The Way to the Stars (a.k.a. Johnny in the Clouds) (1945)

Directed by Anthony Asquith; produced by Anatole de Grunewald

This is the story of a Royal Air Force station in the Second World War. It begins with the arrival of Pilot Officer Peter Penrose (John Mills), whose mere 15 hours flying in Bristol Blenheims grates on his superior, Squadron Leader David Archdale (Michael Redgrave). Eventually, however, the two become fast friends, Penrose matures into an experienced airman, and casualties take their toll. American flyers arrive, and missions become complicated. As the war goes on, drama, courage, hope, love, life and death make their changes.

Despite an opening sequence in which the station is bombed, The Way to the Stars (a title inspired undoubtedly by the RAF motto ‘Per ardua ad astra’) is more a movie about people in war, than about war, or about the war. It’s about what battle does to people, the bad things, and the good things that men and women manage to create in its midst despite its horrors. It might have been a stage-play (though it wasn’t), but the direction keeps the movie seeming like a movie.

That direction is deftly handled by Asquith, who had already made his mark by this time, and would go on to make it even stronger. This is one of his numerous collaborations with playwright Terence Rattigan - who wrote the screenplay, based on a story he co-wrote - and producer de Grunewald, who was Rattigan’s partner in writing the script.

That script weaves together personal and professional matters, demonstrating that while there may be differences between the two, they are inextricably connected, more so in wartime than in any other setting. This is seen especially in Penrose’s affection for a local girl, Iris (Renee Asherson), and his reluctance to take the relationship far. Penrose, Archdale and, later, the American Johnny Hollis (Douglass Montgomery), largely represent the service side of the story, while Iris, Toddy (Rosamund John) and Palmer (Stanley Holloway) are the civilians.

An interesting feature of the story is that none of the flyers is safe, whether they are major characters or minor, portrayed by established actors or neophytes. Cleverly, a highly-billed actor’s character is written out as killed, early on in the film, creating tension with the audience, who thus cannot be sure who will survive. This stress is particularly keen in the climax, featuring a badly damaged aeroplane attempting a desperate landing.

With the direction, writing and production in good hands, it would have been disastrous to have poor acting. This is no danger with the cast. This includes, apart from those mentioned, Basil Radford as the squadron’s non-flying recording officer, Felix Aylmer, Joyce Carey and David Tomlinson. Trevor Howard receives an ‘introducing’ credit – though he appeared, uncredited in The Way Ahead (as noted in that movie’s review on this blog last November), as does a 16 year old Jean Simmons. Simmons, unusually, doesn’t act but sings – delightfully - as an entertainer at a dance. So far as I can tell, her own voice is heard; she used it again in her much bigger rôle in Guys and Dolls.

All here is handled well. Rattigan, who served in the RAF during the war, captures the spirit of an air force base expertly, and uses the contemporary slang sparingly; enough to give the idea but not enough to confuse. De Grunewald’s experience in movies probably contributed to adapting any stage-like qualities of the script to film. Asquith’s direction keeps the story running smoothly, and Mills can’t be beat in showing his character’s evolution.

The Way to the Stars is another example of the excellent films produced in Britain during and soon after the Second World War.