Considered one of the greatest British films of all time, “Brief Encounter” (1945) is a romantic drama written by Noel Coward and adapted from his one act play “Still Life”. It tells the tale of Laura Jesson (Celia Johnson), a middle aged middle class woman in a peaceful and monotonous marriage. Laura has her regular Thursday ritual where she takes the train to town to go shopping and catch a matinee performance at a local cinema. On one such train ride she meets Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard), a middle aged doctor who is also married with children. They strike a lively conversation and their acquaintance quickly leads to another encounter. Laura is quick to realize that their sudden friendship is rapidly leading to something deeper, but she is unable and unwilling to resist it. They arrange a meeting in the apartment of one of Alec’s doctor friends, but when said friend returns to the apartment unexpectedly and in a rather judgmental mood, distraught Laura runs to the streets and spends hours hiking and thinking things over. Eventually, they both come to the conclusion that their secret affair has no future and that they are both unwilling to lay their family lives to ruin. Alec decides to take a doctor’s post in Johannesburg, where his brother lives. Laura is there to send him off on a train, but a chatty acquaintance of Laura is there to spoil their final goodbyes. After Alec leaves for his train unable to share a passionate farewell with Laura, she desperately runs after his train before returning to her dull but cozy family life.
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