Passionate Encounters: The Cinema of David Lean

To mark David Lean's centenary this year, the David Lean Foundation has generously funded the BFI National Archive, working with Granada International and Studio Canal, to restore a number of Lean's films, all made in Britain in the 1940s and early 50s.

For critic David Thomson, the films of this period constitute Lean's greatest achievement: 'They are lively, stirring, and an inspiration – they make you want to go out and make movies, they are so in love with the screen's power.'

This UK-wide celebration of David Lean will centre around a special re-issue of The Passionate Friends, an absorbing love story and fascinating companion piece to Brief Encounter.

Presented by the BFI and Park Circus. The films have been restored by the BFI National Archive and Granada International, in association with Studio Canal, and with the generous support of The David Lean Foundation.

Films

Blithe Spirit
Rex Harrison and Margaret Rutherford shine in Noel Coward's delightful comedy of spirits.

Brief Encounter
One of the true masterpieces of British film history.

Great Expectations
Lean rigorously pared down Dickens' epic novel to create a masterful film.

In Which We Serve
Wartime adventure which propelled Lean into the first rank of British directors.

Madeleine
Nineteenth-century set melodrama about a wealthy woman accused of murdering her lover.

Oliver Twist
Visual virtuosity and avoidance of sentimentality characterise this masterful adaptation.

The Passionate Friends
Newly restored print of Lean's unfairly neglected 1940s classic.

This Happy Breed
Lean's first official credit as solo director, the most successful film of 1944.