The Man in the White Suit (1951) - film review

Since graduating from Cambridge, Sidney Stratton has become obsessed with his idea of inventing an indestructible fibre, one which will revolutionise the clothes manufacturing industry.  Unable to find a backer for his research, he resorts to carrying out experiments in secret in the laboratories of textile mills where he poses as a menial worker.  The hard-nosed mill owner Birnley knows an opportunity when he sees one and, impressed with Stratton’s theories, and the potentially lucrative returns these offer, he gives the inventor his full support.  Eventually, Stratton succeeds – he produces a fabric which can neither wear out nor get dirty.  Not everyone shares his enthusiasm, however.  Both the magnates of the textile industry and the mill’s employees realise the implications of Statton’s discovery.  To protect their own interests, they join forces to stop him...

The Man in the White Suit is one of a series of memorable classic film comedies from Ealing Studios, the British film production company that brought us such cinematic jewels as Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) and The Ladykillers (1955).  The film succeeds both as an enjoyable knockabout farce and as a wonderfully effective satire on the conflict between scientific endeavour and the interests of big business (which still has great relevance today).  

Alec Guinness turns in another impeccable performance, portraying the naïve inventor Stratton with great charm and poignancy, demonstrating the extraordinary range of his acting skill.   By this stage, Guinness had achieved celebrity as a result of his appearances in David Lean’s Oliver Twist (1948) and Kind Hearts and Coronets.  His co-stars in this film include the mesmerising Joan Greenwood (the actress with a voice that has the luxurious texture of crushed velvet), Cecil Parker – who is perfect as the harassed mill owner – and Ernest Thesiger, whose impressive film credits include James Whale’s Bride of Frankenstein (1935), relishing his part as a decrepit godfather-like figure.  It is this ensemble of scintillating talent, served by an excellent screenplay, which makes The Man in the White Suit such a hugely enjoyable film.

© James Travers 2008

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