So Little Time (film)
Encyclopedia
So Little Time is a 1952
British World War II
romance drama, directed by Compton Bennett
and starring Marius Goring
and Maria Schell
. The film is based on the novel Je ne suis pas une héroïne by French author Noelle Henry. So Little Time is unusual for its time in portraying its German characters in a mainly sympathetic manner, while the Belgian Resistance characters are depicted in an aggressive, almost gangster-type light. So soon after the war, this was not a narrative viewpoint British audiences and critics expected in a British film and there was considerable protest about the film's content.
during World War II, the chateau where Nicole de Malvines (Schell) lives with her mother (Gabrielle Dorziat
) is partially requisitioned for use by German forces. Among those billeted there is Colonel Hohensee (Goring), a ruthlessly efficient officer. Having lost several male members of her family in the war, the proud and outspoken Nicole holds the Germans in contempt and has no hesitation in making her feelings clear.
Nicole and Hohensee discover a mutual love of music, particularly the piano. This gradually brings them together and despite their differences and the inherent danger of the situation to both, they fall in love; they begin travelling to Brussels to attend concerts and recitals, acutely aware of the need to be discreet and the risks involved in being seen socialising with one another. Matters become more complicated when members of the Belgian Resistance target Nicole to steal documentation from Hohensee to pass over to them, making clear that non-cooperation is not an option.
The couple realise that in one way or another the relationship is doomed, and are told by a sympathetic observer who has noticed their love to make the most of it while they can because there is "so little time". Inevitably they are betrayed and have to face being parted forever. Unable to reconcile himself to the situation, Hohensee shoots himself.
1952 in film
The year 1952 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* January 10 - Cecil B. DeMille's circus epic, The Greatest Show on Earth, premieres at Radio City Music Hall in New York City....
British World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
romance drama, directed by Compton Bennett
Compton Bennett
Herbert William "Bob" Compton Bennett , better known as Compton Bennett, was an English film director, writer and producer. He is perhaps best known for directing the 1945 film The Seventh Veil and the 1950 version of the film King Solomon's Mines, an adaptation of an Allan Quatermain...
and starring Marius Goring
Marius Goring
Marius Goring CBE was an English stage and cinema actor. He is most often remembered for the four films he did with Powell & Pressburger, particularly as Conductor 71 in A Matter of Life and Death and as Julian Craster in The Red Shoes...
and Maria Schell
Maria Schell
Maria Margarethe Anna Schell was an Austrian/Swiss actress, who won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival in 1956 for Gervaise....
. The film is based on the novel Je ne suis pas une héroïne by French author Noelle Henry. So Little Time is unusual for its time in portraying its German characters in a mainly sympathetic manner, while the Belgian Resistance characters are depicted in an aggressive, almost gangster-type light. So soon after the war, this was not a narrative viewpoint British audiences and critics expected in a British film and there was considerable protest about the film's content.
Plot
In occupied BelgiumBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
during World War II, the chateau where Nicole de Malvines (Schell) lives with her mother (Gabrielle Dorziat
Gabrielle Dorziat
Gabrielle Dorziat was a French stage and film actress. Dorziat was a fashion trend setter in Paris and helped popularize the designs of Coco Chanel. The Théâtre Gabrielle-Dorziat, a theater in Épernay, France is named for her.-Biography:...
) is partially requisitioned for use by German forces. Among those billeted there is Colonel Hohensee (Goring), a ruthlessly efficient officer. Having lost several male members of her family in the war, the proud and outspoken Nicole holds the Germans in contempt and has no hesitation in making her feelings clear.
Nicole and Hohensee discover a mutual love of music, particularly the piano. This gradually brings them together and despite their differences and the inherent danger of the situation to both, they fall in love; they begin travelling to Brussels to attend concerts and recitals, acutely aware of the need to be discreet and the risks involved in being seen socialising with one another. Matters become more complicated when members of the Belgian Resistance target Nicole to steal documentation from Hohensee to pass over to them, making clear that non-cooperation is not an option.
The couple realise that in one way or another the relationship is doomed, and are told by a sympathetic observer who has noticed their love to make the most of it while they can because there is "so little time". Inevitably they are betrayed and have to face being parted forever. Unable to reconcile himself to the situation, Hohensee shoots himself.
Cast
- Marius GoringMarius GoringMarius Goring CBE was an English stage and cinema actor. He is most often remembered for the four films he did with Powell & Pressburger, particularly as Conductor 71 in A Matter of Life and Death and as Julian Craster in The Red Shoes...
as Commander Hohensee - Maria SchellMaria SchellMaria Margarethe Anna Schell was an Austrian/Swiss actress, who won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival in 1956 for Gervaise....
as Nicole de Malvines - Lucie MannheimLucie MannheimLucie Mannheim was a German singer and actress.Mannheim was born in Berlin–Köpenick where she studied drama and quickly became a popular figure appearing on stage in plays and musicals. Among other roles, she played Nora in Ibsen's A Doll's House, Marie in Büchner's Woyzeck, and Juliet in...
as Lotte Schönberg - Gabrielle DorziatGabrielle DorziatGabrielle Dorziat was a French stage and film actress. Dorziat was a fashion trend setter in Paris and helped popularize the designs of Coco Chanel. The Théâtre Gabrielle-Dorziat, a theater in Épernay, France is named for her.-Biography:...
as Mme. de Malvines - Barbara MullenBarbara MullenBarbara Mullen was an American actress well known in the UK for playing the part of Janet the housekeeper in Dr Finlay's Casebook...
as Anna - John BaileyJohn Bailey (actor)John Bailey was a British actor with an extensive television repertoire.He played Edward Waterfield in the Doctor Who story The Evil of the Daleks in 1967, alongside Patrick Troughton and Marius Goring; and had previously appeared in the serial The Sensorites in 1964; and returned as Sezon in The...
as Phillipe de Malvines - David HurstDavid HurstDavid Hurst is a British-German actor.- Germany :Hurst grew up in a family of actors. His father was a member of the Austrian Theatre and appeared frequently at the Salzburg Festival, and was also a renowned director in the Deutsches Theater in Berlin...
as Baumann - Oscar QuitakOscar QuitakOscar Quitak is a British film and television actor.His television credits include: Z-Cars, Man in a Suitcase, Doomwatch, Ace of Wands, Colditz, The Changes, The New Avengers, Open All Hours, Kessler as Josef Mengele, Chessgame, Howards' Way, A Very British Coup, Yes, Prime Minister and...
as Gerard - Andrée MellyAndrée MellyAndrée Melly is an English actress.She appeared in many British films, including the 1954 comedy The Belles of St Trinian's and the 1960 Hammer Horror film The Brides of Dracula...
as Paulette - Stanley van Beers as Professor Perronet