Crashing the Water Barrier (1956)

This has a disappointingly superficial, newsreel, look to it as it takes us to Lake Mead in Nevada. That’s where Donald Campbell has come from the UK to try and emulate his father’s land-speed record, only on water this time, on a lake hopefully devoid of the logs he encountered at home. The first few practice runs present problems. Not enough oxygen is getting in to let the jet breathe, then too much water is getting in to drown it out. Some basic redesign is required if he is to get over the 200mph mark over his target distance of one mile, and he also needs this massive expanse of man-made water to play ball too - choppy waters are a non-starter. The film doesn’t really tell us anything about the man, his motivation or his kit nor is the commentary especially captivating and given history has already told us what happened next, it’s all just a bit procedural. There is some decent photography but this film doesn’t really convey very much of the excitement of the day very well.