Victor Saville started in the film business as a cinema manager after being invalided out of the army in W.W.I. In the early twenties he became a producer with Michael Balcon and graduated to directing as talkies came in. In the early thirties he embarked upon a series of the most stylish films ever made in Britain.
He had the knack of directing Jessie Matthews that brought out the best in her. These films - Evergreen, First a Girl etc. - are sophisticated soufflés that have retained their charm while many other films of the period have dated. He could also handle witty spy stories (I Was a Spy) and realistic drama (Hindle Wakes). By the mid-thirties only Hitchcock came close to him.
In 1936 he formed his own production company and the following year MGM hired him to produce The Citadel and Goodbye Mr Chips as part of their effort to use the money their American films had earned in Britain. The success of these films lead Saville to America where he produced a string of solid entertainment packages (i.e. A Woman's Face, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde). In the mid-forties he returned to directing but never reached the heights he did in Britain. His last film as director was the much-mocked The Silver Chalice.
As a director he mainly concentrated on fluff and that's not the best way to become an auteur. Maybe if he'd gone in for thrillers or heavy dramas he would be better known today. However, he made fluff better than anyone else in the British cinema and his films are among the most playful ever made. The best of his works put women centre stage and give them glorious roles where they can challenge gender stereotypes (Jessie Matthews in First A Girl, Belle Chrystall in Hindle Wakes, Cicely Courtneidge in Me and Marlborough, or Joan Crawford in A Woman's Face (prod.))
| 1927 | The Arcadians |
| 1928 | Tesha |
| 1929 | Kitty |
| 1929 | Woman to Woman |
| 1930 | The W Plan |
| 1930 | A Warm Corner |
| 1931 | The Sport of Kings |
| 1931 | Hindle Wakes |
| 1931 | Michael and Mary |
| 1931 | Sunshine Susie |
| 1932 | The Faithful Heart |
| 1932 | Love on Wheels |
| 1933 | The Good Companions |
| 1933 | I Was a Spy |
| 1933 | Friday the 13th |
| 1934 | Evergreen |
| 1934 | Evensong |
| 1934 | The Iron Duke |
| 1935 | The Dictator |
| 1935 | Me and Marlborough |
| 1935 | First a Girl |
| 1936 | It's Love Again |
| 1937 | Dark Journey |
| 1937 | Storm in a Teacup |
| 1938 | South Riding |
| 1943 | Forever and a Day (U.S.) |
| 1945 | Tonight and Every Night (U.S.) |
| 1946 | The Green Years (U.S.) |
| 1947 | Green Dolphin Street (U.S.) |
| 1947 | If Winter Comes (U.S.) |
| 1949 | The Conspirators (U.S.) |
| 1950 | Kim (U.S.) |
| 1951 | Calling Bulldog Drummond (U.S.) |
| 1952 | 24 Hours of a Woman's Life (U.S.) |
| 1954 | The Long Wait (U.S.) |
| 1955 | The Silver Chalice (U.S.) |
