromising.