The Young Mr. Pitt

Director: Carol Reed Carol Reed

Overview

Released worldwide by 20th Century Fox, Carol Reed's The Young Mr. Pitt is a static but sincere filmed biography of 19th century British prime minister William Pitt Jr., here played by Robert Donat. Appointed to his office at the tender age of 24, Mr. Pitt spends most of his time in Parliament alerting his countrymen of the dangers posed by France's Emperor Napoleon (Herbert Lom, in his first English-speaking role). The Frank Launder-Sidney Gilliat screenplay works overtime drawing parallels between the Pitt-Napoleon conflict and the present crisis involving Great Britain and Nazi Germany. Various historical personages are impersonated by the likes of Phyllis Calvert, John Mills, and Robert Morley, with Morley stealing the show hands down. Like its thematic "twin" Penn of Pennsylvania, Young Mr. Pitt is lavishly produced, but suffers from pedantic speechifying and substandard special effects.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/04/2014
UPC:	0024543991076
Original Release:	1942
Rating:	NR
Source:	ALLIED VAUGHN
Language:	English
Time:	1:42:00
Sales rank:	41,439

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Robert Donat	William Pitt, Earl of Chatham
Robert Morley	Charles James Fox
Phyllis Calvert	Eleanor Eden
John Mills	William Wilberforce
Raymond Lovell	George III
Max Adrian	Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Felix Aylmer	Lord North
Albert Lieven	Talleyrand
Stephen Haggard	Lord Horatio Nelson
Geoffrey Atkins	Pitt as a Child
Jean Cadell	Mrs. Sparry
Agnes Laughlan	Queen Charlotte
A. Bromley Davenport	Sir Evan Nepean
Frank Pettingell	Coachman
Leslie Bradley	Gentleman Jackson,Gentleman Jackson
Roy Emerton	Dan Mendoza
Hugh McDermott	Mr. Melvill
Herbert Lom	Napoleon
Ian MacLean	Henry Dundas
John Salew	Smith
Stuart Lindsell	Earl Spencer
Henry Hewitt	Henry Addington
Frederick Culley	Sir William Farquhar
Alfred Sangster	Lord Grenville
Austin Trevor	French Registrar
Kathleen Byron	Millicent Grey
Jack Watling	Atkinson
Ronald Shiner	Man in Stocks
John Slater	Minor Role
Leslie Dwyer	Servant at Lord Auckland's
Hugh Ardele	Naval Officer
Frederick Leister	Lord Auckland
Esma Cannon	Servant at Lord Auckland's
Merle Tottenham	Maid at Lord Auckland's
Aubrey Mallalieu	Somerset
Margaret Vyner	Duchess of Devonshire
Leo Genn	Danton
James Harcourt	Bellamy,Actor
Muriel George	Mrs. Carr
Dalla Black	Actor
Louis Diswarte	Actor
Kynaston Reeves	Minor Role
Johnnie Schofield	Minor Role
Ann Stephens	Minor Role
Bruce Winston	Actor
Owen Reynolds	Actor
Billy Holland	Actor
Gerald Cooper	Actor
Ralph Roberts	Actor,Actor,Actor
Edgar Vosper	Actor
Edmund Willard	Actor
Alf Goddard	Actor
Frederick Valk	Actor
Esme Percy	Actor
Gibb McLaughlin	Actor
D.J. Williams	Actor
Morland Graham	Actor
Lloyd Pearson	Actor
W.E. Holloway	Actor
Charles Paton	Actor
Neal Arden	Actor
Gordon James	minor role
Stanley Escane	Actor
James Kenney	Actor
Sydney Tafler	Actor
Townsend Whitling	Actor

Technical Credits

Frank Launder

Sidney Gilliat

Edward Black	Producer
Carol Reed	Director
Frank Launder	Screenwriter
Sidney Gilliat	Screenwriter
Maurice Ostrer	Producer
B.C. Sewell	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

More effective in 1942, when its propagandistic tone was more readily received by audiences living through a terrible war, The Young Mr. Pitt is moderately entertaining today. The chief flaw with Pitt is that its creators have taken the complex politics of its period and reduced them to an us-vs.-them, good-vs.-evil situation. This not only does a disservice to history -- it makes for stilted and artificial drama. This political/dramatic simplification might have mattered less had the filmmakers offered a compelling, incisive study of the title character and important members of the cast, but everything is kept essentially superficial. Indeed, were it not for the superlative efforts of the sterling cast -- led by an impeccable Robert Donat and with an unstoppable performance from Robert Morley -- Pitt would be very slow going indeed. Still, director Carol Reed demonstrates his flair for working with actors, and he certainly knows how to imbue small moments -- the sipping of a glass of wine, for example -- to convey larger meanings. And he has made a sumptuously appointed film, with gorgeous yet not overwhelming Cecil Beaton costumes and similarly stunning Alexander Vetchinsky settings. If The Young Mr. Pitt is less than perfect, it's still worth a viewing.

All Movie Guide - Craig Butler