Let Him Have It | |
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Directed by | Peter Medak |
Written by | Neal Purvis Robert Wade |
Produced by |
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Starring | |
Cinematography | Oliver Stapleton |
Edited by | Ray Lovejoy |
Music by | Michael Kamen |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | First Independent Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 115 min |
Language | English |
Budget | £2 million [1] |
Box office | $88,686 (US) £292,525 (UK) [1] |
Let Him Have It is a 1991 British drama film directed by Peter Medak and starring Christopher Eccleston, Paul Reynolds, Tom Courtenay and Tom Bell. The film is based on the true story of Derek Bentley, [2] who was convicted of the murder of a police officer by joint enterprise and was hanged in 1953 under controversial circumstances. [3]
Derek Bentley is an illiterate, epileptic young adult with developmental disabilities who falls into a gang led by a younger teenager named Christopher Craig. During the course of the robbery of a warehouse in Croydon, in which Bentley is encouraged to participate by Craig, the two become trapped by the police. Officers order Craig to put down his gun. Bentley, who by this time has already been arrested, shouts "Let him have it, Chris" – whether he means the phrase literally ("Let him have the gun") or figuratively ("Open fire!") is unclear. Craig fires, killing one officer and wounding another. Because Craig is a minor, he cannot be executed and is given a prison sentence. Meanwhile, Bentley is sentenced to death under the English common law principle of joint enterprise, on the basis that his statement to Craig was an instigation to shoot. Bentley's family makes an effort for clemency which reaches Parliament. However, the Home Secretary (who has the power to commute the death sentence) ultimately declines to intervene. Despite his family's efforts and public support, Bentley is executed in 1953 within a month of being convicted, before Parliament takes any official action.
Paul Bergman and Michael Asimow call attention to the cross examination scene, where "the camera closes in on [Bentley's] bruised face as the prosecutor and judge bombard him with questions he can barely comprehend." [2]
The film's end titles state that Bentley's sister, Iris, was still fighting for his pardon. Seven years after the film was made and after numerous unsuccessful campaigns to get Bentley a full pardon, his conviction was eventually overturned by the Court of Appeal on 30 July 1998, one year after Iris's death. [4]
The film opened at the Odeon Leicester Square in London on 4 October 1991 before expanding to 120 screens the following week. [5]
The film gained positive reviews from critics. It holds an 84% approval rating from the review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes based on 37 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Led by a gripping performance from Christopher Eccleston, Let Him Have It sounds a compelling call for justice on behalf of its real-life protagonist." [6]
Tom Wiener said that the film displayed the writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade's "outrage toward a system hell-bent on vengeance" [7] and John Ivan Simon called the script "first rate, no nonsense". [8]
Sir Thomas Daniel Courtenay is an English actor. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he achieved prominence in the 1960s as part of actors of the British New Wave. Courtenay has received numerous accolades including three BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Silver Bear, and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, two Tony Awards, and a Emmy Award. He was knighted for his services to cinema and theatre in the 2001 New Year Honours.
Albert Pierrepoint was an English hangman who executed between 435 and 600 people in a 25-year career that ended in 1956. His father Henry and uncle Thomas were official hangmen before him.
Derek William Bentley was a British man who was hanged for the murder of a policeman during a burglary. Christopher Craig, then aged 16, a friend and accomplice of Bentley, was accused of the murder. Bentley was convicted as a party to the crime under the English law principle of joint enterprise, as the burglary had been committed in mutual understanding and bringing deadly weapons. The outcome of the trial, and Home Secretary David Maxwell Fyfe's failure to grant clemency to Bentley, were highly controversial.
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