''They Can't Hang Me'' is a 1955 British

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

Val Guest Val Guest (born Valmond Maurice Grossman; 11 December 1911 – 10 May 2006) was an English film director and screenwriter. Beginning as a writer (and later director) of comedy films, he is best known for his work for Hammer Film Productions, ...

and starring

Terence Morgan Terence Ivor Grant Morgan (8 December 1921 – 25 August 2005) was an English actor in theatre, cinema and television. He played many "villain" roles in British film but is probably best remembered for his starring role in the TV historical ...

Yolande Donlan Yolande Donlan (June 2, 1920December 30, 2014) was an American-born British-based actress who worked extensively in the United Kingdom. Early life and career Donlan was the Jersey City, New Jersey-born daughter of James Donlan, a character ...

and

Anthony Oliver Anthony Oliver (4 July 1922 – November 1995) was a Welsh film, television and stage actor. Selected filmography * ''Once a Jolly Swagman'' (1949) – Derek * ''All Over the Town'' (1949) – P.C. Butt * '' A Run for Your Money'' (1949) – ...

. It was written by Guest and Val Valentine based on the 1955 novel of the same title by Leonard Mosley.

Plot

A senior civil servant, Pitt has been convicted of a murder and sentenced to death. Days before his execution, Pitt reveals that he has been passing on top secret information to an agent of a foreign power and offers to reveal the identity of his handler in exchange for a reprieve. With only five days before Pitt's execution, debonair Special Branch Inspector Ralph Brown takes on the task of identifying the spy before he flees the country.

Cast

as Inspector Ralph Brown *

as Jill Wilson *

as Inspector Newcombe *

André Morell Cecil André Mesritz (20 August 1909 – 28 November 1978), known professionally as André Morell, was an English actor. He appeared frequently in theatre, film and on television from the 1930s to the 1970s. His best known screen roles were as ...

as Robert Isaac Pitt *

Reginald Beckwith William Reginald Beckwith (2 November 190826 June 1965) was an English film and television actor, who made over one hundred film and television appearances in his career. He died of a heart attack aged 56. Beckwith was also a film critic and ...

as Harold *

Ursula Howells Ursula Howells (17 September 1922 – 16 October 2005) was an English actress whose elegant presence kept her much in demand for roles in film and television. Life and career Howells was born in London, the daughter of composer Herbert Howells, ...

as Antonia Pitt *

Guido Lorraine Guido Lorraine (2 September 1912 – 31 December 2009) was a Polish-born actor, musician and singer, known primarily for his roles in war films. He was also sometimes known by the stage name Guy Borucki. Lorraine appeared in twenty-eight films ...

as Pietr Revski *

Basil Dignam Basil Dignam (24 October 1905 – 31 January 1979) was an English character actor. Basil Dignam was born in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire. Before the acting, he tried many jobs, from a company clerk to a journalist. He acted on film and ...

as Wing Commander Riddle * John Horsley as Assistant Commissioner *

Mark Dignam Cuthbert Mark Dignam (20 March 1909 – 29 September 1989) was an English actor. Born in London, the son of a salesman in the steel industry, Dignam grew up in Sheffield, and was educated at the Jesuit College, where he appeared in numerous S ...

as Prison Governor * Raymond Rollett as Sir Robert Rosper * Fred Johnson as Professor Robinson-Heston *

Arnold Marlé Arnold Marlé (15 September 1887 – 21 February 1970) was a German actor who appeared largely in British films and television programmes. Stage work His theatre work included appearances on the West End theatre, London stage, and a year-and-a-h ...

as Professor Karl Kopek * Barry Lowe as Private Eric Colter * Richard Cuthbert as Judge * Diana Lambert as young woman

Production

It was shot at

Shepperton Studios Shepperton Studios is a film studio located in Shepperton, Surrey, England, with a history dating back to 1931. It is now part of Pinewood Group, the Pinewood Studios Group. During its early existence, the studio was branded as Sound City (not ...

near

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

Joseph Bato. Guest said "the Proudlock Brothers had bought the book, Roger Proudlock and his brother, and had got themselves into terrible trouble one way or another, financially or the director they had had pulled out of they’d fired

hem A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the ga ...

something had gone wrong, and I know they called me in a panic and said “Will you take this over?” So I looked at it and I didn’t like the script so they let me redo the script, and we took over at very short notice. It was not one of those that I had sat down and said I must make." The film uses

Sidney Torch Sidney Torch MBE (born Sidney Torchinsky; 5 June 1908 – 16 July 1990) was a British pianist, cinema organist, conductor, orchestral arranger and a composer of light music. Early life Torch was born of Russian Jewish origin to a Ukrai ...

's music for '' The Black Museum'' for its title and some of its incidental music. The starring role of Brown was an unusual part for Morgan, who was better known for playing villains.

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'' wrote: "Spy thriller with an involved, though fairly coherent, plot, hinging on the necessity to save a desperate situation within a limited period of time. With the exception of Pitt, who is convincingly played by Andre Morell, the characters are essentially subordinate to the action. Tension is sustained, and Val Guest directs with slick confidence from a laconic script." ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...

'' calls the film "a minor Cold War thriller", adding, "(Val) Guest puts a neat (if downbeat) spin on events," and concluding, "the back-up cast is as solid as a rock, with Guest's wife Yolande Donlan putting in an effective appearance". ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...

'' describes it as "slightly more interesting than the normal run of British spy films, thanks to an unusually intelligent script."

References

External links

* {{Val Guest 1955 films 1955 drama films 1950s English-language films Films directed by Val Guest British spy drama films Films based on British novels British black-and-white films 1950s spy drama films Films shot at Shepperton Studios 1950s British films Films scored by Stanley Black