Hour of Darkness
16mm film Black & White Silent 1940s 11:29
Summary: Short fictional story of a woman who dates two military men during wartime, one of whom is blind.
Title number: 1464
LSA ID: LSA/1956
Description: His back to the camera, a man in army uniform with hat enters an Art Deco-style apartment block with large square windows. A door opens, and a woman joyfully embraces him with a hug. Indoors, a small glass is filled with drink and the couple both take a drink, presumably in the woman's living room. The couple are both in their early 30's, the woman smartly dressed in a dark dress with her hair in a simple typical 1940's style; the man wears a thin moustache with his hair neatly brilliantined. The living room has heavy patterned curtains and a model ship atop a piano. The woman smokes a cigarettes and the man a pipe as they sit closely and chat, the man gazing intently at the woman.
The screen fades to black before cutting to a street scene. A small crowd jostles around a shop called Finlay & Co. The man we have already seen, still in his army uniform, walks past a poster for Abbey National, through what looks like a train station. There are a large number of women around.
Next shot is of a suitcase on a bed being packed. The woman, now wearing a light floral dress, carries it through to another room before stopping to pick up a framed portrait of the man. She goes to open and look out the window, looking down to see a driver exiting a large car and throwing his cap onto the seat. The driver opens a rear door of the car and helps out a man in military uniform who wears round dark sunglasses, presumably because he is blind. The woman clutches at her curtains as she watches, the retreats into the house. She goes to her front door then out into the hallway of the apartment building, where the elevator door opens; she leads him into her house (leaving the driver behind) and he struggles to find his way around as she looks upset and uncomfortable. He takes a seat then reaches for his pipe. We see the square Art Deco clock on her mantelpiece shows 6pm.
After a fade to black we are back in the busy train station. A uniformed guard shuts the barrier then changes a sign as a man runs for a train. Another trains pulls out as women stand around watching. We see the man from the start of the film again, walking with a suitcase, then cut suddenly back to the living room scene were the blind man is talking. The woman looks concerned, and does not speak. Various close-up shots show her eyes, and the blind man continuing to talk.
Cut to a long shot of a bombed-out building , with the non-blind man in uniform walking past in the foreground, carrying a suitcase. He enters a phone booth and makes a call. Back in the living room, the woman gets up to answer her phone. As she talks, the blind man looks concerned, perhaps because he realizes she has been seeing someone else. She hangs up and cries uncontrollably as the blind man sits tensely.
The sighted man is now seen walking with his suitcase past more bombed-out buildings. He then crosses a leafy suburban street, a red post-box behind him, as a London bus drives past. He approaches the woman's apartment building and removes his hat as she opens her front door. They talk at the door for a moment, looking concerned. She lets him in, then leads him to the living room where the blind man still sits. The blind man turns his head, and in a close-up we see tears running down his face. He gets up and fumbles towards the door, which the woman slams shut to keep him in. As the blind man bangs on the door, the woman talks to the other man, who squeezes her hands before turning and leaving. The woman cries and leans against the living room door. Outside, we see the sighted man leaving the building, followed by a shot of him crossing a suburban London street.
As the woman continues to lean against the door, the blind man fumbles around the living room towards the open window. The woman re-enters, then realizes he has fallen out. She screams and faints as passers-by below run to the scene.
Another shot of a bombed-out building with the sighted man walking past. He stops, seems to think, then turns and goes back.
Closing title reads THE END. A further end title reads 'Recorded by United Motion Pictures' followed by another for 'Planet Film Productions'.
Further information: Film footage has title card 'Hour of Darkness - second part only'.
Keywords: Service Man; fiction; wartime; World War II; blind; tragedy
In galleries: Disability Heritage Collection Highlight
Locations: United Kingdom; England; London
Related
Comments