The Volunteer

During WWII, Ralph Richardson suggested that Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger make a recruitment film for the Fleet Air Arm, which both he and Laurence Olivier had joined. Pressburger proposed a “semidocumentary,” which resulted in THE VOLUNTEER (1943), starring Richardson and featuring a brief guest appearance by Olivier. Criterion is pleased to present the original, 46-minute version of the film, rarely seen in the United States.