Films, Talks & Events
The Creative Worlds of Powell and Pressburger
12 September — 9 October 2024
still A Matter of Life and Death (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1946)
The retrospective comprises fifteen films, including seldom-seen early and late works by Michael Powell. An homage to an influential European filmmaking duo who continue to inspire contemporary makers today.
Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger enjoyed huge success with films such as The Red Shoes (1948), Black Narcissus (1947) and A Matter of Life and Death (1946). Eye presents the first-ever extensive retrospective of Powell & Pressburger’s work in the Netherlands.
still I Know Where I’m Going! (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1945)
still The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Michael Powell, GB 1942) (© ITV Studios / Park Circus)
Brit Michael Powell (1905-1990) and Hungarian-Jewish émigré Emeric Pressburger (1902-1988) met in the late 1930s. In 1942 they founded The Archers, the production company that would bring them fame through classic films such as The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943), The Red Shoes (1948), and Black Narcissus (1947).
‘Written, Produced and Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’ not only became a quality hallmark, but also a reflection of European film history. From 1942 to 1956 Powell & Pressburger wrote, directed and produced seventeen films which, with their opulent art direction, extravagant use of colour (Technicolor) and spirituality at times tending towards mysticism, were diametrically opposed to the realism predominant in British (postwar) cinema.
still The Tales of Hoffmann (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1951)
still A Canterbury Tale (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1944) (© ITV Global Entertainment / Park Circus)
Powell had a preference for allegorical fairy and folk tales, often with a melodramatic setting; Pressburger had worked at the UFA studios in Berlin and was seen as an inventive screenwriter with a love of fantastic storylines and imaginative plot twists. Not only has Martin Scorsese – the first to advocate restoration of their work – acknowledged his indebtedness to them, but the work of Powell & Pressburger has also influenced filmmakers including Derek Jarman, Joanna Hogg and Wes Anderson.
“Grand, poetic, wise, adventurous, headstrong, enraptured by beauty, deeply romantic, and completely uncompromising.”
Martin Scorsese
still The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Michael Powell, GB 1942) (© ITV Studios / Park Circus)
still Black Narcissus (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1947) (© ITV Studios / Park Circus)
Films, Talks & Events
Eye is screening a selection of the works of Powell & Pressburger, alongside early and late films by Michael Powell. Exceptionally, the programme includes titles never before screened in the Netherlands: new restorations by the British Film Institute, including The Small Back Room, The Tales of Hoffmann and Bluebeard's Castle.
The screenings will be introduced by Powell & Pressburger experts and enthusiasts. A considerable number of the films will screen on 35mm, most of which come from the Eye collection.
This retrospective also includes a sidebar programme featuring films by directors influenced by Powell & Pressburger’s work.
still Peeping Tom (Michael Powell, GB 1960)
4K restoration of Peeping Tom
Special attention will also be devoted to Peeping Tom (1960), the film that led to Michael Powell’s fall from grace. His portrait of a troubled camera assistant was dismissed upon its release as ‘sick’ and ‘irresponsible’. Later, the film came to be recognised as an ingenious treatise on voyeurism and the power of the camera. Eye is releasing the 4K restoration in several cinemas throughout the country from 5 September.
still Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger (David Hinton, GB 2024)
Made in England
The same week also sees the release of the documentary Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger (David Hinton, 2023), in which Martin Scorsese investigates the collaboration between Powell en Pressburger, making use of an abundance of archival material.
This programme was realised in cooperation with the British Film Institute. With thanks to Robin Baker, Head of Cultural Partnerships BFI.
still The Small Back Room (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1949)
still I Know Where I’m Going! (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, GB 1945)
still The Red Shoes (Emeric Pressburger & Michael Powell, GB 1948) (© ITV Studios / Park Circus)
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