Rent I Know Where I'm Going! (1945)

Romance triumphs over materialism - I Know Where I'm Going! review by RP

This film is #26 on the 'Time Out' list of 100 best British films, and it thoroughly deserves its high ranking.

The dialogue is sharp and witty, the black and white cinematography excellent. Even the special effects are good, given the age of the film. A superbly written and directed film, as one would expect from Powell and Pressburger.

The central character (played by Wendy Hiller) is thrown off her pre-planned course of marrying a millionaire when she is held up by a storm which delays her imminent wedding. Spending time with down to earth Scottish islanders, she falls for a man (played by Roger Livesey) whom she initially thinks is a sailor - but who turns out be the local laird. And of course, romance triumphs over materialism.

A film for a romantic evening in. 4/5 stars. Highly recommended.

A very slim story - I Know Where I'm Going! review by Maureen

We saw this film when it was first shown and liked it very much and we always like Roger Livesey. However, it now seems dated and has a very slim plot, so we were disappointed. The other old film with Roger Livesey as the main character, "The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp", which we rented from you recently, is much better.

George Roby.

Classic Romance. - I Know Where I'm Going! review by Steve

This is a devotional film, set in the western isles of Scotland. Wendy Hiller plays an ambitious middle class girl who travels north to marry a rich industrialist. Bad weather means she gets snagged up in a village harbour, tantalisingly a short boat trip from the small island of Kiloran and her wedding.

She comes under the influence of a hard up aristocrat (Roger Livesey) and the folklore and the enchantment of this unfamiliar world. With all her stubborn, materialistic single-mindedness, she tries to resist. She must get to Kiloran at any cost. Even if it destroys herself.

This is a lyrical love story of immense power. It is enriched by a mythic feel for the local traditions and people, and made beautiful by Edwin Hillier's gorgeous b&w photography. Livesey and Hiller are irresistible and matched by the striking, vivacious Pamela Brown. But it is the unique voice of Powell and Pressburger that makes this film so loved.

While there is realism, and the poverty of the islanders must have carried a punch to a country coming out of war, it is so profoundly historic, so intuitively optimistic, so different from the work of the others. It resonates deeply in our hearts, in our myths and in our culture.