A Dangerous Age

''A Dangerous Age'' is a 1957 film directed by Sidney J. Furie. It is Furie's low-budget tale about young lovers (Ben Piazza and Anne Pearson) on the run from an uncaring adult world – they just want to get married but are thwarted at every turn – remains something of landmark in English-Canadian feature production.

According to the Canadian Film Encyclopedia "The first Canadian feature in many years to win praise at the Festival de Cannes and the Venice International Film Festival, it merited serious international critical attention and remains a landmark of Canadian film production. Its low-key, quasi-documentary style, evocative use of locations and what some British critics called its "honesty" stand in marked contrast to Hollywood’s "adolescent crisis" films of the same period."

Plot

Nancy, 17, and David, 19, are young college students who are in love and want to marry. Their parents object, so the couple elopes to the USA with a forged birth certificate for Nancy. David has second thoughts after seeing a married couple argue.

They are told they have to wait for twenty four hours so they go back over the border and are pulled over by the police.

David persuades Nancy to go on the run with him. They flee but are caught by the police. David and Nancy decide to wait to get married.

Cast

*Ben Piazza as David
*Anne Pearson as Nancy
*John Sullivan
*Kate Reid
*Aileen Seaton
*Shane Rimmer
*Austin Willis
*Barbara Hamilton

Production

''A Dangerous Age'' began as an hour-long drama for CBC-TV, where the 24-year-old Furie worked as a writer. The story was based on a real incident where Furie attempted to elope and was stopped.

The film was financed by Furie's father.

The movie was shot over twelve days in and around Toronto, starting 9 August 1957. The two lead actors were Americans but the rest of the cast were Canadians. "It's not an epic but I think it's a good entertainment feature for the double bills" said Furie. He added, "This is not a Canadian story specifically. It could take place anywhere. My reason for importing the two lead players from the US was simply I found I couldn't get the types I wanted here."

Reception

The film received critical praise when it was released in the UK where Furie was recognized as a fresh talent; however, it was ignored in Canada.

Furie sold the movie to the USA for a thousand dollars' profit and was able to pay back his father.Kremer, Daniel. Sidney J. Furie: Life and Films. The University Press of Kentucky, 2015. pp 20-21

Critical

The ''Evening Standard'' said "Canadian films can proudly step into the world market" and called it "a good, engrossing, and above all a hopeful film" made with "freshness and enthusiasm."

The ''Daily Herald'' film reviewer "found it enthralling and I was bowled over by the most apt background music I've heard in years."

The ''Daily Telegraph'' said "Mr Furie catches very well the atmosphere of hope deferred which is so abominable to youth. He has made a promising debut as director and if 20 minutes were cut from the 69 minutes the picture runs it would seem very much better than it does at the moment."

''The Sunday Dispatch'' wrote "beautifully written and acted, it is warm, touching and honest."

''The San Franscisco Examminer'' said "it had a tender and warm freshness about it."

References

External links

*
''Dangerous Age''
at Letterbox DVD

1950s Canadian films
1950s English-language films
1957 films
1957 directorial debut films
Canadian drama films
English-language Canadian films
Films directed by Sidney J. Furie
1957 drama films
Canadian black-and-white films
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