The Stars Look Down (film)

The Stars Look Down is a British film from 1940, based on A. J. Cronins 1935 novel of the same name, about injustices in a mining community in North East England. The film, coscripted by Cronin and directed by Carol Reed, stars Michael Redgrave as Davey Fenwick and Margaret Lockwood as Jenny Sunley. The film is a New York Times Critics Pick and is listed in The New York Times Guide to the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made.

Later the set was moved to Shepperton Studios for another week of shooting. The original set of the minehead was used to make up a huge composite set of 40,000 square yards, then the largest exterior set ever constructed for a British film. The set consisted of an exact replica of the Workington mine where the location work had been done, including a pithead complete with cage, ramp, outer buildings, and rows of miners cottages. To ensure authenticity, pit ponies from the Cumberland mines were used and the miners costumes consisted of clothes purchased from colliery workers.For the US release, a year and a half after the British premiere, the opening and end credits were changed and supplemented with a voiceover narration by Lionel Barrymore. In addition, the departing scenes and dialogue at end between Davey and his mother were cut out completely. ........

Source: Wikipedia