David Lean graduated from editor to director on In Which We Serve, co-directed with the multi-talented Noël Coward, the key source of inspiration in the early stages of his career. Inspired by the naval exploits of Captain Lord Louis Mountbatten, and fully supported by the British government, the film is filled with the patriotic imagery and themes frequent in British cinema of the time as it recounts the bravery of the crew of HMS Torrin following a German attack. The cast includes future Lean collaborators John Mills and Celia Johnson, as well as Richard Attenborough making his (brief) screen debut.

Screening as part of The Films of David Lean season.