Charles Drazin"s acclaimed book, now available in paperback with a new Preface, is the fresh and brilliant chronicle for general readers and scholars alike of the British cinema"s seminal 1940s, when many bold and enduring classics of world cinema were made, including Brief Encounter, The Red Shoes and The Third Man. Drazin traces British cinema"s fortunes through the characters and aspirations of some of its leading personalities, including Carol Reed, David Lean, Michael Balcon and Humphrey Jennings. He also introduces readers to some lesser known, equally significant figures, like Robert Hamer, the maverick director of Kind Hearts and Coronets, and Filippo Del Giudice, flamboyant Italian genius.