The Man in the White Suit
The Man in the White Suit: New Textiles and the Social Fabric
By Amy Sargeant
Visual Culture in Britain (June, 2008)
The Man in the White Suit was one of a number of films made in the 1950s that were concerned with distinct social strata and with labour relations in industry. What seems important to me here is how continuing ‘family’ interests (literal or figurative) in firms are represented and how workers’ concerns may be seen to conflict or coincide with the interests of their bosses, particularly when confronted with technological progress. Disinterested middlemen are rarely granted a sympathetic hearing. It seems valuable to set The Man in the White Suit in a particular historical context for its production and reception.
PDF here. Here for a review of the film from The New York Times. Here for a review from Monthly Film Bulletin.
