The films of Michael Powell and the Archers

Just two decades ago, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger seemed destined to be mere footnotes in film history. They were the Archers, one of cinema's most successful collaborative teams, producing sixteen films in a fifteen-year span. Although many of the films were commercially successful and the Archers were acknowledged master technicians of the cinema, critics frequently faulted their films for being too out-of-the-ordinary.

The Archer brand of idealism was out of step with British filmmaking trends that favored the literary tradition and documentary approaches. For a time ignored, Powell eventually became the grand old man of the English cinema, praised by Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola.

Salwolke focuses on Powell since so much less is known about Pressburger. But he emphasizes that Powell's greatest achievements in film were the fruits of their collaboration. The Films of Michael Powell and the Archers offers insight into an important part of the development of cinema and ensures that these filmmakers are features rather than footnotes of history. Includes a bibliography and a filmography.