The Return of the Soldier ***½ (1982, Alan Bates, Julie Christie, Glenda Jackson, Ann-Margret, Ian Holm, Frank Finlay, Jeremy Kemp) – Classic Movie Review 6410

Director Alan Bridges makes a smooth and satisfying 1982 British film from Rebecca West’s romantic drama novel, first published in 1918. It reunites the stars of Far from the Madding Crowd in an affecting, old-style character study taken at a sedate but compelling pace. Surprisingly, there were no awards, only a BAFTA Film Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor for Frank Finlay and a Palme d’Or nomination for Alan Bridges.

Alan Bates is excellent as the soldier, Captain Chris Baldry, and so too are Julie Christie as his proud wife Kitty Baldry and Glenda Jackson as his childhood sweetheart.

Bates plays the shell-shocked soldier Chris returning from World War One with amnesia, blocking out his recall of marriage to snooty socialite Kitty (Christie), pining for a reunion with his old working class lover Margaret Grey (Glenda Jackson), and allowing long love-lorn Jenny (Ann-Margret), Chris’s all-too caring cousin, a chance to move in on him.

As expected, there is extremely decent high quality acting from the powerhouse cast of British performers, though Swedish-born Ann-Margret [Olsson] also draws a lot of the attention as the soldier’s doting cousin.

The exceptional support cast includes Ian Holm (notable as psychiatrist Dr Gilbert Anderson), Frank Finlay (outstanding as William Grey), Jeremy Kemp, Edward de Souza, Jack May, John Sharp, Hilary Mason, Patsy Byrne, Robert Keegan, Nicholas Frankau, Pauline Quirke, Kevin Whately, Jack May, Michael Cochrane, Elizabeth Edmonds, Valerie Whittington, Amanda Grinling and Dorothy Alison.

It is written by Hugh Whitmore, shot by Stephen Goldblatt, produced by Barry R Cooper, Ann Skinner and Simon Relph, scored by Richard Rodney Bennett and designed by Luciana Arrighi.

Bates and Christie went on to make Separate Tables together the next year.

It was West’s first novel, published in 1918 during World War One, and therefore the only novel written and published by a woman during that war about the war.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 6410

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