CORONATION FILMS

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27064, 12 June 1953, Page 2

CORONATION FILMS

THE CINEMA

MEMORABLE RECORD OF OCCASION

To see the two films of the Coronation ©f Queen Elizabeth, which have come to Christchurch less than 10 days after the is almost to have a part and a place in one of the great ceremonies of British history. Television, radio, and the printed word have conveyed something of the majesty, beauty, and splendour of the occasion. “A Queen is Crowned” and “Elizabeth is Queen” add to their accounts pomp, pageantry, and excitement, recording for millions to see much of the sights, sounds, and colour of the historic crowning ceremony in Westminster Abbey, and the Queen’s triumphal drive through the rainwashed streets of her capital. They are fine films, frequently moving or dramatic, and of a quality to match what they commemorate as well. Both films are memorable for the sounds they have captured as a background to the events of a proud day. Between them they have the crash of bands; the skirling of the pipes; the piercing notes of -trumpets; music and song, the clop-clop of cavalry horses’ hooves; the rumble of carriage wheels in the courtyard of Buckingham Palace'; the joyous pealing of bells; and the thunder of guns. And then there are the voices—the Queen’s, clear and unfaltering as she takes the Coronation oath; the firm tones of the Duke of Edinburgh as he pays homage; the sharp cries of “Vivat Regina” by the boys of Westminster School, exercising their ancient privilege; the mighty shout of “God Save the Queen” from the assembly in the Abbey; and towards the end the scream of aircraft engines of the jet age, which is also the new Elizabethan age. Most striking of all the sounds, heard in Coronation broadcasts, but fading in the memory, is the voice of the crowd—the thousands and thousands who packed the streets from Buckingham Palace to the Abbey. The mighty roar of cheering—“a tumult of welcome and love” as Christopher Fry calls it in his narrative for one film —breaks like a seventh wave whenever the Queen is passing by. So exciting is the sound that the streets of London and her people seem very close in the theatre instead of far away. Only colour can .convey adequately the beauty and splendour of the Coronation scene. The colour in the two processes used for “A Queen is Crowned” and “Elizabeth is Queen’ is superb, and in some scenes has a depth and richness of Flemish paintings. In others the colour camera captures the soft green of the English countryside, the grey of city buildings, and the shimmer of rain on the streets. There are rich or bold colours everywhere in the two films. In Westminster Abbey can be seen the banners of chivalry hanging high on the walls, the scarlet and gold of uni? forms or livery, the crimson velvet of robes, and the sober black and white of evening dress. Even the ancient and modern lighting has colour for the camera—the soft, yellow glow of

candles, and the harsh brightness of electric light. Outside along the route of the Coronation procession are flags and banners; the gold of the State coach and the exquisite colouring of its panels by Cipriani; the glitter of helmets, breastplates, and bayonets; and the uniforms—dark blue, smoke blue, scarlet, and khaki. Solemn Moments All the scenes so well described on the day of the Coronation come vividly to life on the screen. There are the solemn and moving moments in the Abbey; the anointing and the crowning; the paying of homage; and ,the stately progress of the Queen and her attendants. Then there is the triumphal drive back to Buckingham Palace and the magnificent parade of thousands of men and women, many come from afar, to do honour to their Queen. Along the wet streets pass troops from the Dominions and the colonies—the scarlet-coated police of Canada, pipers from Pakistani and Ghurka regiments marching with those from Scottish and Irish regiments, Royal Marines, Fijians, and constabulary from New Guinea and Papua. And finally thousands of people surge forward to the gates of the Palace to cheer the Queen and members of her family as they stand happily on the famous balcony. Not all the moments in “A Queen is Crowned” and “Elizabeth is Queen” are solemn or exciting. Some are most human. Prince Charles stands in the Royal gallery in Westminster Abbey, chin on hands, absorbed in the ceremony. Then on the balcony at the Palace he reaches out an inquiring ' hand towards one of his mother’s bracelets. Princess Anne almost tumbles down as she tries to see the , crowd and is helped back by her . father. And earlier in one film there is a touching scene when one of Lon- ’ don’s, fiercely loyal Cockney pearly i kings drives off to the Coronation in . his donkey cart with a picture of the ' Queen at the back.

Both films record the Coronation scenes, but approach their subject in different ways. Christopher Fry begins his narrative for “A Queen is Crowned” with John of Gaunt’s speech, beautifully spoken by Sir Laurence Olivier. As he speaks of “this realm, this England,” the camera moves over green fields, and the cottages and castles of England, then to Edinburgh, and Carnarvon Castle in Wales. The proclamation of the Coronation follows, and the great day begins.

For “Elizabeth is Queen” the poet and novelist, John Pudney, has written a narrative partly in verse, which is spoken by Leo Genn. The film begins with the pictorial memories of Marcus Adams, the Royal photographer, and passes by way of Windsor Castle and the Royal Academy—where portraits of the Queen’s predecessors are shown—to barracks in London and the Royal mews where the Queen’s Company of the Grenadier Guards, men of the Household Cavalry, State trumpeters, and the Queen’s coachman, are preparing for what follows. Both films end on the same note as aircraft fly past Buckingham Palace. Their narrators wish long life to the Queen. Few who see the films will not be stirred by them, and many will echo the loyal wishes of their makers.