 |
|
The Sleeping Tiger
1954 Drama / Thriller / Romance
 Review
Blacklisted in Hollywood for alleged involvement with the Communist
Party, director Joseph Losey hoped to continue his filmmaking career in
England. At first he had difficulty finding work and rarely was
he able to find projects that appealed to him. For his first
British film, The Sleeping Tiger,
Losey was not even allowed to be identified as the director – the
credit went to Victor Hanbury, an obscure English filmmaker who
co-produced the film with Losey for the company
Anglo Amalgamated. Similarly, the authors of the
screenplay, Carl Foreman and Harold Buchman, were also McCarthyist
exiles who adopted the pseudonym Derek Frye. The film marks
the beginning of Losey’s long and successful association with actor
Dirk Bogarde, who would appear in four subsequent Losey films: The Servant (1963), King and Country (1964), Modesty Blaise (1966) and Accident (1967).
Right from the outset Joseph Losey had little regard for the script and was troubled by the apparent weaknesses in the story. However, he was determined to rise above these concerns (knowing that if he failed his filmmaking career would probably be over) and with the support of his distinguished cinematographer Harry Waxman and talented cast he succeeds in crafting a compelling noir-like drama. The experience of making this film was not altogether bad for Losey, since he had the opportunity to experiment with technique and form to a greater extent than he had been able to during his time in Hollywood. The result is a film that is stylistically impressive, marred only by a risible storyline and some weak characterisation. Those familiar with Losey’s work will recognise the characteristic stylistic and thematic touches which would form an integral component of the baroque style of his later films, such as the endless use of shadows and mirrors to suggest confinement and narcissistic self-delusion. Despite the mediocre script, the performances hold our attention and render the implausible story just about credible. In an early dramatic part, Dirk Bogarde performs with a brooding intensity that suggests psychotic menace and tortured vulnerability - streets away from the genial role in the Doctor films which had just made him a household name. © CinemaForever.com 2009 Write a review for this film...User Comments
How do you rate this film?
|
Director:
Joseph Losey
Starring: Dirk Bogarde, Alexis Smith, Alexander Knox, Hugh Griffith, Patricia McCarron Synopsis
One evening, the eminent psychiatrist Dr Clive Esmond is held up by a
young petty crook named Frank Clements. Esmond manages to disarm
his assailant, but rather than hand him over to the police he decides to
take him home and subject him to an intense course of therapy. The
psychiatrist is confident that he can cure Clements of his criminal
tendencies and transform him into a useful member of society.
Esmond’s wife Glenda is understandably perturbed when she learns that
her husband has adopted a dangerous criminal but, over time, she begins
to find the aggressive young man strangely attractive. Despite
his benefactor’s best efforts, Clements continues his criminal
exploits, whilst embarking on a passionate love affair with his wife...
Credits
 More British Drama  More British Thriller |
  |
© CinemaForever.com 2009