''Two Living, One Dead'' is a 1961 British-Swedish

existentialist Existentialism ( ) is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on human thinking, feeling, and acting. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and value ...

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...

directed by

Anthony Asquith Anthony William Landon Asquith (; 9 November 1902 – 20 February 1968) was an English film director. He collaborated successfully with playwright Terence Rattigan on ''The Winslow Boy'' (1948) and '' The Browning Version'' (1951), among oth ...

and starring Patrick McGoohan,

Virginia McKenna Dame Virginia Anne McKenna, (born 7 June 1931) is a British stage and screen actress, author and wildlife campaigner. She is best known for the films ''A Town Like Alice'' (1956), '' Carve Her Name with Pride'' (1958), ''Born Free'' (1966), and ...

and

Bill Travers William Inglis Lindon Travers (3 January 1922 – 29 March 1994) was a British actor, screenwriter, director and animal rights activist. Prior to his show business career, he served in the British army with Gurkha and special forces units. E ...

. The film is a remake of the 1937 Norwegian film '' To levende og en død'', which in turn was adapted from the novel of the same name by author Sigurd Christiansen. The Scandinavian small-town setting of the earlier film was kept but the action was moved to Sweden.

Plot

Erik Berger (McGoohan) is a reticent, socially withdrawn man who has been working for 20 years in the same Post Office in a Swedish town, not socializing with colleagues and interested only in his wife Helen (McKenna) and son. In contrast his workmate Andersson (Travers) is loud and gregarious, seeing himself as the office joker although his treatment of more junior staff sometimes verges on the malicious. A violent hold-up – heard, but not shown on screen – takes place, during which the office supervisor is shot dead and Andersson suffers a head injury which knocks him out and leaves him concussed. Berger meanwhile, entering the office after hearing the commotion and thinking of his family, resists the urge to risk his life by trying to fight back against the raiders, and emerges uninjured from the incident. In the aftermath, he is treated with barely disguised contempt by the police, his employers and the local community in general, who make it clear that they consider his failure to fight back a mark of spineless cowardice. He does not receive the promotion to office supervisor, which he was previously in line for on the retirement of his boss; instead the job is given to Andersson, who is now being cast in a heroic light. As he becomes increasingly depressed by his ostracism, his relationship with Helen suffers and he feels unable to confide in her. He comes to see himself as the coward everybody is accusing him of being, and even Helen begins to wonder whether he could have acted differently. Berger takes to solitary nocturnal wandering around the town, and meets a stranger, Rogers ( Alf Kjellin), to whom he begins to open up about his recent experiences, albeit while pretending that he is a "friend" of the man involved. Berger and Rogers begin to meet up frequently on their night-time wanderings, and one night, as they part company outside Berger's home, Helen unexpectedly opens the door and invites Rogers in for supper. As they talk, she realizes that her husband has chosen to confide in a stranger rather than her and feels hurt and betrayed. In her distress, she reveals to Berger that their son too is being shunned by his schoolmates and taunted by the allegation that his father is a coward, but has been trying to keep this from Berger, not wanting to add to his unhappiness. The Bergers' relationship deteriorates to the point where they are completely alienated from one another. Seeing this, Rogers eventually admits to Berger that he and his brother were the Post Office robbers, and his brother has since been killed in an accident. Moreover, he lives in the same lodging-house as Andersson, and the robbery was only planned as a consequence of Andersson's constant chatter about the large amount of cash held in the office and when it was most readily accessible. He states that he certainly would have shot Berger had he fought back, but now genuinely regrets the turmoil he has caused to his life, and goes on to reveal that Andersson's injury was not a result of fearless bravery, but happened rather when he ran into a doorframe in his panic to escape. Appalled to discover Andersson's hypocrisy and the craven manner in which he has glorified in his unwarranted heroic status, Berger borrows Rogers' gun and stages another incident in which he exposes Andersson for the man of straw he really is. Having exorcised his demons he returns home to Helen feeling vindicated, and she realizes that their relationship can get back on an even keel.

Cast

* Patrick McGoohan as Erik Berger *

as Helen Berger *

as Andersson * Alf Kjellin as Rogers *

Noel Willman Noel Willman (4 August 1918 – 24 December 1988) was an Irish actor and theatre director. Born in Derry, Ireland, Willman died aged 70 in New York City, United States. Willman's films included '' The Man Who Knew Too Much'' (1956), '' Across ...

as Johnson *

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as Esther Kester *

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as John Kester *

Isa Quensel Isa Quensel (21 September 1905 – 3 November 1981) was a Swedish actress and operatic soprano who appeared in over 50 films, plays, operas, TV and radio shows. In 1939 she created the title role in the world premiere of Erich Wolfgang Korn ...

as Miss Larousse *

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as Broms *

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as Nils Lindwall *

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as Rolf Berger *

Georg Skarstedt Georg Skarstedt (31 January 1900 – 8 December 1976) was a Swedish actor. He appeared in more 120 films between 1920 and 1969. Selected filmography * ''The People of Norrland'' (1930) * '' A Night of Love by the Öresund'' (1931) * '' Int ...

as Torp *

Mona Geijer-Falkner Mona Geijer-Falkner (2 January 1887 – 3 December 1973) was a Swedish film actress. She appeared in more than 100 films between 1920 and 1969. Selected filmography * '' The Rivals'' (1926) * '' Getting Married'' (1926) * '' Frida's Songs' ...

as Mrs. Holm *

Torsten Lilliecrona Torsten Lilliecrona (4 January 1921 – 15 October 1999) was a Swedish actor. He is mostly famous for his role as Melker Melkersson in the highly successful TV show '' Vi på Saltkråkan'' (Life on Seacrow Island) for which Astrid Lindgren w ...

as The Doctor *

Alan Rothwell Alan Rothwell (born 9 February 1937) is an English actor and television presenter. He played David Barlow in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' as a regular from 1960 to 1961, and again from 1963 to 1968. His other acting credits include p ...

as Karlson *

Pauline Jameson 'Pauline Jameson' (5 June 1920 - 8 April 2007) was an English actress whose work encompassed stage and screen. ''The Times'' called her 'one of the most distinguished classical actresses of her generation.' After starting in weekly rep at Colwyn ...

as Miss Larsen *

Marianne Nielsen Marianne Halfdan-Nielsen (born 7 May 1956) is a Danish sailor. She competed in the women's 470 event at the 1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), off ...

as Miss Lind * Peter Bathurst as Engelhardt

Production

''Two Living, One Dead'' was shot on location in Stockholm County, with local studio facilities in the Swedish capital also being used. Asquith used several Swedish crew members and actors in the film.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Two Living, One Dead 1961 films 1960s thriller films British thriller films Films directed by Anthony Asquith British black-and-white films Swedish black-and-white films English-language Swedish films Films based on Norwegian novels Films set in Sweden Remakes of Norwegian films Films scored by Erik Nordgren 1960s English-language films 1960s British films