Editing Things to Come

{{Short description|1936 British film by 	William Cameron Menzies}}
{{other uses}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Things to Come
| image          = Things-to-Come-UK-poster.jpg
| caption        = UK [[Film poster|poster]] for the premiere run of the film
| director       = [[William Cameron Menzies]]
| producer       = [[Alexander Korda]]
| writer         = [[H. G. Wells]]
| based_on       = {{based on|''[[The Shape of Things to Come]]''<br />1933 novel|H. G. Wells}}
| starring       = [[Raymond Massey]]<br />[[Edward Chapman (actor)|Edward Chapman]]<br />[[Ralph Richardson]]<br />[[Margaretta Scott]]<br />[[Cedric Hardwicke]]<br />[[Maurice Braddell]]<br />[[Sophie Stewart]]<br />[[Derrick De Marney]]<br />[[Ann Todd]]
| music          = [[Arthur Bliss]]
| cinematography = [[Georges Périnal]]
| editing        = [[Charles Crichton]]<br />[[Francis D. Lyon]]
| studio         = [[London Films|London Films Productions]]
| distributor    = [[United Artists]]
| released       = {{film date|1936|2|20|df=yes}}
| runtime        = 109 minutes ([[Things to Come#Duration, releases, and surviving versions|see below]])
| country        = United Kingdom
| language       = English
| budget         = £260,000<ref>{{cite news|author=Staff|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article25139388 |title=Film World|newspaper=[[The West Australian]]|location=Perth |date=20 March 1936|access-date=5 August 2012|page=3}}</ref>
}}
'''''Things to Come''''' (also known as '''''Shape of Things to Come'''''<ref name="BFIsearch">{{Cite web |title=Things to Come |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/150307523 |access-date=24 February 2024 |website=British Film Institute Collections Search}}</ref> and in promotional material as '''''H. G. Wells' Things to Come''''') is a 1936 British [[science fiction film]] produced by [[Alexander Korda]], directed by [[William Cameron Menzies]], and written by [[H. G. Wells]]. The film stars [[Raymond Massey]], [[Edward Chapman (actor)|Edward Chapman]], [[Ralph Richardson]], [[Margaretta Scott]], [[Cedric Hardwicke]], [[Maurice Braddell]], [[Sophie Stewart]], [[Derrick De Marney]], and [[Ann Todd]].<ref name="BFIsearch" />

Wells conceived his treatment as "a new story" meant to display the "social and political forces and possibilities" outlined in his 1933 novel ''[[The Shape of Things to Come]]'', a work he considered less a novel than a "discussion" in fictional form that presented itself as the notes of a 22nd-century [[diplomat]].<ref name="H. G. Wells, 1935">Wells (1935), p.9</ref> The film was also influenced by previous works, including his 1897 story "[[A Story of the Days to Come]]" and his 1931 work on society and economics, ''[[The Work, Wealth and Happiness of Mankind]]''. Cultural historian [[Christopher Frayling]] called ''Things to Come'' "a landmark in cinematic design".<ref>Frayling (1995), p.56</ref>

==Plot==
In 1940, businessman John Cabal, living in the city of Everytown in [[Southern England]], cannot enjoy [[Christmas Day]] as the news speaks of possible war. His guest, Harding, shares his worries, while another friend, the over-optimistic Pippa Passworthy, believes that it will not come to pass, and if it does, it will accelerate technological progress. An aerial bombing raid on the city that night results in general mobilisation and then [[World War II|global war]] with the unnamed enemy. Cabal becomes a [[Royal Air Force]] pilot and serves bravely, even attempting to rescue an enemy pilot he has shot down.

The war continues into the 1960s, long enough for the people of the world to have forgotten why they are fighting. Humanity enters a new dark age. Every city in the world is in ruins, the economy has been devastated by hyperinflation, and there is little technology left other than greatly depleted air forces. A pestilence known as "wandering sickness" is inflicted by aerial bombing and causes its victims to walk around aimlessly in a zombie-like state before dying. The plague kills half of humanity and extinguishes the last vestiges of government.

By 1970, the warlord Rudolf, known as the "Boss", has become the chieftain of what is left of Everytown and eradicated the pestilence by shooting the infected. He has started yet another war, this time against the "hill people" of the Floss Valley to obtain coal and shale to render into oil for his ragtag collection of prewar [[biplane]]s.

On [[May Day]] that year, a sleek new [[monoplane]] lands in Everytown, startling the residents, who have not seen a new aircraft in many years. The pilot, a now elderly John Cabal, emerges and proclaims that the last surviving band of engineers and mechanics have formed an organisation called "Wings Over the World". They are based in [[Basra]], [[Iraq]], and have outlawed war and are rebuilding civilisation throughout the Near East and the [[Mediterranean]]. Cabal offers the Boss the opportunity to join Wings, but he immediately rejects the offer and takes Cabal prisoner, forcing him to repair the obsolete [[biplane]]s.

With the assistance of Cabal, the Boss's disillusioned mechanic Gordon contacts Wings Over the World. Gigantic [[flying wing]] aircraft arrive over Everytown and saturate its population with a [[Incapacitating agent#"Knockout gas"|"Gas of Peace"]] that temporarily renders them unconscious. The people awaken to find themselves under the control of Wings Over the World and the Boss dead from a fatal allergic reaction to the gas. Cabal promises them that Wings Over the World will usher in a new age of progress and peace.

Under Cabal's guidance, Wings Over the World quickly rebuilds civilisation to even greater heights. By 2036, a stable mankind is now living in modern underground cities, including the new Everytown, and civilisation is at last devoted to peace and scientific progress. All is not well, however. The sculptor Theotocopulos incites the populace to demand a "rest" from all the rush of progress, symbolised by the coming first crewed flight around the [[Moon]]. When the mob threatens to destroy the space gun that will launch the ship to the Moon, Oswald Cabal, the grandson of John Cabal and current head of government, is forced to move the launch ahead of schedule.

Oswald Cabal's daughter Catherine and fellow scientist Maurice Passworthy are the passengers. After the projectile is launched and just a tiny light in the night sky, Cabal debates [[Idea of Progress|the desirability of human progress]] with Passworthy's anxious father. To Passworthy's concern that humanity shall never be able to rest, Cabal retorts that humans have no choice but to conquer the universe and its mysteries: "All the universe or nothingness? Which shall it be, Passworthy? Which shall it be?"

==Cast==
{{col div}}
===Main cast===
* [[Raymond Massey]] as John Cabal / Oswald Cabal
* [[Edward Chapman (actor)|Edward Chapman]] as Pippa Passworthy and Raymond Passworthy
* [[Ralph Richardson]] as Rudolf, "The Boss"
* [[Margaretta Scott]] as Roxana Black / Rowena Cabal
* [[Cedric Hardwicke]] as Theotocopulos
* [[Maurice Braddell]] as Dr. Edward Harding
* [[Sophie Stewart]] as Mrs Cabal
* [[Derrick De Marney]] as Richard Gordon
* [[Ann Todd]] as Mary Gordon
* [[Pearl Argyle]] as Catherine Cabal
* [[Kenneth Villiers]] as Maurice Passworthy
* [[Ivan Brandt]] as Morden Mitani
* [[Anne McLaren]] as The Child (2036)
* [[Patricia Hilliard (actress)|Patricia Hilliard]] as Janet Gordon
* [[Charles Carson (actor)|Charles Carson]] as Great Grandfather (2036)

===Uncredited===
* [[Patrick Barr]] as World Transport official
* [[John Clements (actor)|John Clements]] as enemy pilot
* [[Anthony Holles (actor)|Anthony Holles]] as Simon Burton
* [[Allan Jeayes]] as Mr. Cabal (1940)
* Pickles Livingston as Horrie Passworthy
* [[Abraham Sofaer]] as Wadsky
{{col div end}}

===Notes===
* Theotocopulos's scenes were originally shot with [[Ernest Thesiger]]. Wells found his performance unsatisfactory, so he was replaced with Hardwicke and the footage reshot.<ref>Cooper (2012), p.15</ref>
* [[Terry-Thomas]], who would become known for his comic acting, has an uncredited appearance as an extra in the film, playing a "man of the future". It was his seventh film appearance.<ref>{{IMDb name|0856103|Terry-Thomas}}</ref>
* In some prints, Margaretta Scott is still credited with the dual role of Roxana Black and Rowena Cabal, but the latter character doesn't appear in the extant footage.

==Production==
''Things to Come'' sets out a future history from 1940 to 2036. In the screenplay, or "treatment"<ref>Wells (1935), p.11</ref> that Wells published in 1935, before the film was released, the story ends in "A.D. 2054".<ref>Wells (1935), pp.91–93; Wells mentions the date four times on these pages, but in the "Introductory Remarks", he gives the date as "A.D. 2055" (p. xi)</ref>

Wells is sometimes incorrectly assumed to have had a degree of control over the project that was unprecedented for a screenwriter. Posters and the main title bill the film as "H. G. Wells' Things to Come", with "an Alexander Korda production" appearing in smaller type. In fact, Wells ultimately had no control over the finished product, with the result that many scenes, although shot, were either truncated or not included in the finished film.<ref name="Cooper, Nick 2012, page 14">Cooper (2012), p.14</ref> The rough-cut reputedly ran to 130 minutes; the version submitted to the [[British Board of Film Censors]] was 117m 13s; it was released as 108m 40s (later cut to 98m 06s) in the UK, and 96m 24s in the United States (see below for later versions).<ref>Cooper (2012), p.18</ref> Wells's script (or "film treatment") and selected production notes were published in book form in 1935 and reprinted in 1940 and 1975. An academic edition annotated by [[Leon Stover]] was published in 2007. The script contains many scenes that were either never filmed or no longer exist, although the extant footage also includes scenes not in the published script (e.g. the Boss's victory banquet after the capture of the colliery).<ref>Cooper (2012), p.17</ref>

Wells originally wanted the music to be recorded in advance, and have the film constructed around the music, but this would have impeded editing, and so the score, by [[Arthur Bliss]], was fitted to the film afterwards in a more conventional way.{{Disputed inline|Talk:Things to Come#Music timing|date=December 2014}} A concert suite drawn from the film has remained popular; as of 2015, numerous recordings of it were still in print.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

The film was made at Denham Film Studios, while the site was still under construction.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

After filming had already begun, the Hungarian abstract artist and experimental filmmaker [[László Moholy-Nagy]] was commissioned to produce some of the effects sequences for the re-building of Everytown. Moholy-Nagy's approach was partly to treat it as an abstract light show, but only some 90 seconds of material was used, e.g. a protective-suited figure behind corrugated glass (which could be Terry-Thomas, as the figure has a moustache and he was billed as 'A Man of the Future). In the autumn of 1975 a researcher found a further four sequences which had been discarded.<ref name="frayling">Frayling (1995), pp.72-73</ref>

The art design in the film is by [[Vincent Korda]], brother of the producer. The futuristic city of Everytown in the film is based on London: a facsimile of [[St Paul's Cathedral]] can be seen in the background.<ref name="Cooper, Nick 2012, page 14"/>

==Reception==
''Things to Come'' was voted the ninth best British film of 1936 by ''[[Film Weekly]]''{{'}}s readers.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article52148556|author=Staff |title=Best Film Performance Last Year. |newspaper=[[The Examiner (Tasmania)|The Examiner]] |location=Launceston, Tasmania |date=9 July 1937 |access-date=4 March 2013 |page=8}}</ref> It was the 16th most popular film at the British box office in 1935–36.<ref>Sedgwick, John and Pokorny, Michael (February 2005) "The Film Business in the US and Britain during the 1930s" ''The Economic History Review'' New Series, Vol. 58, No. 1,  pp.79-112</ref> In 2005, it was nominated for the [[AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores]], a list of the top 25 film scores unveiled by the [[American Film Institute]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.afi.com/Docs/100Years/scores250.pdf |title=AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores Nominees |access-date=2016-08-06 |archive-date=2013-11-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106023410/http://www.afi.com/Docs/100years/scores250.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]] reports an approval rating of 93%, based on 28 reviews, with an average rating of 7.46/10. The site's consensus read: "Eerily prescient in its presentation of a dystopian future, ''Things to Come''<nowiki/>'s special effects may be somewhat dated, but its potent ideas haven't aged at all."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/things_to_come|title=Things to Come (1936)|publisher=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]|access-date=2019-08-20 }}</ref>

Writing for ''[[The Spectator]]'' in 1936, [[Graham Greene]] gave the film a mixed review. Although he made it clear that "a third of the film is magnificent", he felt that the second third (as the world of tomorrow reverts to barbarism and anarchy) seemed implausible, and began to lose interest with the introduction of the "Great Conspiracy" (an international force of airmen bent on restoring Earth's former glory) in the last third of the film. The optimism and idealism comes off as naive for him.<ref>{{cite journal |last= Greene|first= Graham|author-link= Graham Greene|date=1935-02-28 |title= Things to Come/Bonne Chance|journal= [[The Spectator]]}} (reprinted in: {{cite book|editor-last= Taylor|editor-first= John Russell|editor-link= John Russell Taylor|date= 1980|title= The Pleasure Dome|url= https://archive.org/details/pleasuredomegrah00gree/page/54|pages= [https://archive.org/details/pleasuredomegrah00gree/page/54 54–55]|publisher= Oxford University Press|isbn= 0192812866|url-access= registration}})</ref>

Science fiction historian [[Gary Westfahl]] has stated, "''Things to Come'' qualifies as the first true masterpiece of science fiction cinema, and those who complain about its awkward pace and uninvolving characters are not understanding Wells's message, which is that the lives and actions of individuals are unimportant when compared to the progress and destiny of the entire human race". He also considered that "the film's episodic structure and grand ambitions make it the greatest ancestor of [[Stanley Kubrick]]'s ''[[2001: A Space Odyssey (film)|2001: A Space Odyssey]]''".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfsite.com/gary/well01.htm |last=Wells |first=H. G. |author-link=H. G. Wells|title=Gary Westfahl's Bio-Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Film |accessdate=21 January 2014}}</ref>

Indeed, during early development of what would become ''2001'', co-writer [[Arthur C. Clarke]] had Kubrick watch ''Things to Come'' as an example of a grounded science fiction film; Kubrick, however, disliked it.<ref>[[Arthur C. Clarke|Clarke, Arthur C.]] (1972) ''[[The Lost Worlds of 2001]]'' London: Sidgwick and Jackson.  p.35</ref> After seeing ''2001'', [[Frederik Pohl]] complained in a 1968 ''[[Galaxy Science Fiction|Galaxy]]'' editorial: {{blockquote|The science-fiction movie we've all been waiting for still hasn't come along.
We think it's a disgrace that the most recent science-fiction movie made with a big budget, good actors and an actual sf writer preparing the script, not aimed at a juvenile market and uncontaminated by camp, is ''Things to Come''... produced in 1936.<ref name="pohl196807">{{Cite magazine
 |last=Pohl
 |first=Frederik
 |author-link=Frederick Pohl
 |date=July 1968
 |title=The Week That Was
 |url=https://archive.org/stream/Galaxy_v26n06_1968-07#page/n3/mode/2up
 |magazine=Galaxy Science Fiction
 |pages=4
}}</ref>}}

==Duration, releases, and surviving versions==
The [[rough cut]] of the film was 130 minutes in length, while the version submitted for classification by the [[British Board of Film Censors]] (BBFC) was 117m 13s.<ref>''[https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/things-to-come-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0ymzk5nzu Things to Come]'' at [[BBFC]]</ref> By the time of the 21 February 1936 UK premiere and initial release, this had been reduced to 108m 41s,<ref name=Low>{{cite book |last=Low |first=Rachel |title=The History of the British Film 1929–1939 |publisher=George [[Allen & Unwin]] |location=London |year=1985 |isbn=0047910429 }}</ref> while the American print premiered on 18 April 1936 was further cut to 96m 31s. By late 1936, a 98m 07s print was in circulation in the UK,<ref name=Low/> and a 76m 07s print was resubmitted for classification by the BBFC and was passed – after further cuts – at 72m 13s for a reissue  in 1943 by Exclusive Films,<ref>Cooper (2012), pp.21</ref> a film distribution company co-founded by [[William Hinds]].

The 96m 31s American print was cut down to 93m 19s by the removal of three sections of footage for a reissue by [[British Lion Films]] in 1948, and subsequently to 92m 44s by the removal of one more segment. A continuity script exists for a version of approximately 106m 04s, which contains all the material in the 96m 31s and 92m 44s versions, plus a number of other sequences. It is not known if a version of this duration was actually in circulation at any time, or if it was simply an intermediate stage between the premiere and release versions.<ref>Cooper (2012), pp.24–26</ref>

For many years, the principal surviving version of the film was the 92m 44s print (in countries using [[PAL]] or [[SECAM]] video systems, it runs to 89m exactly). From at least the late-1970s until 2007, this was the only version "officially" available from the rights holders in the UK.<ref>Cooper (2012), pp.24</ref> In the United States, although the 92m 44s version was most prevalent, a version was also in circulation that included the four pieces of footage that were in the 96m 31s print, but not the 92m 44s version, although due to other cuts, actually ran shorter than the latter.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nickcooper.org.uk/ttc/gutlohn.htm | title=Things to Come - the Gutlohn Print }}</ref>

==Home media==
A cut version of the 92m 44s print was digitally restored and [[film colorization|colourised]] by [[Legend Films]], under the supervision of [[Ray Harryhausen]] (who had no connection with the making of the film) and released on DVD in the United States in early 2007.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

In May 2007, Network DVD in the UK released a digitally restored copy of the 96m 31s version, the longest version remaining of the film. The two-disc set also contains a "Virtual Extended Version" with most of the missing and unfilmed parts represented by production photographs and script extracts. In 2011 Network released an updated and expanded version of this edition on Blu-ray in HD.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://networkonair.com/all-products/1580-things-to-come | title=Things to Come [Blu-ray]}}</ref>

[[The Criterion Collection]] released the 96m 31s print on DVD and Blu-ray in North America on 18 June 2013. This includes the unused Moholy-Nagy footage as an extra.<ref>[http://www.criterion.com/films/27552 The Criterion Collection: ''Things to Come'']</ref>

==Copyright status==
Although the film lapsed into the [[public domain]] in the US in 1964 due to non-renewal,<ref>see [[Copyright Act of 1909]]</ref> [[copyright]] remained in force in the UK, the [[European Union]], and elsewhere. In the UK, copyright for films as "dramatic works" remains for seventy years after the end of the year of release, or the death of either the director, the writer (or author of original story), or the composer of original music, whichever is the latest. Since the film's composer, [[Arthur Bliss]], died in 1975, copyright will expire after 31 December 2045. The current copyright holder is [[ITV Studios|ITV Global Entertainment Ltd.]], and while the longest surviving original nitrate print is held by the [[BFI National Archive]], a copy of the 96m 31s print was donated by London Films to the newly formed National Film Library in March 1936.<ref>Cooper (2012), p.20</ref>

The film came back into copyright in the US in 1996 under the [[Uruguay Round Agreements Act#Copyright restorations|Uruguay Round Agreements Act]] (URAA),<ref>[http://www.copyright.cornell.edu/training/Hirtle_Public_Domain.htm Copyright Term and the Public Domain in the US]</ref> which, among other measures, amended [[Copyright law of the United States|US copyright law]] to reinstate copyright on films of non-US origin if they were still in copyright in their country of origin. The URAA was subsequently challenged in ''[[Golan v. Holder|Golan v. Gonzales]]'', initially unsuccessfully, later with partial success, but the challenge was ultimately defeated in ''[[Golan v. Holder#Golan v. Holder|Golan v. Holder]]'' and a new principle established that international agreements could indeed restore copyright to works which had previously come into the public domain.{{citation needed|date=September 2022}}

==See also==
* ''[[The Man Who Could Work Miracles]]'', a 1937 film based on Wells' [[The Man Who Could Work Miracles (short story)|short story of the same name]], which Wells co-wrote with [[Lajos Bíró]]
* ''[[H. G. Wells' The Shape of Things to Come]]'', a 1979 Canadian [[space opera]] film
* [[List of incomplete or partially lost films]]
* [[1936 in science fiction]]

==References==
===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* {{cite web |author=Cooley, Donald G.|url=http://blog.modernmechanix.com/h-g-wells-things-to-come/ |title=H. G. Wells Photographs the Future in His Motion Picture "Things to Come" |date=May 1936 |work=[[Mechanix Illustrated|Modern Mechanix]] |access-date=8 August 2017 |archive-date=7 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007145630/http://blog.modernmechanix.com/h-g-wells-things-to-come/ |url-status=dead }}
* Cooper, Nick (2012) "Things to Come Viewing Notes", Network Blu-Ray
* {{cite book| last = Frayling| first = Christopher| author-link = Christopher Frayling| title = Things to Come| publisher = [[British Film Institute]]| year = 1995| isbn = 0-85170-480-8}}
* {{cite web |url=https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2812-things-to-come-whither-mankind |title=Things to Come: Whither Mankind?|year=2013 |author=[[Geoffrey O'Brien|O'Brien, Geoffrey]] |work=[[Criterion Collection]] }}
* [[H. G. Wells|Wells. H. G.]] (1935) ''Things to Come – A Film Story''. London: Cresset.

==External links==
* {{AFI film|4300}}
* {{IMDb title}}
* [https://www.allmovie.com/movie/things-to-come-am16569 ''Things to Come'' at AllMovie]
* {{TCMDb title}}
* [http://www.nickcooper.org.uk/ttc/index.htm ''Things to Come'' website] by film expert Nick Cooper
* {{Rotten Tomatoes}}

<!-- THIS FILM IS NOT PUBLIC DOMAIN, EITHER IN THE UK OR THE UNITED STATES. DO NOT ADD LINKS TO ILLICIT HOSTING. SEE TALK PAGE. -->

{{William Cameron Menzies}}
{{Alexander Korda}}
{{H. G. Wells}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Things To Come}}
[[Category:1936 films]]
[[Category:1930s science fiction war films]]
[[Category:1930s dystopian films]]
[[Category:British aviation films]]
[[Category:British black-and-white films]]
[[Category:British science fiction war films]]
[[Category:British epic films]]
[[Category:Films based on works by H. G. Wells]]
[[Category:Films directed by William Cameron Menzies]]
[[Category:Films produced by Alexander Korda]]
[[Category:Films set in 1940]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1940s]]
[[Category:Films set in 1966]]
[[Category:Films set in 1967]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1960s]]
[[Category:Films set in 1970]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1970s]]
[[Category:Films set in 2036]]
[[Category:Films set in the future]]
[[Category:London Films films]]
[[Category:British post-apocalyptic films]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by H. G. Wells]]
[[Category:Utopian films]]
[[Category:Dystopian films]]
[[Category:Future history]]
[[Category:Films shot at Station Road Studios, Elstree]]
[[Category:1930s English-language films]]
[[Category:1930s British films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Arthur Bliss]]
[[Category:British dystopian films]]
[[Category:English-language science fiction films]]
[[Category:English-language war films]]