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5.5/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 5.5/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. The Flag Lieutenant remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you like movies that feel like they were filmed inside a theater box, sure. If you’re looking for something that moves at more than a glacial pace, stay far away.
This is for the completists of early British talkies. Everyone else will probably be bored out of their mind by the second act. ⚓
The whole thing feels so earnest. It’s almost painful.
There’s a scene about halfway through where the dialogue just stops breathing. It’s like the actors are waiting for a cue that never comes. They just stare at each other, waiting for the other person to deliver the next bit of plot.
Henry Edwards is trying so hard to be the quintessential officer. It works, I guess? But it’s a very dry kind of charisma. You can almost see the director shouting 'stand up straighter' from behind the camera.
Anna Neagle pops up, and it’s like someone finally turned the lights on. She’s the only one who seems to know she’s in a movie and not a lecture. It’s a bit jarring, honestly.
It reminds me a bit of the stuffy atmosphere in East Side, West Side, but with way more saluting. No grit. Just polish.
There’s this weird moment near the end where the tension is supposed to be high. But the camera lingers on a map for like, ten seconds too long. It’s not atmospheric. It’s just confusing. I started checking my own watch.
Don't look for deep meaning here. It’s not Vampyr, that's for sure. It’s not trying to be weird or artistic. It’s just trying to be... proper.
Sometimes I wonder why we keep these films around. Then I see a flicker of real life in Neagle’s eyes and I get it. It’s a time capsule. Just a very dusty, very quiet one.
Also, the sound quality is exactly what you expect. A bit crackly. Like listening to a ghost tell a story about a boat. 📻