The Good Die Young (1954)

Director:

Lewis Gilbert

Writers:

Vernon Harris (screenplay) and
Lewis Gilbert (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

1 November 1954 (Sweden)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Plot:

Three good men - a broken boxer, an American veteran trying to win back his mother-dominated wife, and...

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | British Noir | Based On Novel

Cast

Laurence Harvey	...	Miles 'Rave' Ravenscourt
Gloria Grahame	...	Denise Blaine
Richard Basehart	...	Joe Halsey
Joan Collins	...	Mary Halsey
John Ireland	...	Eddie Blaine
René Ray	...	Angela Morgan (as Rene Ray)
Stanley Baker	...	Mike Morgan
Margaret Leighton	...	Eve Ravenscourt
Robert Morley	...	Sir Francis Ravenscourt
Freda Jackson	...	Mrs. Freeman
James Kenney	...	Dave, Angela's Brother
Susan Shaw	...	Doris, Girl in the Pub
Lee Patterson	...	Tod Maslin
Sandra Dorne	...	Pretty Girl
Leslie Dwyer	...	Stookey

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (2001) | USA:Approved (PCA #16841)

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Remus

smart british thriller

Coming to this with neutral expectations, and fresh from seeing Harvey in 'Room at the Top' for the umpteenth time, I was quite surprised to find it watchable, with lots of interesting facets and a cast who complement each other well. Baker (an actor whose work seems to be undergoing some appraisal at film festivals lately) gives some dignity to the down-on-his-luck prizefighter; Harvey convincingly plays an upper-class slimeball alternatively charming and terrorising his wife (interesting played by Margaret Leighton, who would become Mrs Harvey in real life), sparring with the father who despises him, and poisoning his 'friends' lives like a devious snake. Ireland, as the bitter GI with a film star wife flaunting her infidelities each time he comes home from leave, is effective, while Basehart, with a weedy wife and an overbearing mother-in-law, puts across his frustations nicely. So much for characterisation. The film is mainly taken up with a series of flashbacks, showing how the four men find themselves in the situation we see them in at the start. Once it moves back into the present, it feels rushed and the final moralistic voiceover almost kills it. Amongst the other players, Joan Collins as Basehart's wife doesn't do much besides pout and look pretty, while Gloria Grahame as the film actress manages to be simply irritating. All things considered, the film isn't a total success but has enough going on to keep you there with it.