Small Back Room, The: The Criterion Collection (DVD)

Synopsis

As the Germans drop explosive booby-traps on 1943 England, the embittered expert who'll have to disarm them fights a private battle with alcohol.

After the lavish Technicolor spectacle of The Red Shoes, British filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger retreated into the inward, shadowy recesses of this moody, crackling character study. Based on the acclaimed novel by Nigel Balchin, THE SMALL BLACK ROOM details the professional and personal travails of troubled, alcoholic research scientist and military bomb-disposal expert Sammy Rice (David Farrar), who, while struggling with a complex relationship with secretary girlfriend Susan (Kathleen Byron), is hired by the government to advise on a dangerous new German weapon.

Sammy, plagued by feelings of inferiority because of his lameness, labours to solve the problem of a new type of enemy bomb that is causing many casualties. After a close friend and colleague is killed attempting to dismantle one of the bombs, Sammy is force to face his demons, take his life in his hands and prove his worth - to the military and himself. Deftly mixing suspense and romance, The Small Back Room is an atmospheric, post–World War II gem.