Yield to the Night

Last updated

Yield to the Night
Yield to the Night.jpg
Theatrical poster for the US release of Yield to the Night (1956)
Directed by J. Lee Thompson
Written byJohn Cresswell
Joan Henry
Based on Yield to the Night by Joan Henry
Produced by Kenneth Harper
Starring Diana Dors
Yvonne Mitchell
Michael Craig
Cinematography Gilbert Taylor
Edited by Richard Best
Music by Ray Martin
Distributed by Associated British-Pathé
Release date
  • 14 June 1956 (1956-06-14)(London) [1]
Running time
99 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office£174,911 [2]

Yield to the Night (U.S. title: Blonde Sinner) is a 1956 British crime drama film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Diana Dors, Yvonne Mitchell and Michael Craig. [3] [4] It was written by John Cresswell and Joan Henry based on Henry's 1954 novel Yield to the Night. [5]

Contents

The storyline bears a superficial and coincidental resemblance to the Ruth Ellis case, which had occurred the previous year but subsequent to the release of Henry's novel. The film received much positive critical attention, particularly for the unexpectedly skilled acting of Dors, who had previously been cast solely as a British version of the typical "blonde bombshell". [6]

Premise

Mary Hilton has been convicted of murder and sentenced to hang, and she spends her last weeks in the condemned cell in a British women's prison. While there she remembers the events in her life leading up to the murder.

Cast


Production

The film was based on a book by Joan Henry, a writer and former debutante who had gone to prison. Henry wrote a memoir about her experiences which was filmed as The Weak and the Wicked (1954), directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Diana Dors. Thompson married Henry and they decided to collaborate on another movie. Thompson was anti-capital punishment and wanted to do a story about a man in a death cell. Henry said she could not write about a man but might be able to do it about a woman. "So he really gave me the idea, and then I showed him a plan", she said. The novel of Yield to the Night was published in 1954. [7] [8] [9]

The storyline bore some similarities to the Ruth Ellis case but Henry wrote the story and script during the filming of The Weak and the Wicked. Dors (who had been briefly acquainted with Ellis on the film Lady Godiva Rides Again in 1951) said it "wasn’t about Ruth Ellis at all. Everybody thinks it was but the script was written two years before Ruth Ellis committed the murder. It's a fascinating syndrome that all this was put down on paper before it happened." [10]

Thompson later said "For capital punishment you must take somebody who deserves to die, and then feel sorry for them and say this is wrong. We did that in Yield to the Night: we made it a ruthless, premeditated murder." [11]

Dors said this "was the first time I ever had a chance to play such a part. I was very thankful to Lee J. Thompson for having faith in me. Until then everybody thought I was just a joke, and certainly not an actress to be taken seriously, even though I knew within myself I was capable of playing other roles. The big problem was trying to convince other people." [10]

Filming started at Elstree Studios on 2 November 1955.[ citation needed ]

Michael Craig said Thompson was "a small, very intense man with a violent temper, which could be provoked by practically anything or nothing. He had a nervous habit of tearing sheets of paper into long thin strips." [12] Craig thought Dors was "terrific... one of the most free-spirited and professional actresses I worked with." [13]

Despite the film's success Dors never worked with Thompson again. [14]

Reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Assessment of Yield to the Night can only be made on two levels, those of the film itself: the study of a young woman awaiting execution for murder; and the novelettish flashbacks full of rejected and unfaithful lovers, etc. With this latter material we are in familiar screen territory – extensive London location shooting, a flashy camera style, wafer-thin characterisation and improbable motivation. On the film's other level a definite attempt has been made, in the writing and presentation, objectively to penetrate the condemned cell and the doomed psychology of the murderess. As a plea against capital punishment, however, the producers' conception of their drama seems to lack passion, and this makes it difficult to assimilate the film's emotional climate. Diana Dors, her natural exuberance muted, plays Mary Hilton touchingly, evoking gradual but positive sympathy." [15]

Variety called it "a grim form of entertainment." [16]

Filmink called it "a masterpiece, a stunningly good drama, where Dors plays a character who never asks for sympathy but gets it anyway: she's guilty of the crime, isn’t friendly to her family or death penalty protestors, still loves the louse who drove her to murder. The movie is full of little touches that speak volumes for Henry's personal experience in prison – the routine of changing guards, the conversations, the way the seconds drag on by, the visiting officials, the small privileges, the overwhelming pressure of the longing for a reprieve – and the final moments are devastating: it's one of the best British movies of the decade." [17]

Leslie Halliwell said: "Gloomy prison melodrama vaguely based on the Ruth Ellis casse and making an emotional plea against capital punishment." [18]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "good", writing: "Convincing, if unrelievedly grim drama that proved its glamorous leading lady really could act." [19]

The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 3/5 stars, writing: "Directed with a grim sense of purpose by J Lee Thompson, this sincere plea for the abolition of capital punishment was based on the case of Ruth Ellis, the last woman in Britain to be hanged and whose story was retold some 30 years later with a good deal more style by Mike Newell in Dance with a Stranger . Diana Dors gives one of the best performances of her career as the murderess recalling the circumstances that drove her to kill while waiting to hear if she will be reprieved." [20]

Accolades

The movie was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. [21]

An image of Diana Dors in a cell from the film was used on the cover of the Smiths' Singles album.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Pierrepoint</span> English executioner (1905–1992)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diana Dors</span> English actress and singer (1931–1984)

Diana Dors was an English actress and singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. Lee Thompson</span> British film director and screenwriter (1914–2002)

John Lee Thompson was an English film director, screenwriter and producer. Initially an exponent of social realism, he became known as a versatile and prolific director of thrillers, action, and adventure films.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruth Ellis</span> British escort and murderer (1926–1955)

Ruth Ellis was a Welsh nightclub hostess and convicted murderer who became the last woman to be executed in the United Kingdom following the fatal shooting of her lover, David Blakely.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mae Clarke</span> American actress (1910–1992)

Mae Clarke was an American actress. She is widely remembered for playing Henry Frankenstein's bride Elizabeth, who is chased by Boris Karloff in Frankenstein, and for being on the receiving end of James Cagney's halved grapefruit in The Public Enemy. Both films were released in 1931.

<i>The Unholy Wife</i> 1957 American film by John Farrow

The Unholy Wife is a 1957 Technicolor film noir crime film produced and directed by John Farrow at RKO Radio Pictures, but released by Universal Pictures as RKO was in the process of ceasing its film activities. The film features Diana Dors, Rod Steiger, Tom Tryon and Beulah Bondi. The screenplay was written by William Durkee and Jonathan Latimer

<i>Lady Godiva Rides Again</i> 1951 British film by Frank Launder

Lady Godiva Rides Again is a 1951 British comedy film starring Pauline Stroud, George Cole and Bernadette O'Farrell, with British stars in supporting roles or making cameo appearances. It concerns a small-town English girl who wins a local beauty contest by appearing as Lady Godiva, then decides to pursue a higher profile in a national beauty pageant and as an actress.

<i>The Weak and the Wicked</i> 1954 film by J. Lee Thompson

The Weak and the Wicked is a 1954 British drama film directed by J. Lee Thompson based on the autobiographical novel Who Lie in Gaol by his wife, Joan Henry, starring Glynis Johns and Diana Dors.

<i>Passport to Shame</i> 1958 British film by Alvin Rakoff

Passport to Shame, is a 1958 British drama film directed by Alvin Rakoff and starring Diana Dors and Herbert Lom. It was written by Patrick Alexander.

<i>The Last Page</i> 1952 British film by Terence Fisher

The Last Page, released in the United States as Man Bait, is a 1952 British film noir directed by Terence Fisher, starring George Brent, Marguerite Chapman and Diana Dors. The film was also known as Murder in Safety and Blonde Blackmail.

<i>Girls in Prison</i> (1956 film) 1956 film by Edward L. Cahn

Girls in Prison is a 1956 American sexploitation women in prison drama film about a young woman who is convicted of being an accomplice to a bank robbery and is sent to an all-female prison. The film was directed by Edward L. Cahn, and stars Richard Denning, Joan Taylor, and Mae Marsh. American International Pictures released the film as a double feature with Hot Rod Girl.

<i>Value for Money</i> 1955 British comedy film by Ken Annakin

Value for Money is a 1955 British comedy film directed by Ken Annakin and starring John Gregson, Diana Dors, Susan Stephen and Derek Farr. It is based on the 1953 novel of the same name by Derrick Boothroyd.

<i>An Alligator Named Daisy</i> 1955 British film by J. Lee Thompson

An Alligator Named Daisy is a 1955 British comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Donald Sinden, Jeannie Carson, James Robertson Justice, Diana Dors, Roland Culver and Stanley Holloway. It was written by Jack Davies based on the 1954 novel of the same name by Charles Terrot.

<i>As Long as Theyre Happy</i> 1955 British film by J. Lee Thompson

As Long as They're Happy is a 1955 British musical comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Jack Buchanan, Susan Stephen and Diana Dors. It was written by Alan Melville based on the 1953 play of the same name by Vernon Sylvaine. It was shot in Eastmancolor at Pinewood Studios near London with sets designed by the art director Michael Stringer.

<i>Mrs. Gibbons Boys</i> (film) 1962 British film by Max Varnel

Mrs. Gibbons' Boys is a black and white 1962 British comedy film directed by Max Varnel and starring Kathleen Harrison, Lionel Jeffries and Diana Dors. It is based on the play of the same name by Joseph Stein and Will Glickman, and was released in the UK as the bottom half of a double bill with Constantine and the Cross (1961).

<i>No Time for Tears</i> (film) 1957 British film by Directed by Cyril Frankel

No Time for Tears is a 1957 British drama film directed by Cyril Frankel in CinemaScope and Eastman Color and starring Anna Neagle, George Baker, Sylvia Syms and Anthony Quayle. It was written by Anne Burnaby and Frederix Gotfurt. The staff at a children's hospital struggle with their workload.

Joan Constance Anne Henry was an English novelist, playwright and screenwriter. A former débutante from an illustrious family, she was jailed for passing a fraudulent cheque in 1951 and her best-known works were based on her experiences in prison. She wrote the semi-autobiographical Who Lie in Gaol, filmed as The Weak and the Wicked, and the novel Yield to the Night, the basis for the film starring Diana Dors.

<i>The Feminine Touch</i> (1956 film) 1956 British film by Pat Jackson

The Feminine Touch is a 1956 colour British drama film directed by Pat Jackson and starring George Baker, Belinda Lee and Delphi Lawrence. It was the last feature film to be filmed in three-strip Technicolor.

<i>House of Whipcord</i> 1974 British film by Pete Walker

House of Whipcord is a 1974 British exploitation thriller film directed and produced by Pete Walker and starring Barbara Markham, Patrick Barr, Ray Brooks, Ann Michelle, Sheila Keith, Dorothy Gordon, Robert Tayman and Penny Irving. The film was Walker's first collaboration with screenwriter David McGillivray, who went on to write a further three films for him. It also marked the horror film debut of actress Sheila Keith, who went on to star in four more films for Walker.

<i>Yield to the Night</i> (novel) 1954 novel

Yield to the Night is a 1954 novel by the British writer Joan Henry. Henry had served a prison sentence in 1951 for passing fraudulent cheques and had written a bestselling book Who Lie in Gaol based on her experiences. She followed this up with Yield to the Night a fictional story about a woman sentenced to death for murder.

References

  1. ↑ "Yield to the Night". Art & Hue. 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  2. ↑ Vincent Porter, 'The Robert Clark Account', Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol 20 No 4, 2000 p510
  3. ↑ "Yield to the Night". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  4. ↑ "Yield to the Night (1956)". BFI. Archived from the original on 5 May 2016.
  5. ↑ Williams, Melanie (30 June 2006). "Diana Dors: An angry young woman". The Independent . Archived from the original on 6 March 2009. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  6. ↑ "BFI Screenonline: Yield to the Night (1956)".
  7. ↑ Yield to the Night at TCMDB
  8. ↑ "REVIEWS OF BOOKS IN BRIEF". The West Australian . Vol. 70, no. 21, 278. Western Australia. 2 October 1954. p. 29. Retrieved 15 August 2020– via National Library of Australia.
  9. ↑ "A woman on Death Row". The Daily Telegraph . Vol. XV, no. 49. New South Wales, Australia. 24 October 1954. p. 24. Retrieved 15 August 2020– via National Library of Australia.
  10. 1 2 Williams, Tony (2000). "Diana Dors". Psychotronic Video. No. 32. p. 50.
  11. ↑ "Diana Dors: An Angry Young Woman" . The Independent. 30 June 2006. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022.
  12. ↑ Craig, Michael (2005). The Smallest Giant: An Actor's Life. Allen and Unwin. p. 73.
  13. ↑ Craig p 74
  14. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (7 September 2020). "A Tale of Two Blondes: Diana Dors and Belinda Lee". Filmink.
  15. ↑ "Yield to the Night". The Monthly Film Bulletin . 23 (264): 101. 1 January 1956 – via ProQuest.
  16. ↑ Review of film at Variety
  17. ↑ Vagg, Stephen (30 August 2020). "Joan Henry: The Jailbird Muse". Filmink.
  18. ↑ Halliwell, Leslie (1989). Halliwell's Film Guide (7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 1140. ISBN   0586088946.
  19. ↑ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 403. ISBN   0-7134-1874-5.
  20. ↑ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 1045. ISBN   9780992936440.
  21. ↑ "Festival de Cannes: Yield to the Night". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 7 February 2009.
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.