View source for Michael Powell


{{other people}}

{{Infobox person
| name         = Michael Powell
| image        = MichaelPowell.jpg
| caption      =
| birth_name   = Michael Latham Powell
| birth_date   = {{birth date|1905|9|30|df=y}}
| birth_place  = [[Bekesbourne]], [[Kent]], England
| death_date   = {{death date and age|1990|2|19|1905|9|30|df=y}}
| death_place  = [[Avening]], [[Gloucestershire]], England
| occupation   = {{hlist|Film director|producer|screenwriter}}
| years_active = 1925–1983
| spouse       = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|Gloria Mary Rouger|1927|1927|reason=divorced}}
* {{marriage|Frankie Reidy|1943|1983|reason=died}}
* {{marriage|[[Thelma Schoonmaker]]<br/>|1984}}
}}
| partner      = [[Pamela Brown (actress)|Pamela Brown]]<br>(1962; died 1975)<ref name="Editor">{{cite news|last=Thorpe|first=Vanessa|title=Scorsese editor Thelma Schoonmaker plans Michael Powell tribute|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/feb/10/scorsese-editor-thelma-schoonmaker-plans-michael-powell-tribute|website=The Guardian|date=10 February 2019|access-date=22 April 2023}}</ref>
| children     = 2
}}

'''Michael Latham Powell''' (30 September 1905 – 19 February 1990) was an English filmmaker, celebrated for his partnership with [[Emeric Pressburger]]. Through their production company [[Powell and Pressburger|The Archers]], they together wrote, produced and directed a series of classic British films, notably ''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]'' (1943), ''[[A Canterbury Tale]]'' (1944), ''[[I Know Where I'm Going!]]'' (1945), [[A Matter of Life and Death (1946 film)|''A Matter of Life and Death'']] (1946, ''Stairway to Heaven'' in the U.S.), ''[[Black Narcissus]]'' (1947), [[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|''The Red Shoes'']] (1948) and ''[[The Tales of Hoffmann (film)|The Tales of Hoffmann]]'' (1951).

His controversial ''[[Peeping Tom (1960 film)|Peeping Tom]]'' (1960), which was so vilified on first release that it seriously damaged his career, is now considered a classic, and possibly the earliest "[[slasher movie]]".<ref name="Golden">{{cite news|title=The 30 Most Influential Slasher Movies of All Time|url=https://www.vulture.com/article/best-slasher-horror-movies.html#:~:text=Dubbed%20the%20Golden%20Age%20of,itself%20time%20and%20time%20again.|access-date=2 September 2023|work=Vulture|quote=The backlash for this British psychological horror film was so strong upon release that director Michael Powell never made another British film again.}}</ref><ref>Mark D. Eckel (2014). ''When the Lights Go Down''. p. 167. WestBow Press.</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Forshaw|first=Barry|title=British Crime Film: Subverting the Social Order|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ztKYxtiAsq8C&pg=PT56|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|date=20 September 2012|page=56|isbn=978-1-137-18497-9}}</ref><ref name="Crouse2003">{{cite book|last=Crouse|first=Richard|title=The 100 Best Movies You've Never Seen|url=https://archive.org/details/100bestmoviesyou0000crou|url-access=registration|publisher=ECW Press|date=26 August 2003|page=[https://archive.org/details/100bestmoviesyou0000crou/page/167 167]|isbn=978-1-55490-540-9}}</ref> Many renowned filmmakers, such as [[Francis Ford Coppola]], [[George A. Romero]], [[Brian De Palma]], [[Bertrand Tavernier]] and [[Martin Scorsese]] have cited Powell as an influence.<ref name="Crook"/>

In 1981, Powell and Pressburger received the [[BAFTA Fellowship]], the highest honour the [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] can bestow upon a filmmaker. Five of their films were featured on the [[British Film Institute]]'s list of [[BFI Top 100 British films|100 Greatest British films]].<ref name="BFI (1999)">[[BBC]]. 23 September 1999. [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/455170.stm ''Entertainment: Best 100 British films – full list.''] Accessed 30 January 2014.</ref> In 2024, their work was explored in the documentary ''Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger'', narrated by Scorsese.<ref>{{cite news|title=Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger review – Scorsese's guide to cinema greats|last=Bradshaw|first=Peter|work=The Guardian|date=21 February 2024|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/feb/21/made-in-england-the-films-of-powell-and-pressburger-review-martin-scorsese}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{Cite web|last=Bradshaw|first=Nick|title=Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/made-england-films-powell-pressburger-martin-scorsese-presents-loving-personal-tribute-filmmakers-legacy|access-date=2024-05-15|website=[[Sight and Sound]]|date=7 May 2024|language=en}}</ref> [[David Thomson (film critic)|David Thomson]] writes "There is not a British director with as many worthwhile films to his credit as Michael Powell."<ref name="Thomson">{{cite book|last=Thomson|first=David|title=[[The New Biographical Dictionary of Film]]|pages=775–776}}</ref>

==Early life==
Powell was the second son and youngest child of Thomas William Powell, a [[hops|hop farmer]], and Mabel, daughter of Frederick Corbett, of [[Worcester, England|Worcester]], England. Powell was born in [[Bekesbourne]], [[Kent]], and educated at [[The King's School, Canterbury]] and then at [[Dulwich College]]. He started work at the [[National Provincial Bank]] in 1922 but quickly realised he was not cut out to be a banker.

==Film career==
Powell entered the film industry in 1925 through working with director [[Rex Ingram (director)|Rex Ingram]] at the [[Victorine Studios]] in [[Nice]], France (the contact with Ingram was made through Powell's father, who owned a hotel in Nice). He first started out as a general studio hand, the proverbial "gofer": sweeping the floor, making coffee, fetching and carrying. Soon he progressed to other work such as stills photography, writing titles (for the silent films) and many other jobs including a few acting roles, usually as comic characters. Powell made his film début as a "comic English tourist" in ''[[The Magician (1926 film)|The Magician]]'' (1926).

Returning to England in 1928, Powell worked at a diverse series of jobs for various filmmakers including as a stills photographer on [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s silent film ''[[Champagne (1928 film)|Champagne]]'' (1928). He also signed on in a similar role on Hitchcock's first "[[talkie]]", ''[[Blackmail (1929 film)|Blackmail]]'' (1929). In his autobiography, Powell claims he suggested the ending in the [[British Museum]] which was the first of Hitchcock's "monumental" climaxes to his films.<ref name="ALIM">Powell 1986</ref> Powell and Hitchcock remained friends for the remainder of Hitchcock's life.{{#tag:ref|It was Hitchcock who suggested using Kim Hunter in ''A Matter of Life and Death''.|group=N}}

After scriptwriting on two productions, Powell entered into a partnership with American producer Jerry Jackson in 1931 to make "[[Cinematograph Films Act 1927|quota quickies]]", hour-long films needed to satisfy a legal requirement that British cinemas screen a certain quota of British films. During this period, he developed his directing skills, sometimes making up to seven films a year.<ref name="Powell Early Years">Duguid, Mark. [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/598751/index.html "Early Michael Powell."] ''Screenonline''. Retrieved: 28 September 2009.</ref>

Although he had taken on some directing responsibilities in other films, Powell had his first screen credit as a director on ''[[Two Crowded Hours]]'' (1931). This thriller was considered a modest success at the box office despite its limited budget.<ref name="Powell Early Years"/> From 1931 to 1936, Powell was the director of 23 films, including the critically received  ''[[Red Ensign (film)|Red Ensign]]'' (1934) and ''[[The Phantom Light]]'' (1935).<ref name="Powell Early Years"/>

In 1937 Powell completed his first truly personal project, ''[[The Edge of the World]]''. Powell gathered together a cast and crew who were willing to take part in an expedition to what was then a very isolated part of the UK. They had to stay there for quite a few months and finished up with a film which not only told the story he wanted but also captured the raw natural beauty of the location.

By 1939, Powell had been hired as a contract director by [[Alexander Korda]] on the strength of ''The Edge of the World''. Korda set him to work on some projects such as ''Burmese Silver'' that were subsequently cancelled.<ref name="ALIM" /> Nonetheless, Powell was brought in to save a film that was being made as a vehicle for two of Korda's star players, [[Conrad Veidt]] and [[Valerie Hobson]]. The film was ''[[The Spy in Black]]'', during pre-production of which Powell first met [[Emeric Pressburger]] in 1939.

===Meeting Emeric Pressburger===
[[File:P+P BluePlaque.jpg|thumb|upright|[[English Heritage]] [[blue plaque]] at [[Dorset House, Marylebone|Dorset House]] in [[Marylebone]], central London]]
The original script of ''The Spy in Black'' followed the book quite closely, but was too verbose and did not have a good role for either Veidt or Hobson. Korda called a meeting where he introduced a diminutive man, saying, "Well now, I have asked Emeric to read the script, and he has things to say to us."<ref name="ALIM" />

Powell then went on to record (in ''A Life in Movies'') how:
<blockquote>Emeric produced a very small piece of rolled-up paper, and addressed the meeting. I listened spellbound. Since talkies took over the movies, I had worked with some good writers, but I had never met anything like this. In the silent days, the top [American] screenwriters were technicians rather than dramatists ... the European cinema remained highly literate and each country, conscious of its separate culture and literature, strove to outdo the other. All this was changed by the talkies. America, with its enormous wealth and enthusiasm and its technical resources, waved the big stick. ... The European film no longer existed. ... Only the great German film business was prepared to fight the American monopoly, and Dr. Goebbels soon put a stop to that in 1933. But the day that Emeric walked out of his flat, leaving the key in the door to save the storm-troopers the trouble of breaking it down, was the worst day's work that the clever doctor ever did for his country's reputation, as he was soon to find out. As I said, I listened spellbound to this small Hungarian wizard, as Emeric unfolded his notes, until they were at least six inches long. He had stood Storer Clouston's plot on its head and completely restructured the film.<ref name="ALIM" /></blockquote>

They both soon recognised that although they were total opposites in background and personality, they had a common attitude to film-making and that they could work very well together. After making two more films together, ''[[Contraband (1940 film)|Contraband]]'' (1940) and ''[[49th Parallel (film)|49th Parallel]]'' (1941), with separate credits, the pair decided to form a partnership and to sign their films jointly as "Written, Produced and Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger."<ref name="ALIM" />

===The Archers===
Working together as co-producers, writers and directors in a partnership they dubbed "[[Powell and Pressburger|The Archers]]", they made 19 feature films, many of which received critical and commercial success. Their best films are still regarded as classics of 20th-century British cinema. The [[BFI Top 100 British films|BFI 100]] list of "the favourite British films of the 20th century" contains five of Powell's films, four with Pressburger.<ref>[http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/bfi100/ "Features: The BFI 100."] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080701090244/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/bfi100/ |date=1 July 2008}}, BFI, 19 February 2008. Retrieved: 28 September 2009.</ref> Thomson writes that Powell and Pressburger "struggle with great, clashing virtues—with marvelous visual imagination and uneasy, intellectual substance. [[I Know Where I'm Going!|''I Know Where I'm Going'']] is a genuinely superstitious picture; [[49th Parallel (film)|''49th Parallel'']] is a strange war odyssey, with escaping Germans wandering across Canada—naïve, very violent, at times unwittingly comic, but possessed by a primitive feeling for endangered civilization; an interesting sequel is ''[[One of Our Aircraft is Missing]]''—English fliers getting out of Holland; [[A Matter of Life and Death (1946 film)|''A Matter of Life and Death'']] is pretentious in its way, yet very funny and absolutely secure in its dainty stepping from one world to another ... [[The Thief of Bagdad (1940 film)|''The Thief of Bagdad'']] is delightful, ''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]'' a beautiful salute to Englishness ... ''[[Black Narcissus]]'' is that rare thing, an erotic English film about the fantasies of nuns."<ref name="Thomson"/> The partnership ended after ''Ill Met By Moonlight''.<ref name="seven">{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-british-film-studios-rank-organisation-films-1957/|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|access-date=14 June 2025|date=14 June 2025|title=Forgotten British Film Studios: Rank Organisation Films – 1957}}</ref>

Although admirers would argue that Powell ought to rank alongside fellow British directors [[Alfred Hitchcock]] and [[David Lean]], his career suffered a severe reversal after the release of the controversial psychological [[thriller film]] ''[[Peeping Tom (1960 film)|Peeping Tom]]'', made in 1960 as a solo effort.<ref name=FT.com/> The film was excoriated by mainstream British critics, who were offended by its sexual and violent images.<ref name="Golden"/> The film did, however, meet with the rapturous approval of the young critics of ''[[Positif (magazine)|Positif]]'' and ''[[Midi Minuit Fantastique]]'' in France, and those of ''Motion'' in England, and in 1965 he was subject of a major positive revaluation by [[Raymond Durgnat]] in the auteurist magazine ''Movie'', later included in Durgnat's influential book ''A Mirror for England''.

Powell made two films in Australia, ''They're a Weird Mob'' and ''Age of Consent''.<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|magazine=Filmink|date=11 August 2025|access-date=11 August 2025|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-british-film-studios-the-rank-organisation-1965-to-1967/|title=Forgotten British Film Studios: The Rank Organisation, 1965 to 1967}}</ref><ref name="age">{{cite magazine|date=1 December 2025|access-date=1 December 2025|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-australian-films-age-of-consent|title=Forgotten Australian Films: Age of Consent|magazine=Filmink}}</ref>

===Zoetrope Studios===
In 1982, [[Francis Ford Coppola]] invited Powell to be 'senior director in residence' at his [[Zoetrope Studios]].<!-- https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-02-22-ca-4899-story.html https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/154725%7C111805/Michael-Powell https://powell-pressburger.org/Reviews/Micky/CinemaPapers.html https://theartsdesk.com/film/michael-powell-interview-i-had-no-idea-critics-were-so-innocent https://powell-pressburger.org/Reviews/MichaelPowell.html   --><!-- 6311 Romaine St. Los Angeles, CA ( @13:12 - Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger) --> There, Powell "pottered around", including starting to write his autobiography.<!-- https://www.indiewire.com/features/interviews/martin-scorsese-red-shoes-director-michael-powell-career-1235023862/ --> Powell's films came to have a cult reputation, broadened during the 1970s and early 1980s by a series of retrospectives and rediscoveries, as well as further articles and books. By the time of his death, he and Pressburger were recognised as one of the foremost film partnerships of all time – and cited as a key influence by many noted filmmakers such as [[Martin Scorsese]]<!-- https://www.indiewire.com/features/interviews/martin-scorsese-red-shoes-director-michael-powell-career-1235023862/ --> and [[Brian De Palma]].<ref name=FT.com/><!-- he'd go on to make two films in Australia -->

==Personal life==
[[File:8 Melbury Road 06.jpg|thumb|upright|[[8 Melbury Road]] plaque in [[Holland Park]], [[Kensington]], central London]]
In 1927 Powell married Gloria Mary Rouger, an American dancer; they were married in France and stayed together for only three weeks. During the 1940s, Powell had love affairs with actresses [[Deborah Kerr]] and [[Kathleen Byron]].<ref name="ALIM" /> From 1 July 1943 until her death on 5 July 1983, Powell was married to Frances "Frankie" May Reidy, the daughter of medical practitioner Jerome Reidy; they had two sons: Kevin Michael Powell (b. 1945) and Columba Jerome Reidy Powell (b. 1951). He also lived with actress [[Pamela Brown (actress)|Pamela Brown]] for many years until her death from cancer in 1975.

Powell was introduced to [[Film editing|film editor]] [[Thelma Schoonmaker]] by [[Martin Scorsese]] and London-based film producer Frixos Constantine.<ref name=FT.com/> The couple were married from 19 May 1984 until his own death from cancer on 19 February 1990 at his home in [[Avening]], [[Gloucestershire]].<ref name=FT.com>{{cite news|last=Robson|first=Leo|title=Thelma Schoonmaker: the queen of the cutting room|url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/b718ca00-d4b5-11e3-bf4e-00144feabdc0.html#axzz31OYhFdMg|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210221240/https://www.ft.com/content/b718ca00-d4b5-11e3-bf4e-00144feabdc0#axzz31OYhFdMg|archive-date=10 December 2022|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|access-date=10 May 2014|newspaper=FT Magazine|date=9 May 2014}}</ref> The couple had no children.<ref name="TimeOut">Chris Tilly, [https://www.timeout.com/film/news/659.html "Thelma Schoonmaker Q&A"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060107231905/http://www.timeout.com/film/news/659.html |date=7 January 2006 }}, TimeOut.com, 26 September 2005.</ref>

His niece was the Australian actress [[Cornelia Frances]], who appeared in bit parts in her uncle's early films.

==Preservation==
The [[Academy Film Archive]] has preserved ''A Matter of Life and Death'' and ''The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp'' by Michael Powell and [[Emeric Pressburger]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Preserved Projects|url=http://www.oscars.org/academy-film-archive/preserved-projects?title=&filmmaker=michael+powell&category=All&collection=All|website=Academy Film Archive}}</ref>

==Awards, nominations and honours==
* 1943: [[Academy Award|Oscar]] nominated for ''[[49th Parallel (film)|49th Parallel]]'' as Best Picture
* 1943: [[Academy Award|Oscar]] nominated for ''[[One of Our Aircraft Is Missing]]'' for Best Writing, Original Screenplay. Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]]
* 1948: Won Danish [[Bodil Award]] for ''[[A Matter of Life and Death (1946 film)|A Matter of Life and Death]]'' as Best European Film. Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]]
* 1948 Nominated for ''[[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|The Red Shoes]]'' for [[Venice Film Festival]] Golden Lion.  Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]]
* 1949: [[Academy Award|Oscar]] nominated for ''[[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|The Red Shoes]]'' as Best Picture. Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]]
* 1951: [[1951 Cannes Film Festival|Cannes Film Festival]] nominated for ''[[The Tales of Hoffmann (film)|The Tales of Hoffmann]]'' for Grand Prize of the Festival. Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]]
* 1951: Won [[Silver Bear]] from [[1st Berlin International Film Festival]] for ''[[The Tales of Hoffmann (film)|The Tales of Hoffmann]]'' as Best Musical. Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]]<ref name="Berlinale 1951">[http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1951/03_preistr_ger_1951/03_Preistraeger_1951.html "1st Berlin International Film Festival: Prize Winners."] ''berlinale.de''. Retrieved: 21 December 2009.</ref>
* 1957: [[BAFTA Award]] nominated for ''[[The Battle of the River Plate (film)|The Battle of the River Plate]]'' as Best British Screenplay. Shared with [[Emeric Pressburger]].
* 1959: [[1959 Cannes Film Festival|Cannes Film Festival]] won the [[Vulcan Award|Technical Grand Prize]] for ''[[Honeymoon (1959 film)|Luna de Miel]]''. Nominated for Golden Palm. 
* 1978: Awarded [[Doctor of Letters|Hon DLitt]], [[University of East Anglia]]
* 1978: Awarded [[Doctor of Letters|Hon DLitt]], [[University of Kent]]
* 1981: Made fellow of [[British Academy of Film and Television Arts|BAFTA]]
* 1982: Awarded Career Gold Lion from the [[Venice Film Festival]]
* 1983: Made fellow of the [[British Film Institute]] (BFI)
* 1987: Awarded Hon Doctorate, [[Royal College of Art]]
* 1987: Awarded Akira Kurosawa Award from [[San Francisco International Film Festival]]
* 2014: An [[English Heritage]] [[Blue plaque]] to commemorate Michael Powell and [[Emeric Pressburger]] was unveiled on 17 February 2014 by [[Martin Scorsese]] and [[Thelma Schoonmaker]] at [[Dorset House, Marylebone|Dorset House]], [[Gloucester Place]], London NW1 5AG where The Archers had their offices from 1942 to 1947.

==Legacy==
David Thomson writes: <blockquote>I was fortunate enough to know Michael Powell in the last decade of his life. he was in America a good deal at that time: teaching for a term at [[Dartmouth College|Dartmouth]]; as director emeritus with [[Francis Ford Coppola|Coppola]]'s [[American Zoetrope]], as treasured [[Merlin]] in the court of [[Martin Scorsese|Scorsese]]; and in his marriage to the editor, [[Thelma Schoonmaker]]. I had the chance to watch many of his films with him, discussing them and learning the passion of his vision. It is all the more agreeable now to see Michael's influence spreading: the ardent antirealist has inspired so many people; the man in love with color, gesture, and cinema helped to educate viewers as well as filmmakers—not lest in the two volumes of his autobiography, ''A Life in Movies'' ... The great Powell and Pressburger films do not go stale; they never relinquish their wicked fun or that jaunty air of being poised on the brink. To put an arrow in our eye—to leave a nurturing wound—that was Michael's eternal thrill. I do not invoke the figure of Merlin lightly: Powell was English but Celtic, sublime yet devious, magical in the absolute certainty that imagination rules.<ref name="Thomson"/></blockquote>
* Cited as a major influence on many film-makers such as [[Martin Scorsese]], [[Francis Ford Coppola]], [[George A. Romero]] and [[Bertrand Tavernier]].<ref name="Crook">Crook, Steve. [http://www.powell-pressburger.org/Famous.html "Famous Fans of Powell & Pressburger."]  ''Powell-pressburger.org''. Retrieved: 28 September 2009.</ref> Said [[Thelma Schoonmaker]] (Scorsese's long-time film editor and Powell's third wife) of Scorsese, "Anyone he meets, or the actors he works with, he immediately starts bombarding with Powell and Pressburger movies."<ref>Rose, Steve. [https://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/may/14/scorsese-michael-powell-red-shoes "Scorsese: my friendship with Michael Powell."] ''guardian.co.uk,'' 14 May 2009. Retrieved: 1 September 2010.</ref> Scorsese and Schoonmaker are working on restoring Powell's films, beginning with ''[[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|The Red Shoes]]'' and ''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]''.<ref name=FT.com/>
* The '''Michael Powell Award''' for the Best New British Feature was instigated in 1993 at the [[Edinburgh International Film Festival]] (awarded 1993–2010 and 2012–2021). It was sponsored by the [[UK Film Council]] and was "named in homage to one of Britain's most original filmmakers".<ref>[http://www.edfilmfest.org.uk/awards "Awards History."] ''edfilmfest.org.uk''. Retrieved: 7 December 2017.</ref>
* [[Pinewood Studios]], where Powell made many of his most notable films, has named a mixing theatre in the [[post-production]] department after him: The Powell Theatre. A giant picture of the director covers the door to the theatre, where many well-known films are mixed.
* The Film, Radio and Television Department of [[Canterbury Christ Church University]] has its main building named after him: The Powell Building.
*  He has been played on screen by Alastair Thomson Mills in the award-winning short film {{lang|gd|Òran na h-Eala}} (2022) which explores [[Moira Shearer]]'s life changing decision to appear in ''The Red Shoes''. <!--per wikilink-->
*  A celebration entitled 'Cinema Unbound: The Creative Worlds of Powell and Pressburger' was held by the [[British Film Institute]] in 2023, including a UK-wide programme of films and an exhibit of production and promotion materials from ''The Red Shoes.''<ref>{{Cite web|date=29 June 2023|title=BFI unveils Cinema Unbound: The Creative Worlds of Powell and Pressburger|url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/news/unveiled-cinema-unbound-creative-worlds-powell-pressburger|access-date=2024-05-15|publisher=British Film Institute|language=en}}</ref>
*  Powell's work was explored in the documentary ''Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger'' (2024), with narration by [[Martin Scorsese]].<ref name="auto"/>

==Filmography==
{{For|Michael Powell's complete filmography|Michael Powell filmography}}

{{For|his films with Emeric Pressburger|Powell and Pressburger}}

== Theatre ==

* 1944: Directed [[Ernest Hemingway]]'s ''The Fifth Column'' at the [[Theatre Royal, Glasgow]]
* 1944: Directed [[Jan de Hartog]]'s ''Skipper Next To God'' at the [[Theatre Royal, Windsor]]
* 1951: Directed James Forsyth's ''Heloise'' at the [[Golders Green Hippodrome]], London
* 1952: Directed [[Raymond Massey]]'s ''[[Hanging Judge (play)|Hanging Judge]]'' at the [[Noël Coward Theatre|New Theatre]], London

== Bibliography ==
* 1938: ''200,000 Feet on [[Foula]]''. London: Faber & Faber. (The story of the making of ''[[The Edge of the World]]''. 
**Published as ''200,000 Feet – The Edge of the World'' in the United States
**Republished as ''Edge of the World'' in 1990.
* 1956: ''Graf Spee''. London: Hodder & Stoughton. (This book contains much information that Powell and Pressburger could not include in their film ''[[The Battle of the River Plate (film)|The Battle of the River Plate]]''.)
**Published in the United States as ''Death in the South Atlantic: The Last Voyage of the Graf Spee'' in 1957.
**Reprinted as ''The Last Voyage of the Graf Spee'' for the 1976 paperback edition.
* 1975: ''A Waiting Game''. London: Joseph. {{ISBN|0-7181-1368-3}}.
* 1978: (with [[Emeric Pressburger]]) ''The Red Shoes''. London: Avon Books. {{ISBN|0-8044-2687-2}}. (novelization of the [[The Red Shoes (1948 film)|film of the same name]])
* 1986: ''A Life in Movies: An Autobiography''. London: [[Heinemann (publisher)|Heinemann]]. {{ISBN|0-434-59945-X}}. (Powell's memoirs of the years 1905-1948)
* 1992: ''Million Dollar Movie'' London: Heinemann. {{ISBN|0-434-59947-6}}. (Powell's memoirs of the years 1948-1989)
* 1994: ''[[The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp]]''. (with [[Emeric Pressburger]] and [[Ian Christie (film scholar)|Ian Christie]]) London: Faber & Faber. {{ISBN|0-571-14355-5}}. (The screenplay of the film.)

Many of these titles were also published in other countries or republished. The list above deals with initial publications except where the name was changed in a subsequent edition or printing.

==References==
;Notes
{{reflist|group=N}}
;Citations
{{reflist}}
;Bibliography
{{refbegin}}
* [[Ian Christie (film scholar)|Christie, Ian]]. ''Arrows of Desire: The Films of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger''.  London: Waterstone, 1994. {{ISBN|0-571-16271-1}}; First edition 1985. {{ISBN|0-947752-13-7}}.
* Christie, Ian. ''Powell, Pressburger and Others''.  London: British Film Institute, 1978. {{ISBN|0-85170-086-1}}.
* Christie, Ian and Andrew Moor, eds. ''The Cinema of Michael Powell: International Perspectives on an English Filmmaker''. London: BFI, 2005. {{ISBN|1-84457-093-2}}.
* Darakhvelidze, George. {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20170603174640/http://www.biblio-globus.us/(qpswqt55zerry5izs5aqlu55)/description.aspx?product_no=9329599 ''Landscapes of Dreams: The Cinema of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger (Part 1-7)'' (in Russian).]}} Vinnitsa, Ukraine: Globe Press, 2008–2019. {{ISBN|966-8300-34-3}}.
* Esteve, Llorenç. ''Michael Powell y Emeric Pressburger'' (in Spanish).  Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Catedra, 2002.  {{ISBN|978-84-376-1950-7}}.
* Howard, James. ''Michael Powell''. London: BT Batsford Ltd, 1996. {{ISBN|0-7134-7482-3}}.
* Lazar, David, ed. ''Michael Powell: Interviews''. Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 2003. {{ISBN|1-57806-498-8}}.
* [[Kevin Macdonald (director)|Macdonald, Kevin]]. ''Emeric Pressburger: The Life and Death of a Screenwriter''. London: Faber & Faber, 1994. {{ISBN|0-571-16853-1}}
* Moor, Andrew. ''Powell and Pressburger: A Cinema of Magic Spaces''. London: I.B. Tauris, 2005. {{ISBN|1-85043-947-8}}.
* Powell, Michael. ''A Life in Movies'' (autobiography). London: [[Heinemann (book publisher)|Heinemann]], 1993. {{ISBN|0-571-20431-7}}; First edition 1986. {{ISBN|0-434-59945-X}}.
* Powell, Michael. ''Million Dollar Movie'' (The second volume of his autobiography). London: Heinemann, 1992. {{ISBN|0-434-59947-6}}, later edition, 2000. {{ISBN|0-7493-0463-4}} (pbk).
* Thiéry, Natacha. ''Photogénie du désir: Michael Powell et Emeric Pressburger 1945–1950 (in French)''. Rennes, France: Presse Universitaires de Rennes, 2009. {{ISBN|2-7535-0964-6}}.
* Howard, James. '''I Live Cinema' : The Life and Films of Michael Powell''. UK: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, June 2013. {{ISBN|1-470-01179-4}}
{{refend}}

==External links==

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050115085956/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/pilgrims/filmog-powell.html BFI Filmography]
* {{IMDb name|id=0003836|name=Michael Powell}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041209002534/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/pilgrims/interview.html NFT interviews] (audio clips)
* [https://www.futuremovies.co.uk/filmmaking/best-british-directors-2-michael-powell/nik-huggins Best British Directors] on FutureMovies.co.uk
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120724044633/http://www.britmovie.co.uk/directors/Michael-Powell Michael Powell biography] on BritMovie.co.uk
* [http://www.powell-pressburger.org/Reviews/Micky Michael Powell] at the [http://www.powell-pressburger.org/ Powell & Pressburger Pages]
* Articles about {{Screenonline name|id=447167|name=Michael Powell}}:
** [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/598751/index.html early work]
** [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/591736/index.html sense of landscape]
** [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/444768/index.html work with Pressburger]
** [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1182051/index.html classic Powell & Pressburger]
** [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/655613/index.html the war years]
** [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/film/id/1117296/index.html later years]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091004014337/http://archive.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/02/powell.html Essay, Filmography, Bibliography, Links at ''Senses of Cinema'']
* [https://www.wnyc.org/story/50606-film-archives/ Michael Powell discusses his autobiography ''A Life in Movies''] on ''The [[Leonard Lopate]] Show''
* [http://sounds.bl.uk/Arts-literature-and-performance/ICA-talks/024M-C0095X0250XX-0100V0 Michael Powell discusses his autobiography ''A Life in Movies''] – a British Library sound recording

{{Powell and Pressburger}}
{{BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award}}
{{British Film Institute Fellowship}}
{{Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Powell, Michael}}
[[Category:1905 births]]
[[Category:1990 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century English businesspeople]]
[[Category:20th-century English male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century English screenwriters]]
[[Category:BAFTA fellows]]
[[Category:British film production company founders]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in England]]
[[Category:English film directors]]
[[Category:English film producers]]
[[Category:English male screenwriters]]
[[Category:English-language film directors]]
[[Category:People educated at Dulwich College]]
[[Category:People educated at The King's School, Canterbury]]
[[Category:People from Avening]]
[[Category:People from Bekesbourne]]
[[Category:Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement recipients]]
[[Category:British fantasy film directors]]
[[Category:British comedy film directors]]
[[Category:British horror film directors]]

{{Wikipedia attribution|original_title=Michael Powell|access_date=2026-03-04}}