''The Saving of Bill Blewitt'' is a 1936 documentary film produced by

Alberto Cavalcanti Alberto de Almeida Cavalcanti (February 6, 1897 – August 23, 1982) was a Brazilian-born film director and film producer, producer. He was often credited under the single name "Cavalcanti". Early life Cavalcanti was born in Rio de Janeiro, ...

of the

GPO Film Unit The GPO Film Unit was a subdivision of the UK General Post Office. The unit was established in 1933, taking on responsibilities of the Empire Marketing Board Film Unit. Headed by John Grierson, it was set up to produce sponsored documentary films ...

and directed by

Harry Watt Harry Watt (18 October 19062 April 1987) was a Scottish documentary and feature film director, who began his career working for John Grierson and Robert Flaherty. His 1959 film ''The Siege of Pinchgut'' was entered into the 9th Berlin Inter ...

Synopsis

Intended as a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Post Office Savings Bank, Watt's film eschewed conventional narration in favour of improvising a story around the villagers of

Mousehole Mousehole (; kw, Porthenys) is a village and fishing port in Cornwall, England, UK. It is approximately south of Penzance on the shore of Mount's Bay. The village is in the civil parish of Penzance. An islet called St Clement's Isle lies ab ...

and the Cornish landscape they inhabit. The film's power of conviction owed much to the real-life

Bill Blewitt Bill Blewitt was a Cornish postman 'discovered' by film-maker Harry Watt and cast in his 1936 film '' The Saving of Bill Blewitt''. The documentary was about the Post Office Savings Bank and featured Blewitt and the villagers of Mousehole in C ...

, the village postmaster. Others recall him as having "a mesmeric gift of the gab, a glorious Cornish accent, twinkling blue eyes, a grin as broad as 'Popeye' and the charismatic charm of the Celt." Set during the economic slump of the 1930s, the film follows two fishermen who have lost their boat but manage to save enough to buy another with the help of the Post Office Savings Bank. The inter-village squabbles and references to unemployment reflected the actual hardships of the Cornish fishing villages, whose pilchard industry had been suffered from Britain's refusal to trade with Mussolini's Italy. The film was shown around the whole of Britain, often at church halls and other meeting rooms and was generally was well received. On its showing in the village of Mousehole itself, the ''Post Office Magazine'' reported that the film caused such excitement amongst villagers that much of the dialogue could not be heard above the chatter. At the end of a showing in nearby Penzance Bill Blewitt and his wife, who also appeared, stepped onto the stage to be greeted by deafening cheers and hand clapping."Post Office film at Penzance, ''The Cornishman and Cornish Telegraph'', 14 January 1937.

Cast

* Villagers of Mousehole

Critique

Against this hardship, the film's promotion of saving with the Post Office occupies a rather ambiguous place. The administrators of the post office savings account are unreal and over-earnest comic figures. Their intrusions into what is an otherwise realistic story have a dream-like quality at odds with the film's otherwise gently comic flow.

Influence

Acclaimed by film maker

Paul Rotha Paul Rotha (3 June 1907 – 7 March 1984) was a British documentary film-maker, film historian and critic. Early life and education He was born Paul Thompson in London, and educated at Highgate School and at the Slade School of Fine Art. Career ...

as the first 'story' documentary, ''The Saving of Bill Blewitt'' influenced populist Ealing comedies such as '' Whisky Galore!'' and the films of

Mike Leigh Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design ...

. The real-life Bill Blewitt went on to appear in several other story-documentaries and wartime propaganda films as ''

The Foreman Went to France ''The Foreman Went to France'' (released in the USA as ''Somewhere in France'' ) is a 1942 British Second World War war film starring Clifford Evans, Tommy Trinder, Constance Cummings and Gordon Jackson. It was based on the real-life wartime ex ...

'' and Harry's Watt's ''

Nine Men The council of Nine Men was a citizens board and a form of representational democracy in New Netherland. It replaced the previous councils, the Twelve Men and the Eight Men. Members of the council were elected in 1647, 1649, 1650 and 1652. On Ju ...

''.

References

External links

*
''The Saving of Bill Blewitt'' at the BFI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saving Of Bill Blewitt British documentary films British short films 1936 films GPO Film Unit films Films directed by Harry Watt Films set in Cornwall Mousehole 1930s British films