Nurse Edith Cavell

Plot

Many of the "preparedness" films of the years just prior to World War II sidestepped censorship by depicting past outrages of the Germans. Such a film was British producer Herbert Wilcox's Hollywood production Nurse Edith Cavell, in which Wilcox's future wife Anna Neagle portrayed the titular martyred Englishwoman. Ms. Neagle plays the legendary Ms. Cavell as a candidate for Canonization. Her selfless efforts to rescue refugee soldiers from World War I Belgium results in her being arrested on charges of espionage. Despite international pleas for clemency, the dastardly Deutschlanders sentence Edith to death. She faces the firing squad with a courageous serenity that makes Joan of Arc look like a hysterical schoolgirl. An earlier, silent version of Nurse Edith Cavell had caused turmoil in England due to its unadorned depiction of war's horrors. In 1939, however, audiences inundated by reports of Hitler's latest outrages were more receptive. Ironically, the film opened in the US a scant few days before war broke out in Europe. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Cast

• Anna Neagle - Nurse Edith Cavell
• Edna May Oliver - Countess de Mavon
• George Sanders - Capt. Heinrichs
• May Robson - Mme. Rappard
• H.B. Warner - Mr. Gibson

Sophie Stewart - Sister Watkins; Mary Howard - Nurse O'Brien; Robert Coote - Bungey; Martin Kosleck - Pierre; Lionel Royce - Gen. Von Ehrhardt; Jimmy Butler - Jean Rappard; Rex Downing - Francois Rappard; Henry Brandon - Lt. Schultz; Fritz Leiber - Sadi Kirschen; Gilbert Emery - Brad Whitlock; Lucien Prival - Lt. Schmidt; Richard Deane - Lt. Wilson; Bert Roach - George Moulin; Halliwell Hobbes - British Chaplain; Ernst Deutsch - Dr. Schroeder, Public Prosecutor; Egon Brecher - Dr. Gunther; Will Kaufman - Baron von Weser; Gustav von Seyffertitz - President of Trial Court; ZaSu Pitts - Mme. Moulin; Frank Reicher - Baron von Bissing; Henry Victor - Jaubec; Joseph DeStefani - Manager

Credit

L.P. Williams - Art Director, Herbert Wilcox - Director, Elmo Williams - Editor, Anthony Collins - Composer (Music Score), Anthony Collins - Musical Direction/Supervision, Joseph H. August - Cinematographer, Freddie Young - Cinematographer, Herbert Wilcox - Producer, Vernon Walker - Special Effects, Reginald Berkeley - Screen Story, Michael Hogan - Screenwriter

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