TBT: Hope and Glory (1987)

Kendra did a short review of Hope and Glory (1987) ages ago, but since it’s been one of my favorite films since childhood, I figured I could revisit it a little more in depth. Directed and written by John Boorman, it’s a semi-autobiographical film about Boorman’s childhood growing up in London during the Blitz.

Bill, the adolescent stand-in for Boorman, weathers the onslaught of German bombings with a certain irreverence for the destruction and chaos happening around him. Through his eyes, we see World War II as an impossibly elaborate child’s game, with only occasional glimpses into the grown-up drama swirling around him and his playmates. It’s a formula that is really kind of magical, mixing the innocence of youth with being forced to grow up far too soon.

Bill and his little sister, Pauline, are about to be boarded off to Australia to live with one of their mother’s aunts who has offered to take the children in during the war. Their mother has an abrupt change of heart at the train station.

Shirley Russell, who worked with husband Ken Russell on many of his films, among them Women in Love (1969) and The Music Lovers (1971), designed the costumes for this film. As World War II costumes go, they’re not spectacular, but nor should they be. This was the height of rationing, and the clothes that Bill, his family, and his friends and neighbors wear are neat, but a little thread worn. Bill’s sister, Dawn, has the most interesting wardrobe in the film, as befits her status as the not-so-innocent teenager with raging hormones. In one memorable scene, she has Bill draw lines on the back of her legs with eyeliner to simulate stocking seams, as silk stockings were rationed.

1987 Hope and Glory — Bill’s mother, sisters, and his seemingly endless supply of aunts, are all dressed as fashionably as possible considering the circumstances.

Sarah Miles plays Grace, Bill’s mother, who is just trying to keep her shit together and her chaotic little family alive while trying to survive the Blitz.

In truth, this film has suffered a bit from looking more like the 1980s than the 1940s, though it’s hard to put a finger on what exactly is causing the disconnect, because all the elements look right. It’s possible it’s down to the hair and makeup being a touch too modern. Or the fact that my mother wore almost exactly the same style of dresses in the late-1980s.

After a German plane is shot down and the pilot ejects, landing in their neighborhood, the women descend on the silk parachute in hopes of retrieving enough of it to make undergarments and dresses.

The rationing of silk during WWII led to some inventive ways to fake basic clothing items, such as stockings.

Later, after their home is destroyed, Bill and his family move in with Grace’s parents, leading to some of the best scenes in the film with Bill’s curmudgeonly and eccentric grandfather who Bill bonds with.

Like I said, this film has been one of my favorites since I was a kid, and rewatching it, I was pleased to see that it still shone with all the warmth I remembered. Next up, I’ll be reviewing the sequel, Queen and Country (2014), so stay tuned!

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