Action for Slander
Encyclopedia
Action for Slander is a 1937 British drama film
directed by Tim Whelan
and starring Clive Brook, Ann Todd
and Googie Withers
. An army officer is falsely accused at cheating at cards by a man whose wife he had an affair with and struggles to clear his name. It was an adaptation of the 1937 novel Action for Slander
by Mary Borden
.
shooting as Bradford is clearly aware of Daviot's affair with his wife.
That evening during a game of cards played for high stakes Daviot is accused of cheating by Grant, a drunken player who has lost large amounts of money, a charge that is dismissed out of hand by the other players until Bradford seconds it. None of the other players believe the accusation, even though they are unaware of the grudge that Bradford has against Daviot. Bradford sticks to his story, even in the face of legal action from Daviot.
The other guests frightened of their own reputations if the scandal becomes widely known, persuade all to hush the matter up. Daviot agrees to keep quiet for all their sakes, even though he still wants to clear his name. Daviot proposes to Josie that she leave her husband and live with him in spite of the scandal, but her lukewarm response leads him to realise that her interest in him is shallow. She subsequently reconciles with her husband and they go abroad to spend time together.
Daviot tries to continue, but rumours about the affair begin to spread. Over the following year, his life disintegrates. He no longer finds himself welcome in his regiment or at his gentlemen's club
and his friends begin to cut him socially, including those at the house party who know him to be innocent. Hounded out of his society, Daviot retreats to a cheap boarding house
in Bayswater
where he ceases to go out or even open letters. His one remaining hope, of receiving a transfer to the Indian Army
serving on the Northwest Frontier
is dashed and he begins to consider suicide
.
Ann Daviot, meanwhile, has been touring around Continental Europe
aimlessly, possibly never to return to Britain. As soon as she hears he is in trouble she returns to help him, but he is unresponsive and derides her as an "Angel of Mercy". Eventually she goads him into facing his accusers, and he initiates court proceedings on the understanding that if he loses he will be allowed to take gentlemen's way out with a pistol. With the help of his barrister
Sir Quinton Jessops, Daviot attempts to clear his name by suing Bradford and Grant for slander.
with backing from Alexander Korda
's London Film Productions. It was adapted from the novel Action for Slander
by Mary Borden
that was released the same year.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Tim Whelan
Tim Whelan
Tim Whelan was an American film director, writer, producer and actor.-Selected filmography:* Adam's Apple * When Knights Were Bold * It's a Boy * Aunt Sally...
and starring Clive Brook, Ann Todd
Ann Todd
Dorothy Anne Todd was an English actress and producer.She was born in Hartford, Cheshire and was educated at St. Winifrid's School, Eastbourne. She became a popular actress from appearing in such films as Perfect Strangers and The Seventh Veil...
and Googie Withers
Googie Withers
Georgette Lizette "Googie" Withers CBE, AO was an English theatre, film and television actress. She was a longtime resident of Australia with her husband, the actor John McCallum, with whom she often appeared.-Biography:...
. An army officer is falsely accused at cheating at cards by a man whose wife he had an affair with and struggles to clear his name. It was an adaptation of the 1937 novel Action for Slander
Action for Slander (novel)
Action for Slander is a drama novel by the Anglo-American writer Mary Borden.It was first published in 1937 by Harper. A British army officer faces disgrace when he is falsely accused of cheating at cards by a fellow officer whose wife he has had an affair with.-Adaptation:The novel was turned into...
by Mary Borden
Mary Borden
-Life:Mary Borden was born into a wealthy Chicago family. She attended Vassar College, graduating with a B.A. in 1907. In 1908 she married George Douglas Turner, with whom she had three daughters; Joyce , Comfort and Mary...
.
Synopsis
Major George Daviot is left by his wife Ann due to their growing estrangement and her knowledge that he has fallen in love with another woman, Josie Bradford, the wife of one of his fellow officers. Daviot goes off with friends for a weekend party at a country house attended by a number of prominent figures including businessmen and politicians as well as Captain Bradford and his wife. The tension between Bradford and Daviot is obvious during grouseGrouse
Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes. They are sometimes considered a family Tetraonidae, though the American Ornithologists' Union and many others include grouse as a subfamily Tetraoninae in the family Phasianidae...
shooting as Bradford is clearly aware of Daviot's affair with his wife.
That evening during a game of cards played for high stakes Daviot is accused of cheating by Grant, a drunken player who has lost large amounts of money, a charge that is dismissed out of hand by the other players until Bradford seconds it. None of the other players believe the accusation, even though they are unaware of the grudge that Bradford has against Daviot. Bradford sticks to his story, even in the face of legal action from Daviot.
The other guests frightened of their own reputations if the scandal becomes widely known, persuade all to hush the matter up. Daviot agrees to keep quiet for all their sakes, even though he still wants to clear his name. Daviot proposes to Josie that she leave her husband and live with him in spite of the scandal, but her lukewarm response leads him to realise that her interest in him is shallow. She subsequently reconciles with her husband and they go abroad to spend time together.
Daviot tries to continue, but rumours about the affair begin to spread. Over the following year, his life disintegrates. He no longer finds himself welcome in his regiment or at his gentlemen's club
Gentlemen's club
A gentlemen's club is a members-only private club of a type originally set up by and for British upper class men in the eighteenth century, and popularised by English upper-middle class men and women in the late nineteenth century. Today, some are more open about the gender and social status of...
and his friends begin to cut him socially, including those at the house party who know him to be innocent. Hounded out of his society, Daviot retreats to a cheap boarding house
Boarding house
A boarding house, is a house in which lodgers rent one or more rooms for one or more nights, and sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months and years. The common parts of the house are maintained, and some services, such as laundry and cleaning, may be supplied. They normally provide "bed...
in Bayswater
Bayswater
Bayswater is an area of west London in the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to the west . It is a built-up district located 3 miles west-north-west of Charing Cross, bordering the north of Hyde Park over Kensington Gardens and having a population density of...
where he ceases to go out or even open letters. His one remaining hope, of receiving a transfer to the Indian Army
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...
serving on the Northwest Frontier
Northwest Frontier
North West Frontier is a 1959 British adventure film starring Kenneth More and Lauren Bacall. The film was directed by J. Lee Thompson from a screenplay by Robin Estridge and also features Wilfrid Hyde-White, Herbert Lom and I. S...
is dashed and he begins to consider suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
Ann Daviot, meanwhile, has been touring around Continental Europe
Continental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
aimlessly, possibly never to return to Britain. As soon as she hears he is in trouble she returns to help him, but he is unresponsive and derides her as an "Angel of Mercy". Eventually she goads him into facing his accusers, and he initiates court proceedings on the understanding that if he loses he will be allowed to take gentlemen's way out with a pistol. With the help of his barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
Sir Quinton Jessops, Daviot attempts to clear his name by suing Bradford and Grant for slander.
Production
The film was made independently by Victor SavilleVictor Saville
Victor Saville was an English film director, producer and screenwriter. He directed 39 films between 1927 and 1954...
with backing from Alexander Korda
Alexander Korda
Sir Alexander Korda was a Hungarian-born British producer and film director. He was a leading figure in the British film industry, the founder of London Films and the owner of British Lion Films, a film distributing company.-Life and career:The elder brother of filmmakers Zoltán Korda and Vincent...
's London Film Productions. It was adapted from the novel Action for Slander
Action for Slander (novel)
Action for Slander is a drama novel by the Anglo-American writer Mary Borden.It was first published in 1937 by Harper. A British army officer faces disgrace when he is falsely accused of cheating at cards by a fellow officer whose wife he has had an affair with.-Adaptation:The novel was turned into...
by Mary Borden
Mary Borden
-Life:Mary Borden was born into a wealthy Chicago family. She attended Vassar College, graduating with a B.A. in 1907. In 1908 she married George Douglas Turner, with whom she had three daughters; Joyce , Comfort and Mary...
that was released the same year.
Reception
The film was popular at its release and it was re-released several times during the 1940s. However, it has later been criticised as "stilted". Rachael Low describes it as being "well-made and acted" although the "behaviour of the characters was too far-fetched to carry conviction".Cast
- Clive Brook - Major George Daviot
- Ann ToddAnn ToddDorothy Anne Todd was an English actress and producer.She was born in Hartford, Cheshire and was educated at St. Winifrid's School, Eastbourne. She became a popular actress from appearing in such films as Perfect Strangers and The Seventh Veil...
- Ann Daviot - Margaretta ScottMargaretta ScottMargaretta Scott was an English stage, screen and television actress whose career spanned over seventy years. She is best remembered for playing the eccentric widow Mrs...
- Josie Bradford - Arthur MargetsonArthur Margetson-Selected filmography:* Wolves * Many Waters * His Grace Gives Notice * Music Hath Charms * Royal Cavalcade * The Divine Spark * The Mystery of the Marie Celeste * Broken Blossoms...
- Captain Hugh Bradford - Ronald SquireRonald SquireRonald Squire was an English character actor.Born in Tiverton, Devon, England, he spent his early acting career in Liverpool repertory theatre in light comedy roles, before moving on to films...
- Charles Cinderford - Athole StewartAthole Stewart-Selected filmography:Athole appeared in the following films:* Canaries Sometimes Sing * The Speckled Band * The Faithful Heart * The Constant Nymph *Loyalties * The Four Masked Men...
- Lord Pontefract - Percy MarmontPercy MarmontPercy Marmont was an English film actor. He appeared in over 80 films between 1916 and 1968. He is best remembered today for playing the title character in Lord Jim the first film version of Joseph Conrad's novel, and for playing one of Clara Bow's love interests in the Paramount Pictures film...
- William Cowbit - Frank CellierFrank Cellier (actor)Frank Cellier was an English actor. Early in his career, he toured in Britain, Germany, the West Indies, America and South Africa. In the 1920s, he became known in the West End for Shakespearean character roles, among others, and also directed some plays in which he acted...
- Sir Bernard Roper - Anthony HollesAnthony Holles (actor)-Selected filmography:* The Missing Rembrandt * The Midshipmaid * The Star Reporter *Loyalties * Britannia of Billingsgate * Brewster's Millions * This'll Make You Whistle...
- John Grant - Morton SeltenMorton SeltenMorton Selten was a British stage and film actor. He was occasionally credited as Morton Selton.It was generally acknowledged that Selten was an illegitimate son of the then Prince of Wales . He began acting in 1878, with stage performances mainly in America. His film career began in the 1920s...
- Judge Trotter - Kate CutlerKate CutlerKate Ellen Louisa Cutler was an English singer and actress, known in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as an ingénue in musical comedies, and later as a character actress in comic and dramatic plays...
- The Dowager - Enid Stamp-Taylor - Jenny
- Francis L. SullivanFrancis L. SullivanFrancis Loftus Sullivan was an English film and stage actor. He attended Stonyhurst, the Jesuit public school in Lancashire, England whose alumni include Charles Laughton and Arthur Conan Doyle.A heavily built man with a striking double-chin and a deep voice, Sullivan made his acting debut at the...
- Sir Quinton Jessops - Felix AylmerFelix AylmerSir Felix Edward Aylmer Jones, OBE was an English stage actor who also appeared in the cinema and on television.-Early life and career:...
- Sir Eustace Cunninghame - Laurence HanrayLaurence HanrayLaurence Hanray , sometimes credited as Lawrence Hanray, was a British film actor born in London, England.-Partial filmography:* Beyond the Cities * Her Reputation * The Faithful Heart...
- Clerk of Court - Gus McNaughtonGus McNaughtonGus McNaughton was an English film actor. He appeared in 70 films between 1930 and 1947.He was born in London and died in Castor, Cambridgeshire.-Selected filmography:* Children of Chance...
- Tandy - Googie WithersGoogie WithersGeorgette Lizette "Googie" Withers CBE, AO was an English theatre, film and television actress. She was a longtime resident of Australia with her husband, the actor John McCallum, with whom she often appeared.-Biography:...
- Mary - Albert WhelanAlbert WhelanAlbert Whelan , was an Australian popular singer and entertainer, who was prominent in the English music hall during the first half of the 20th century....
- Roper's butler - Allan JeayesAllan JeayesAllan Jeayes was a British stage and movie actor.He starred as Howard Joyce in the original 1927 Broadway production of The Letter and played Sir Lawrence Wargarve in the 1943 London production of And Then There Were None.Jeayes made his film debut in the 1918 Nelson as Sir William Hamilton...
- Colonel