STAR RATINGS EXPLAINED

Classic

Excellent

Good

Fair

Tragic

FILM DETAILS

Certificate U

Cast Celia Johnson Trevor Howard Stanley Holloway Joyce Carey

Directors David Lean

Screenwriters Noel Coward Anthony Havelock-Allan David Lean Ronals Neame

Running Time 86 minutes

Brief Encounter (U)

Plot
Middle-class housewife Laura (Celia Johnson) meets Dr Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard) when she gets grit in the eye at the railway buffet, who skillfully removes the dirt in question only to fill her heart with longing and hope. Gradually they fall in love which culminated in little more than a kiss, though they know that their love, in a middle-class England of strict sensibilities, is impossible.

Verdict
Beautifully monochrome rendering of a love that cannot be.


Reviewer: Caroline Westbrook

Read The Full Empire Review »
Click for the full Empire review and post your own review and rating.

Advertisement

SUBSCRIBE TO EMPIRE

Subscribe And Get 3 Free Blu-ray Movies! Get your free Spider-Man 3, Terminator 3 And Starship Troopers 3 Blu-rays when you subscribe to Empire magazine!

CURRENT HIGHLIGHTS
The 100 Sexiest Movie Stars Revealed The votes are in and counted! We can now reveal the 50 sexiest men and women in Hollywood!
		3-Part Steven Soderbergh Interview The director on The Informant!, Liberace and Knockout
		The Story Of Fight Club On the 10th anniversary of the classic, the story of how it began...
		A Serious Man: Michael Stuhlbarg We interview the star of the new Coen brothers movie
		Thor: The Who's Who A guide to the cast of Kenneth Branagh's superhero epic, Thor
		New Moon Video Interviews We chat with Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner