The Sound Barrier / The Passionate Friends October 30, 2008

Thu, Oct 30, 2008 | 7:00PM
Film/Video Theater

See two of Lean’s lesser known works in freshly restored prints.

Starring Ralph Richardson and Ann Todd (Lean’s third of six wives), The Sound Barrier is a fictionalized account of a British aircraft magnate’s quest to push the limits of aviation technology at all costs. At the U.S. premiere, a bemused Chuck Yeager had to explain to some who took the film as gospel that the Americans (specifically, Yeager) broke the sound barrier. (116 mins., 35mm)

One of the least known of Lean’s films, The Passionate Friends offers a wonderful companion piece to Brief Encounter. Ann Todd stars as a woman whose comfortable life with a banker (Claude Rains) is shaken when her first love, played by Trevor Howard, reappears in her life. (91 mins., 35mm)

The Passionate Friends begins at 9:05 PM.

Official Website: http://www.wexarts.org/fv/index.php?eventid=3213