THEY MADE ME A FUGITIVE
UK, 1947, 100 minutes, Black-and-white.
Sally Gray, Trevor Howard, Griffith Jones, Rene Ray, Mary Merrall, Charles Farrell, Michael Brennan, Jack Mc Naughton, Eve Ashley, Maurice Denham, Vida Hope.
Directed by Cavalcanti.
A post-war British film, a British story about men returning from war action, bored, wanting something to do, becoming involved in criminal activity. It is also a story of the black market, the violence of thugs, police investigations.
The film was directed by Brazilian director, Alberto Cavalcanti who came to Britain and made a number of striking films including Went the Day Well, Nicholas Nickleby, and the ventriloquist sequence, something of a classic, from Dead of Night. He returned to Brazil but had to leave because of his leftist views and subsequently worked in Paris.
Trevor Howard plays the man who is bored and takes up with black market criminals, discovering that they were dealing in drugs, refusing to participate, is framed from murder and goes to prison. Eventually, he escapes, is helped by a woman who hates her husband and urges him to kill her husband and, after he refuses, she kills him herself. He is blamed.
Sally Gray is the girlfriend of the chief criminal, Griffith Jones, but is put aside because of Howard’s former girlfriend. She visits Howard in prison, offers to help. With his escape, he seeks her out, she suspicious but then helping him. There are complications with the police using him as bait to trap the main criminal, a fight on a roof with huge letters RIP ominously behind the fight, each of the characters gripping the letters to prevent falling.
Some have commented linking this film to The Third Man – and, there is uncertainty and the ending, and, in fact, Sally Gray walking into the distance by herself, like Alida Valli in The Third Man.
1. A post-war British thriller? The black market, gangsters, crime and violence, police investigations?
2. The work of the director, Brazil, his work in the UK? His sensibilities?
3. Black-and-white photography, creating the mood of gangster London, prisons? The musical score?
4. The opening, the funeral parlour, the coffin, the police, the criminals and the black market and smuggling? Narcy as the boss, the significance of his name? Lording it over the others? Local thugs, muscle, drivers? The presence of Aggie, her sardonic comments? The discussion about bringing Clem Morgan into the group?
5. The restaurant, Clem, his girlfriend, Ellen? Narcy and the proposal? Drinking? Tossing the coin? Clem becoming involved, carrying the coffins, the smuggled goods? Discovering the drugs, his taking a stand, bowing out? His girlfriend not wanting to leave? His promise to do the last job? The set-up, the alarm, driving, knocking down the policeman, Narcy and the driver escaping, Clem arrested? Prison?
6. Sally, Narcy’s girl, visiting Clem in prison, his taciturn and suspicious response? His motivations, revenge on Narcy, getting the driver to recant? His escape?
7. Clem Is a fugitive, through the woods, shot, Sally later removing the bullets, the farm, getting the clothes, going to the house, the encounter with the wife, the bath and the meal, her anger with her husband, the gun, wanting Clem to kill her husband? Her doing it? Clem being blamed?
8. The pursuit, Sally at the theatre, the performance, Cora and her concern about the driver? Clem and his going to Sally’s house?
9. Narcy, the gang, wanting to get the driver, Cora taking him away, bringing in Cora, getting his location from her? Her sense of betrayal?
10. Sally, Narcy at the theatre, his bashing her? At home, with Clem, helping, their talk?
11. The police, contacting Clem, putting out the information about his arrest, then putting out the information for him as a bait for Narcy to attack?
12. The taking of Sally, questioning, with the group? Narcy and his going out to get Clem?
13. The pursuit, the fight, on the rooftop, the building with RIP on top, Narcy leaping but overbalancing and falling? Clem hanging on, the police rescue?
14. Narcy, dying, refusing to help Clem or Sally? Malicious? The others being too afraid to confess?
15. Clem taken away, the police saying they would assess the evidence? Sally saying she would wait, walking away?
