The Citadel (1938): Doctors, Censors and the Cinema.

Based on the book by A.J. Cronin, The Citadel, directed by the American King Vidor, was one of the first films in British cinema to explore seriously the role of the medical profession. The semi-autobiographical account was influenced by the themes that dominated the author’s life - religion, poverty, politics and social concern. Seen through the eyes of Andrew Manson (Robert Donat), the film alerts audiences to the political failings of contemporary medical care in Britain, challenged deep seated traditions held by the establishment, and appealed for innovation and a willingness to embrace new inventions and treatments in medicine. The film is renowned for getting past the British Board of Film Censors rigorous standards to be granted an ‘A’ certificate and also provided a vivid portrayal of the wide social and class divisions of the country, contrasting the life of the poor mining communities of South Wales with the opulence of the rich and privileged society in London, and was an important landmark in the depiction of social realism in British cinema. The place of the medical ‘Establishment’ both in its protection of what might now be considered quasi-fraudulent medical practice and its opposition to new therapies (‘quackery’) explored in the book is thrown into stark relief by the film and this is explored further, in this paper, in the light of modern practice. The production of the film and the responses to it are explored both in its filmic context and in its wider impact on late 1930’s Britain resulting in its pivotal position in the story of the founding of the National Health Service in 1948. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]