The Four Feathers (1939 film)

The Four Feathers
original 1939 movie poster
Directed byZoltan Korda
Written byR. C. Sherriff
Lajos Bíró
Arthur Wimperis
Based onThe Four Feathers
1902 novel
by A.E.W. Mason
Produced byAlexander Korda
StarringJohn Clements
June Duprez
Ralph Richardson
CinematographyGeorges Perinal
Edited byHenry Cornelius
Music byMiklós Rózsa
Color processTechnicolor
Production
company
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release dates
  • 20 April 1939 (1939-04-20) (UK)
  • 4 August 1939 (1939-08-04) (U.S.)
Running time
130 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget£216,275[1] or $1 million[2] or $300,000[3]
£225,000 (UK)[4]
Box office$1 million (rentals US)[3]

The Four Feathers is a 1939 British Technicolor adventure film directed by Zoltan Korda, starring John Clements, Ralph Richardson, June Duprez, and C. Aubrey Smith. Set during the reign of Queen Victoria, it tells the story of a man accused of cowardice and his efforts to redeem his name. It is widely regarded as the best of the numerous film adaptations of the 1902 novel of the same name by A.E.W. Mason.

  1. ^ Chapman, Llewella. "'The highest salary ever paid to a human being': Creating a Database of Film Costs from the Bank of England". Journal of British cinema and television, 2022-10. Vol. 19, no. 4. Edinburgh University Press. p. 470-494 at 487.
  2. ^ "War Scar Palaver". Variety. 28 September 1938. p. 63.
  3. ^ a b "Steur, for Goldwyn, denies any action because of UA bonus split". Variety. 27 September 1939. p. 4. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  4. ^ James Chapman ‘The Billings verdict’: Kine Weekly and the British Box Office, 1936–62' Journal of British Cinema and Television, Volume 20 Issue 2, Page 200-238, p 205