Hand in Hand revisited

 

TV babies of a certain age will remember Philip Leacock's highly affecting short film Hand in Hand (1961).

American viewers no doubt first saw it on CBS's Children's Film Festival, with Kukla, Fran and Ollie.

This wonderful film came up today in an exchange with a younger friend with whom I was discussing the heavy topics of guilt and culpability.

Viewers will recall this movie is about two British school children, Michael and Rachel, who become friends and go on adventures. Michael is Catholic and Rachel is Jewish. They become inseparable and one day are made aware of each other's religion. They decide to explore until Michael attacks Rachel with something he'd been told: The Jews killed Jesus.

Rachel tearfully denies doing it. She says she doesn't know him. And didn't do it. She's hurt that her friend would accuse her of doing such a thing. It's a brief but powerful scene.

When I described it to my friend, who has never seen the film, he said it sounded lovely and even a bit quaint and made him even more aware of how different the world is for children.

Michael and Rachel reconcile, set aside the hate and misery of the adult world to nurture love and hope in their own.

Maybe if we become more like children, we'd all be better off.