The Break (1963 film)

Last updated

The Break
The Break film theatrical release poster (1963).png
Directed by Lance Comfort
Written by Pip and Jane Baker
Starring Tony Britton
William Lucas
Christina Gregg
Cinematography Basil Emmott
Edited by Peter Pitt
Music by Brian Fahey
Production
company
Mancunian Film Corporation Ltd.
Release date
  • 7 July 1963 (1963-07-07)
Running time
77 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
Language English

The Break is a 1963 British second feature [1] drama film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Tony Britton, William Lucas and Christina Gregg. [2] It was written by Pip and Jane Baker.

Contents

Plot

Jacko Thomas is a dangerous criminal who escapes from the train taking him to prison and hides in the secluded Dartmoor hotel run by Judd Tredgar, who had arranged his escape. Also staying at the hotel are Thomas's sister Sue, private detective Pearson, and novelist Greg Parker, the man Pearson is investigating. When Pearson discovers that Tredgar is running a smuggling racket, Thomas kills him. Meanwhile Parker has fallen in love with Sue, and finds himself in a dangerous situation. Parker and Thomas fight, and Sarah, the mute servant, kills Thomas, as an act of revenge for his murder of her brother Moses.

Cast

Critical response

Monthly Film Bulletin said: "A routine plot, adequately acted by a cast which deserved better things. Set principally in the farmhouse, the few exteriors used are bleak moorland and quarry – in keeping, perhaps, with the melodrama and general dreariness of the production." [3]

Chibnall and McFarlane in The British 'B' Film wrote: "The Break has a striking pre-credits sequence (a device not then very common) involving a criminal's leap from a train, a murder and an arrest. Comfort typically takes the film out of that stagy interior setting, avoiding that airless, studio-set claustrophobia with so often bedevils British budget film-making, and the action sequences are handled with real flair. The narrative shifts to a farmhouse, run as a hotel by an edgy married couple who are also involved in a smuggling racket. The setting-and-character mix sometimes recalls old-fashioned three-act plays, but a strong cast (including Sonia Dresdel as a grimly enigmatic cook, and William Lucas as the fugitive) gives point to the film's relationships." [1]

The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "Lance Comfort directs this plodding whodunnit, in which a detective, a novelist, a fleeing crook and his sister stumble upon dark deeds on a Devon farm. Tony Britton does his best in the lead, but the mystery isn't likely to put too much strain on your little grey cells." [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lance Comfort</span> English film director (1908–1966)

Lance Comfort was an English film director. He was a prolific maker of B movies from 1945 to 1965.

<i>Touch of Death</i> (1961 film) 1961 British film by Lance Comfort

Touch of Death is a 1961 black and white British second feature crime film directed by Lance Comfort and starring William Lucas, David Sumner, Ray Barrett and Jan Waters. It was written by Lyn Fairhurst from a story by Aubrey Cash and Wilfred Josephs.

<i>Brandy for the Parson</i> 1952 British film by John Eldridge

Brandy for the Parson is a 1952 British comedy film directed by John Eldridge and starring Kenneth More, Charles Hawtrey, James Donald and Jean Lodge. It was written by Walter Meade, John Dighton and Alfred Shaughnessy based on a short story by Geoffrey Household from Tales of Adventurers (1952). The title is a reference to the refrain of the poem "A Smuggler's Song" by Rudyard Kipling.

<i>The Blue Parrot</i> 1953 British film by John Harlow

The Blue Parrot is a low budget 1953 British "B" crime film directed by John Harlow and starring Dermot Walsh, Jacqueline Hill, Ballard Berkeley, Richard Pearson, and John Le Mesurier. The film was produced by Stanley Haynes for Act Films Ltd. The screenplay is by Alan MacKinnon from a story by British crime reporter Percy Hoskins.

<i>Tomorrow at Ten</i> 1962 British film by Lance Comfort

Tomorrow at Ten is a 1962 British second feature thriller film directed by Lance Comfort and starring John Gregson, Robert Shaw and Kenneth Cope. It was written by James Kelley and Peter Miller.

<i>Man from Tangier</i> 1957 British film by Lance Comfort

Man from Tangier is a 1957 British second feature crime film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Robert Hutton, Lisa Gastoni and Martin Benson. It was written by Paddy Manning O'Brine.

<i>The Breaking Point</i> (1961 film) 1961 British film by Lance Comfort

The Breaking Point is a 1961 second feature British crime film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Peter Reynolds, Dermot Walsh, Joanna Dunham and Lisa Gastoni. The screenplay was by Peter Lambert based on the 1957 novel by Laurence Meynell.

<i>The Painted Smile</i> 1962 British film by Lance Comfort

The Painted Smile is a 1962 British second feature thriller film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Liz Fraser, Kenneth Griffith, Peter Reynolds and Tony Wickert. It was written by Pip and Jane Baker.

<i>Paul Temples Triumph</i> 1950 British film by Maclean Rogers

Paul Temple's Triumph is a 1950 British second feature ('B') crime film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring John Bentley, Dinah Sheridan and Jack Livesey. It was the third in the series of four Paul Temple films made at Nettlefold Studios and was an adaptation by Francis Durbridge and A. R. Rawlinson of Durbridge's radio serial News of Paul Temple (1939). Temple is on the trail of a gang of international criminals trying to steal atomic secrets.

<i>River Beat</i> 1954 British film by Guy Green

River Beat is a 1954 British second feature noir crime film directed by Guy Green and starring John Bentley, Phyllis Kirk and Leonard White. It was written by Rex Rientis and distributed in the United States by Lippert Pictures.

<i>Bang! Youre Dead</i> 1954 British film by Lance Comfort

Bang! You're Dead, also known as Game of Danger, is a 1954 British second feature ('B') psychological drama film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Jack Warner, Anthony Richmond, Veronica Hurst, Derek Farr and Sean Barrett. It was written by Ernest Borneman and Guy Elmes. When a child accidentally kills a man, the child and his companion struggle to comprehend the gravity of what has happened.

<i>When We Are Married</i> (film) 1943 British film

When We Are Married is a 1943 British comedy-drama film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Sydney Howard, Raymond Huntley and Olga Lindo.

<i>Rag Doll</i> (film) 1961 British film by Lance Comfort

Rag Doll, released in the USA as Young, Willing and Eager, is a 1961 British second feature crime film, directed by Lance Comfort and starring Christina Gregg, Kenneth Griffith, Jess Conrad and Hermione Baddeley. It was written by Derry Quinn and Brock Williams.

<i>Third Party Risk</i> 1954 British film by Daniel Birt

Third Party Risk is a 1954 second feature British crime drama film directed by Daniel Birt and starring Lloyd Bridges, Simone Silva and Finlay Currie. It was written by Birt and Robert Dunbaris based on the 1953 novel of the same name by Nicholas Bentley. It was released in the United States by Lippert Pictures under the title TheDeadly Game.

<i>Dick Barton: Special Agent</i> 1948 British film by Raymond Raikes

Dick Barton: Special Agent is a 1948 British second feature ('B') spy film directed by Alfred J. Goulding and starring Don Stannard. It was written by Goulding and Alan Stranks, adapted from the BBC radio serial Dick Barton – Special Agent. It was the first of three films that Hammer Film Productions made about the British agent, followed by Dick Barton at Bay 6and Dick Barton Strikes Back.

<i>Blackout</i> (1950 film) 1950 British film by Robert S. Baker

Blackout is a 1950 British second feature ('B') crime drama film directed by Robert S. Baker and starring Maxwell Reed and Dinah Sheridan. The screenplay was by John Gilling from a story by Carl Nystrom.

<i>Jungle Street</i> 1960 British film by Charles Saunders

Jungle Street, released in the US as Jungle Street Girls, is a 1961 black and white second feature British crime drama directed by Charles Saunders and starring David McCallum, Kenneth Cope, and Jill Ireland. The screenplay was by Alexander Doré from a story by Guido Coen.

<i>Dont Talk to Strange Men</i> 1962 British film by Pat Jackson

Don't Talk to Strange Men is a 1962 black and white British 'B' crime thriller film directed by Pat Jackson and starring Christina Gregg, Janina Faye, Cyril Raymond and Gillian Lind. The screenplay was by Gwen Cherrell.

<i>Undercover Girl</i> (1958 film) 1958 British film by Francis Searle

Undercover Girl is a 1958 British second feature crime film directed by Francis Searle and starring Paul Carpenter, Kay Callard, and Bruce Seton. A photographer combats a ruthless extortionist.

<i>13 East Street</i> 1952 film

13 East Street is a 1952 British second feature ('B') crime thriller film directed by Robert S. Baker and starring Patrick Holt, Sandra Dorne and Sonia Holm. It was written by John Gilling, Carl Nystrom and Baker and produced by Tempean Films.

References

  1. 1 2 Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 141. ISBN   978-1-8445-7319-6.
  2. ↑ "The Break". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
  3. ↑ "The Break". Monthly Film Bulletin . 30 (348): 99. 1963 – via ProQuest.
  4. ↑ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 127. ISBN   9780992936440.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.