I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING! (1945, dirs. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger) is the story of a young woman, Joan Webster (Wendy Hiller), who sets out on a journey to a remote Scottish island where she plans to marry a wealthy industrialist. When an incoming storm makes passage impossible for her and a local laird, Torquil MacNeil (Roger Livesey), she begins to wonder if she really knows where she's going and if her best-laid plans will be derailed.
The Film Foundation and the BFI National Archive completed the 4K restoration of I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING! utilizing the original nitrate camera negative. A nitrate print and two nitrate fine grain negatives were also referenced: individual shots that had been cut from the original negative were present in the other prints, and reel 10 has now been returned to its original length by the inclusion of a second dissolve. Soundtrack reconstruction was completed in parallel. This was especially needed because much of the original sound negative had been replaced by poor quality duplicate material in the past. The result is a restoration of Powell and Pressburger's beloved film that returns it to its full glory.
Restored by the BFI National Archive and The Film Foundation in association with ITV. Restoration funding provided by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation. Additional support provided by Matt Spick.
Introduction by Martin Scorsese
Thelma Schoonmaker Powell Interview
Kevin Macdonald Interview
Tilda Swinton Interview
Joanna Hogg and Martin Scorsese in Conversation
Before/After Restoration Demo
Video Extras
Pete Seeger singing the title song from the film, I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING!, on his television program “Rainbow Quest” in 1966. Watch on YouTube.
The young character of Cheril is played by singer and actress Petula Clark. She discussed her wide-ranging career in a recent CBS interview that you can watch on YouTube.
Thelma Schoonmaker Powell discussed Powell and Pressburger for TCM's Classic Film Fest in 2021 and the video is available on YouTube.
In 1981, Michael Powell visited Francis Ford Coppola at Zoetrope Studios and it was captured for "The South Bank Show's" episode on Powell. You can watch a clip on YouTube.
Director Michael Powell and actress Pamela Brown on the set of I KNOW WHERE I’M GOING!
Reading List (Books)
For more information on Michael Powell:
A Life in Movies, Michael Powell, 1987
Michael Powell Interviews, ed. David Lazar, 2003
The Cinema of Michael Powell: International Perspectives on an English Film-Maker, ed. Ian Christie and Andrew Moor, 2005
For more information on Emeric Pressburger:
Emeric Pressburger: The Life and Death of a Screenwriter, Kevin Macdonald, 1996
Killing a Mouse on Sunday, Emeric Pressburger, 1961
Other references to I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING! can be found in the following books:
Local Hero: The Making of the Film, Alan Hunter and Mark Astaire (1983) features Bill Forsyth talking about the influence of I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING! on his own work.
Selected Letters of Raymond Chandler, ed. Frank MacShane, 1987 features Raymond Chandler’s letter to James Sandoe about his viewing of I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING!.
Film Manifestos and Global Cinema Cultures: A Critical Anthology, Ed. Scott MacKenzie, 2014 features “The Archers’ Manifesto” (1942), a five-point statement of purpose from a letter that they wrote to Wendy Hiller in an effort to convince her to be in their film THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP. The five-points are below:
“One: we owe allegiance to nobody except the financial interests which provide our money; and, to them, the sole responsibility of ensuring them a profit, not a loss.
Two: every single foot in our films is our own responsibility and nobody else’s. We refuse to be guided or coerced by any influence but our own judgement.
Three: when we start work on a new idea we must be a year ahead, not only of our competitors, but also of the times. A real film, from idea to universal release, takes a year. Or more.
Four: no artist believes in escapism. And we secretly believe that no audience does. We have proved, at any rate, that they will pay to see the truth, for other reasons than her nakedness.
Five: at any time, and particularly at the present, the self respect of all collaborators, from star to prop-man, is sustained, or diminished, by the theme and purpose of the film they are working on.”
Wendy Hiller as Joan Webster and the three would-be-wedding pipers on the set of I KNOW WHERE I’M GOING!
Reading List (Online)
For more information on Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger:
An extensive Powell and Pressburger overview is available on Senses of Cinema.
Criterion Collection Top 10 Lists Featuring I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING!
Ari Aster
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/339-ari-aster-s-top-10
Bill Condon
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/307-bill-condon-s-top-10
Chris Hegedus
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/59-chris-hegedus-s-top-10
Ricky Jay
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/58-ricky-jay-s-top-10
Jonathan Lethem
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/13-jonathan-lethem-s-top-10
Richard Linklater
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/42-richard-linklater-s-top-10
Kevin Macdonald
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/44-kevin-macdonald-s-top-10
D.A. Pennebaker
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/48-d-a-pennebaker-s-top-10
Robin Wood
https://www.criterion.com/current/top-10-lists/56-robin-wood-s-top-10
Other notable online references:
You can read Powell and Pressburger scholar Ian Christie on IKWIG! at The Criterion Collection.
The phone booth featured in IKWIG!—the Carsaig Phone Box—is a real phone booth. It is listed by Historic Scotland as a Category B building (or structure) of local importance. A film critic wrote about it when he visited the Isle of Mull in Scotland. Read about his trip at The Guardian.
The character of Mrs. Crozier is played by British actress Nancy Price. Born in 1880, and primarily a theatre actress, Price started performing in 1900 and eventually co-founded the People's National Theatre in 1930 before making her mark in the movies. Learn more at her Wikipedia page.
The actress who plays the character of Bridie is Margot Fitzsimons, an Irish actress who was also the sister of Maureen O’Hara. Learn more about her unique life via her obituary.
Wendy Hiller as Joan Webster, Roger Livesey as Torquil MacNeil, Margot Fitzsimons as Bridie, and Murdo Morrison as Kenny discuss the gale
on the set of I KNOW WHERE I’M GOING!
The Film Foundation on Letterboxd
Learn more about the filmographies of some of the cast and crew of I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING!
Starring Wendy Hiller
https://letterboxd.com/tff/list/starring-wendy-hiller/
Starring Roger Livesey
https://letterboxd.com/tff/list/starring-roger-livesey/
Shot by Erwin Hiller
https://letterboxd.com/tff/list/shot-by-erwin-hiller/
Art and Production Design by Alfred Junge
https://letterboxd.com/tff/list/the-art-of-alfred-junge/
Edited by John Seabourne Sr.
https://letterboxd.com/tff/list/edited-by-john-seabourne/
Wendy Hiller as Joan Webster and Roger Livesey as Torquil MacNeil on the set of I KNOW WHERE I’M GOING!
Presented in The Film Foundation Restoration Screening Room in May 2022 in partnership with:
BFI National Archive, Janus Films, The Criterion Collection, ITV, and Park Circus
