ON APPROVAL

GB
1944
1hr 20mins
Dir: Clive Brook
Starring: Clive Brook and Beatrice Lillie

Two wealthy Victorian widows are courted tentatively by two impoverished British aristocrats

Based on a play of the same name by Frederick Lonsdale, the station scene in this witty comedy appears to be a studio set, but it is a very convincing one. The montage sequence that follows shows a train journey formed of a shot of rolling countryside, another of passing track, and a final driver’s eye view of what is believed to be the approach to Luton station. Quite why this obscure shot was used to depict a train journey is anyone’s guess. The film was a remake of one from 1930 which is not believed to have featured any trains.

The matted backdrop and the lights of the studio reflecting on the very shiny wooden carriage roof give this away as being little more than a set, but the small tank loco in steam in the right hand background is a really convincing addition.
This is thought to be the approach to Luton, on the Midland main line in Bedfordshire. The smokebox and funnel of the locomotive from which this shot was taken are on the left, whilst the rolling track image with which this shot forms a part can also be made out beneath. Similar, but much clearer views like this appear in the thriller They Met in the Dark, which had been released the previous year (qv).