Search - Went the Day Well? on DVD

During WWII, the villagers of Bromley End do what they must

C. O. DeRiemer | San Antonio, Texas, USA | 10/25/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Went the Day Well? is one of the British war movies made during WWII that were meant to strengthen morale and inspire steadfastness. The little English village of Bromley End welcomes a large number of Royal Engineers who are to work on a secret project. However, the Royal Engineers in reality are English-speaking German soldiers in British uniforms, parachuted into England to set up a counter radar apparatus which will disrupt England's radar network.

Gradually the villagers begin to suspect things aren't right, and then realize what they're dealing with. The Germans cordon off the village and show their true, ruthless nature. The villagers need to break through the cordon to alert authorities and get help. They also decide they must take action themselves to stop the Germans. This is complicated because the village houses a traitor. The climax is the Battle of Bromley End, with British Home Guard troops arriving while the Germans, attacking the manor house where they must set up their equipment, are held off by the brave men and women of the village.

If you're fond of older Brit movies you'll recognize some fine actors: Leslie Banks, David Farrar, Thora Hird, Basil Sydney, Mervyn Johns. The film is a well-constructed and effective bit of wartime home-front propaganda."

Brutality and everyday people

Enderby scout | Stanford, CA | 08/25/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Went the Day Well?" is incredibly suspenseful, historically fascinating, and surprisingly harsh. It is a no-nonsense film made for a wartime populace. While it incidentally packs in a lot of propaganda advice (how to spot suspicious activity, what to do in a military emergency, the importance of "doing your bit" for the country), the major drive of "Went the Day Well?" is to psychologically adapt a everyday people to wartime violence. This means that terrible things happen to kind and lovable people, and--what is perhaps more upsetting--that kind and lovable characters kill people brutally. It is a kind of cinema violence which I don't think that current cinema prepares us (the one contemporary film it reminds me of is "A History of Violence," in that both films take violence seriously). It probably owes a great deal of its touch to Graham Greene.

I'm surprised that one reviewer found the Germans portrayed sympathetically. I would say the film's single identifiable flaw is that all of the Germans are shown to be heartless pigs. It is always a shame when even propaganda that is "in the right" can't allow the fact that most people, even enemies, are fairly decent and civilized on a person-to-person level (the great message of Vonnegut's Mother Night).

"Went the Day Well?" is that really very rare thing, a genuinely troubling film. *And* it's exciting."

Went the Day Well?

Ivan K. Edelman | La Mesa, CA | 01/05/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Made in 1942, the film actually begins in the "future" after the end of the war. The narrator shows us a grave marker with the names of German soldiers engraved on it. The narrator proceeds to tell the story about how the village was invaded by Germans in 1942. The Germans were disguised as British Soldiers, but soon gave themselves away. The town found itself the prisoners of the Germans, and the film shows how the citizens coped with the situation. Even though we know what the ultimate end of the story is, the film does an excellent job of making us doubt the final outcome."

You had better watch out...

Henrik of Scandinavia | Scandinavia | 10/12/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This story takes us to a part of England in the early stages of the Second World War where a small village suddenly receives a visit from the troops - that is an army on manoeuvres just around of the time last days of peace. It is summer, it is calm and all go about their own chores. As usual we meet the Reverend, the pub owner, the milkman and the local Dad's Army. The visiting troops turn out to be something quite other than expected and display manners very unEnglish and sometimes rather brutal... reminding us of the threat that lay present those last free days of a Free Europe.. This is certainly a film for those of us who where too young to have been there, to remind to not always take freedom for granted, nor the freedom of speech, still regardless of age this is a film for all of us. It is entertaining, with Classic English humour and just like any good English detective story you don't know the killer until the very end...or your Army, for that matter.."