Malta Story is a 1953 British war film, directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, which is based on the heroic air defence of Malta during the Siege of Malta in the Second World War.[1] The film uses real and unique footage of the locations at which the battles were fought and includes a love story between a RAF pilot and a Maltese woman, as well as the anticipated execution of her brother, caught as an Italian spy. The leading character of the pilot ("Peter Ross") is loosely based on Adrian Warburton; the character of the Maltese woman's brother ("Giuseppe Gonzar", aka "Ricardi") is based on Carmelo Borg Pisani, who was executed in 1942.
Plot: In 1942 Britain is trying hard to hold on to Malta while invasion seems imminent; Italians and Germans are regularly bombing the airfields and towns. The RAF fight to survive against the odds using the few fighter aircraft remaining on the island. Flight Lieutenant Peter Ross (Alec Guinness), an archaeologist in civilian life, is on his way to an RAF posting in Egypt but is stranded in Malta due to the air attacks. He is assigned to the RAF squadron there, being an experienced photo reconnaissance pilot.
Peter meets Maria (Muriel Pavlow), a young Maltese woman working in the RAF operations room. The two fall in love and spend a few romantic hours in the Neolithic temples of Mnajdra and Ħaġar Qim on the island. In the meantime the situation at Malta becomes desperate. Every day civilians are buried under the rubble of air attacks, and famine threatens their survival, as relief convoys are easy prey to the numerous bombings. The island relies on the last few ships of a convoy for supplies.
Peter proposes marriage to Maria, although they realise that wartime is not favourable to lasting love affairs, as Maria's mother suggests; nevertheless, the young couple remain hopeful of the future. Giuseppe, Maria's brother (Nigel Stock) is arrested while trying to infiltrate the island from Italy, where he had been studying since before the war. He admits to being on a spying mission, which he tries to justify by saying he wants to save Malta from further destruction. Maria's mother lives a double family drama knowing that one of her children will almost certainly be executed, and the other is in a doomed love affair.
The RAF holds on, and, along with Royal Navy submarines, is eventually able to take the offensive, targeting enemy shipping on its way to Rommel in Libya. Many air raids take place either to defend the island with Spitfires or a number of attack aircraft, including Bristol Beaufighter fighter-bombers, Bristol Beaufort and Fairey Albacore torpedo bombers, which succeed in sinking Italian tankers and warships. There comes the moment when the most important enemy convoy is on its way to Libya under cover of poor visibility.
Peter's commanding officer (Jack Hawkins) needs desperately to locate this target and orders him to find it at any cost, realising that this will be virtually a suicide mission. Peter, flying in his Spitfire, finally finds it, but has to stay close to keep contact. He is attacked by six Messerschmitt Bf 109Fs. Peter stays calm, but cannot escape his fate; he is shot down and killed, while Maria in the operations room listens helplessly to his final radio transmissions. After Peter's radio transmissions fall silent, Maria picks up Peter's Spitfire Number A14 from the Operations Table.
Later the next day, Maria sits by the beach, thinking of her beloved Peter while still holding his Spitfire Number A14. In the end, a newspaper article notes that the attack was a success, as the Afrika Corps has lost the Second Battle of El Alamein (in part due to supply shortages) and thus their foothold in Africa.
Cast: Alec Guinness as Flight Lieutenant Peter Ross Jack Hawkins as Air Vice Marshal Frank Anthony Steel as Wing Commander Bartlett Muriel Pavlow as Maria Gonzar Renée Asherson as Joan Rivers Hugh Burden as Eden, Security Nigel Stock as Giuseppe Gonzar (aka Ricardi) Reginald Tate as Vice Admiral Payne Ralph Truman as Vice Admiral Willie Banks Flora Robson as Melita Gonzar, Maria's and Giuseppe's mother
