The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp

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The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp

1943

2h 43m

Drama

War

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

97%

Tomatometer

36 Reviews

90%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

General Candy (Roger Livesey), who's overseeing an English squad in 1943, is a veteran leader who doesn't have the respect of the men he's training and is considered out-of-touch with what's needed to win the war. But it wasn't always this way. Flashing back to his early career in the Boer War and World War I, we see a dashing young officer whose life has been shaped by three different women (all played by Deborah Kerr), and by a lasting friendship with a German soldier.

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Critics Consensus

A moving evocation of both British values and the passage of time, The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp is an epic portrait of a singular character by Powell and Pressburger.

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

May 17, 2012

5/5

This glorious film is about the greatest mystery of all: how old people were once young, and how young people are in the process of becoming old.

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Wally Hammond

Little White Lies

May 17, 2012

5/5

Staggering and heartbreaking. Still.

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Alan Morrison

Empire Magazine

May 14, 2012

5/5

A wonderful salute to British decency and a touching portrait of a friendship that bridges national boundaries.

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Lisa Laman

Culturess

Feb 28, 2025

Substance and style work in perfect harmony in this Powell & Pressburger masterpiece.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

Oct 21, 2024

... one of the most beloved British films of all time.

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Josh Larsen

LarsenOnFilm

Jul 15, 2024

3/4

... occasionally demonstrates the charm, flair, and flourish of other Archers' pictures...

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bruce F

@bruce999 Aug 14, 2026

the movie seems to go nowhere, for me. interesting characters though, and the movie makes you think.

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Lars N

@movie_douche Oct 16, 2025

It has a grand story to tell about the passage of time and youth. An old epic but told on a small scale. I liked it but it didn't blow me away

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Jim P

@RT08384096 Jul 12, 2024

This is an outstanding movie about… the energy of youth and the wisdom of age. Brilliant!

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W. W. W

@Witt2k9 Jun 30, 2024

What a strange NAME which has nothing to do with the movie.

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Gertrude F

@RT21740944 Jun 13, 2024

A wondrous triumph of a film that surpassed my expectations completely. The film manages to touch on so much of the endless list of thoughts, emotions, and experiences that plague a life, in a remarkably natural way. One of my new favourites.

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Alec B

@Alec97 Jan 9, 2024

A deeply complex epic that avoids the often cheep romanticizing you get from similar films made during WWII. Certain sequences (i.e. the duel) are way ahead of anything else being made at this time.

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Michael Powell

Director

Emeric Pressburger

Director

Roger Livesey

Clive Candy

Deborah Kerr

Edith Hunter

Anton Walbrook

Theo Kretschmar-Schuldorff

John Laurie

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Synopsis

General Candy (Roger Livesey), who's overseeing an English squad in 1943, is a veteran leader who doesn't have the respect of the men he's training and is considered out-of-touch with what's needed to win the war. But it wasn't always this way. Flashing back to his early career in the Boer War and World War I, we see a dashing young officer whose life has been shaped by three different women (all played by Deborah Kerr), and by a lasting friendship with a German soldier.

Director: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Producer: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Screenwriter: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Production Co: The Archers, Independent Producers
Genre: Drama, War, Romance
Original Language: British English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 10, 1943, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters): May 4, 1945
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 8, 2017
Runtime: 2h 43m

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