 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2012) |
| The Magic Box | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | John Boulting |
| Written by | Ray Allister and Eric Ambler |
| Produced by | Ronald Neame |
| Starring | Robert Donat Margaret Johnston Maria Schell Robert Beatty Margaret Rutherford |
| Cinematography | Jack Cardiff |
| Edited by | Richard Best |
| Music by | William Alwyn |
| Distributed by | British Lion Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 118 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | £220,000[1] or $700,000[2] |
| Box office | £82,398 (UK)[3] |
The Magic Box is a 1951 British Technicolor biographical drama film directed by John Boulting.[4] The film stars Robert Donat as William Friese-Greene, with numerous cameo appearances by performers such as Peter Ustinov and Laurence Olivier.[5] It was produced by Ronald Neame and distributed by British Lion Film Corporation.[4]
The film was a project of the Festival of Britain and adapted by Eric Ambler from the controversial biography by Ray Allister.[6]
This biographical drama gives an account of William Friese-Greene, who designed and patented one of the earliest working cinematic cameras.[7] Told in flashback, the film follows Friese-Greene's obsessional pursuit of recording the "moving image", to the neglect of his financial situation, and the problems this causes in his two marriages.[8]
- ^ Harper, Sue; Porter, Vincent (2003). British Cinema of The 1950s The Decline of Deference. Oxford University Press USA. p. 16.
- ^ "All British Industry Film for 51 Festival". Variety. July 1950.
- ^ Porter, Vincent (2000). "The Robert Clark Account". Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television. 20 (4): 495. doi:10.1080/713669742. S2CID 161670089.
- ^ a b "The Magic Box (1951)". Archived from the original on 9 March 2016.
- ^ Gifford, Denis (1 April 2016). British Film Catalogue: Two Volume Set – The Fiction Film/The Non-Fiction Film. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-74063-6.
- ^ "Magic Box, The (1951)". BFI Screenonline.
- ^ "BBC Two – The Magic Box". BBC.
- ^ "The Magic Box (1951) – John Boulting – Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related". AllMovie.