Review: Their Finest
Their Finest, adapted from a 2009 novel Their Finest Hour and a Half by Lissa Evans and taking its title from a speech by Winston Churchill, shines a light on British wartime cinema, which not only offered a means of escape from the dark realities enveloping England during WWII but also spotlighted women's importance to the war.
Indeed, whilst the men were out on the battlefields, women took even more prominence on the homefront, not only with domestic duties such as keeping a clean household and making a good cuppa, but also in taking on jobs in primarily male-dominated fields. Women not only flooded the factories but made their mark behind-the-scenes in the film industry. Their Finest has such a female figure in Catrin (Gemma Arterton), a Welsh girl who applies for a secretarial position at the Ministry of Information's film division only to find herself in the thick of it, beginning with informative fillers and then being assigned to research a true story that seems to perfectly fit the Ministry's directive to create films that are authentic and optimistic and targeted to the mostly female audiences filling up the cinemas.
The story of twin sisters who sail their father's boat to aid with the Dunkirk evacuation does prove to be too good to be true; turns out the sisters had engine failure and their tale had been misreported. Fearing that she might lose her job and have to acquiesce to her artist husband's (Jack Huston) to go back to Wales, Catrin vouches for the story's authenticity and the Ministry greenlights the production. Thus, she finds herself working with condescending screenwriter Tom Buckley (Sam Claflin) and the friendlier, less patronising Raymond Parfitt (Paul Ritter), and dealing with the various obstacles faced by the production. These range from the diva-like behaviour of the entertainingly vainglorious Ambrose Hilliard (Bill Nighy) to the demand from the Secretary of War (Jeremy Irons) that Norwegian-American Eagle Squadron pilot Carl Lundeback (Jake Lacy) be cast to broaden its appeal to American audiences. Oh, and also to show to the Americans that ordinary (female) working-class people can be heroes.
There's no denying Their Finest's charms - Arterton is such a warm and luminous presence, the screwball push-and-pull nature of Catrin and Tom's relationship, the inside look at how films of that era were made, the handsome production design, the always wonderful Nighy - and damn if that ending doesn't bring a tear or ten to one's eyes. Director Lone Scherfig deftly combines what British producer Michael Balcon dubbed "realism and tinsel," though there are times when one wonders if Their Finest is meant to be a period drama, lively romance, woman's picture, or behind-the-scenes ensemble comedy. It does veer into hoary and predictable territory but one can't help but be won over by its winsome nature.
Their Finest
Directed by: Lone Scherfig
Written by: Gaby Chiappe; based on the novel Their Finest Hour and a Half by Lissa Evans
Starring: Gemma Arterton, Sam Claflin, Bill Nighy, Jack Huston, Paul Ritter, Rachael Stirling, Richard E. Grant, Henry Goodman, Jake Lacy, Jeremy Irons, Eddie Marsan, Helen McCrory
