The Demi-Paradise

The Demi-Paradise
Danish theatrical poster
Directed by	Anthony Asquith
Produced by	Filippo Del Giudice Anatole de Grunwald
Written by	Anatole de Grunwald
Starring	Laurence Olivier Margaret Rutherford
Music by	Nicholas Brodszky
Cinematography	Bernard Knowles
Distributed by	Two Cities Films
Release date	20 December 1943 (UK)
Running time	114 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

The Demi-Paradise (also known as Adventure for Two) is a 1943 Britishcomedy film made by Two Cities Films. It stars Laurence Olivier as a Soviet Russian inventor who travels to England to have his revolutionary propeller manufactured, and Penelope Dudley-Ward as the woman who falls in love with him. It was directed by Anthony Asquith and produced by Anatole de Grunwald and Filippo Del Giudice from a screenplay by de Grunwald. The music score was by Nicholas Brodszky and the cinematography by Bernard Knowles.

The film is a gentle satire on the values the English hold so dear. It was designed to encourage sympathy between Britain and the Soviet Union. The film's title is a reference to John of Gaunt's famous speech in Richard II which begins:

A Russian inventor by the name Ivan Kouznetsoff travels to England to introduce the British shipping industry to his newly invented and improved propeller blade. When he is in England Kouznetsoff meets the socialite woman Anne Tisdall, and falls head over heels for her. Meeting Anne and hearing her views turn his own previous views and conceptions about the capitalist system and its degenerates up side down. After a lovers' quarrel, Ivan heads back to Russian only to be recalled to England a year later to smooth out imperfections in his design. Despite his efforts, his modifications prove to be unsound and he seems destined to return to the Soviet Union in disgrace.

The subject of affection, Anne, convinces the local shipbuilders to work around the clock in order to realize the revolutionary propeller. Soon they solve the problem, and there is a very successful launch of the new line of propelled ships. Ivan can return to the Soviet Union to aid the war effort, enriched by Anne's love.

Miles Malleson, John Laurie, George Cole, and Wilfrid Hyde-White had minor roles.