Never Take Sweets from a Stranger
Encyclopedia
Never Take Sweets from a Stranger (U.S. Never Take Candy from a Stranger) is a 1960
British film, directed by Cyril Frankel
and released by Hammer Film Productions
. The screenplay was developed by John Hunter from the play The Pony Trap by Roger Garis
. It stars Patrick Allen
, Gwen Watford
and Felix Aylmer
, the latter being cast notably against type. The twin themes are paedophilia and the sexual abuse of children, and the way in which those with sufficient pull can corrupt and manipulate the legal system in order to evade responsibility for their actions. The film is regarded as bold and uncompromising for its time in the way in which it handles its subject matter.
When the case come to trial, it is with an obviously stacked jury and in an atmosphere of extreme hostility towards the Carters. As threatened, the Defense Counsel proceeds to question Jean in a harrying, bullying manner which leaves her confused, frightened and giving the impression of an unreliable witness. Inevitably Olderberry is acquitted, after which Peter attacks him physically in a fit of extreme frustration and disgust. The Carters realise that there can be no future for them in the town, and make plans to leave. Shortly before their departure, Jean and her friend are in the wood again when they see Olderberry approaching them. This time forewarned, they run away in panic and come to a lake where they find a rowboat in which they attempt to flee. The boat is however still moored to the lakeshore, and Olderberry begins to pull it back in.
later commented: "Message pictures? I tried one – Never Take Sweets from a Stranger. Nobody bought it. I'm not an artist. I'm a businessman." The film did garner some positive reviews, with Variety
for example saying: "Gwen Watford and Patrick Allen, as the distraught parents, and Alison Leggatt, as a wise, understanding grandmother, lead a cast which is directed with complete sensitivity by Cyril Frankel. Both Watford and Allen are completely credible while Leggatt, well-served by John Hunter's script, is outstanding. Aylmer, who doesn't utter a word throughout the film, gives a terrifying acute study of crumbling evil." The film quickly disappeared from view, and for many years remained little-known and rarely screened. Indeed no indication can be found that it was ever shown on British television.
By the 1990s, at a time when a general reassessment and re-evaluation of Hammer's back catalogue, including its more obscure entries, was under way, critics and aficionados revisited Never Take Sweets from a Stranger with fresh eyes, and found a brave, honest and in some ways groundbreaking film. In 1994, Hammer denizen Christopher Lee
noted: "Never Take Sweets from a Stranger, an excellent film, was decades ahead of its time." Its reputation has continued to improve, and in 2010 the film made its first appearance on DVD, along with five other elusive and sought-after Hammer rarities, in a U.S. triple DVD collection called Icons of Suspense.
in Wexham
, Buckinghamshire
. Black Park was featured in numerous Hammer productions due to its atmospheric appearance on film and its proximity to Hammer's Bray Studios base.
1960 in film
The year 1960 in film involved some significant events, with Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho the top-grossing release in the U.S.-Events:* April 20 - for the first time since coming home from military service in Germany, Elvis Presley returns to Hollywood, California to film G.I...
British film, directed by Cyril Frankel
Cyril Frankel
Cyril Frankel is a British film and television director, now retired. His career in television began in 1953 and he directed for over 30 TV programmes until 1990....
and released by Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later...
. The screenplay was developed by John Hunter from the play The Pony Trap by Roger Garis
Roger Garis
Roger Garis, was an American author known as a writer for magazines and the author of The Outboard Boys series of books. Roger also wrote several books under pseudonyms for the Stratemeyer Syndicate, as his parents did .Garis was born in Newark, New Jersey and attended Princeton University and...
. It stars Patrick Allen
Patrick Allen
John Keith Patrick Allen was a British film, television and voice actor.-Life and career:Allen was born in Nyasaland , where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada during World War II where he remained to finish his education at McGill...
, Gwen Watford
Gwen Watford
Gwendoline "Gwen" Watford was an English film, stage, and television actress. She married actor Richard Bebb in 1952....
and Felix Aylmer
Felix Aylmer
Sir Felix Edward Aylmer Jones, OBE was an English stage actor who also appeared in the cinema and on television.-Early life and career:...
, the latter being cast notably against type. The twin themes are paedophilia and the sexual abuse of children, and the way in which those with sufficient pull can corrupt and manipulate the legal system in order to evade responsibility for their actions. The film is regarded as bold and uncompromising for its time in the way in which it handles its subject matter.
Synopsis
The film is set in a small Canadian town to which the British Carter family (Peter, Sally and 9 year-old daughter Jean) have just moved, following Peter's appointment as school principal. One night Jean appears restless and disturbed, and confides to her parents that earlier that day while playing in a local wood, she and her friend, Lucille, went into the house of an elderly man who asked them to remove their clothes and dance naked before him in return for some candy, which they did and Jean doesn't believe they did anything wrong. But her parents are appalled by what they hear and decide to file a complaint. The accused man, Clarence Olderberry Sr., is however the doyen of the wealthiest, most highly-regarded and influential family in town and matters conspire to turn against the Carters as the townspeople start to close rank against the newcomers. The police chief casts doubt on Jean's story, while Olderberry's son warns the Carters that if they pursue the matter through the legal system, he will ensure that Jean's evidence and trustworthiness will be torn to shreds in court.When the case come to trial, it is with an obviously stacked jury and in an atmosphere of extreme hostility towards the Carters. As threatened, the Defense Counsel proceeds to question Jean in a harrying, bullying manner which leaves her confused, frightened and giving the impression of an unreliable witness. Inevitably Olderberry is acquitted, after which Peter attacks him physically in a fit of extreme frustration and disgust. The Carters realise that there can be no future for them in the town, and make plans to leave. Shortly before their departure, Jean and her friend are in the wood again when they see Olderberry approaching them. This time forewarned, they run away in panic and come to a lake where they find a rowboat in which they attempt to flee. The boat is however still moored to the lakeshore, and Olderberry begins to pull it back in.
Cast
- Patrick AllenPatrick AllenJohn Keith Patrick Allen was a British film, television and voice actor.-Life and career:Allen was born in Nyasaland , where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada during World War II where he remained to finish his education at McGill...
as Peter Carter - Gwen WatfordGwen WatfordGwendoline "Gwen" Watford was an English film, stage, and television actress. She married actor Richard Bebb in 1952....
as Sally Carter - Janina FayeJanina FayeJanina Faye, born Janina Smigelski in London, England, United Kingdom, is an English actress and director. She began her career as an actress in 1956 and includes theatre and television work in addition to many film appearances. In 1971, she appeared in an episode of Doctor at Large...
as Jean Carter - 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:...
as Clarence Olderberry Sr. - Niall MacGinnisNiall MacGinnisNiall MacGinnis was an Irish actor who made 80 screen appearances.-Early life:MacGinnis was born in Dublin in 1913. He was educated at Stonyhurst College in England, and studied medicine at Dublin University. He qualified as a house surgeon...
as Defense Counsel - Michael GwynnMichael GwynnMichael Gwynn was an English actor. He attended Mayfield College near Mayfield, East Sussex. During the Second World War he served in East Africa as a major and was adjutant to the 2nd Battalion of the King's African Rifles.He is perhaps best remembered in contemporary culture as the shyster Lord...
as Prosecutor - Alison LeggattAlison LeggattAlison Leggatt was an English character actress.-Career:Born as Alison Joy Leggatt in the Kensington district of London, Leggatt spent the early part of her career primarily on the stage. Her first major film credit was as Aunt Sylvia in This Happy Breed , Noel Coward's homage to the British...
as Martha - Bill Nagy as Clarence Olderberry Jr.
- MacDonald Parke as Judge
- Estelle BrodyEstelle BrodyEstelle Brody was an American actress who became one of the biggest female stars of British silent film in the latter half of the 1920s...
as Eunice Kalliduke - Robert ArdenRobert ArdenRobert Arden was an English-born film, television and radio actor who worked and lived mostly in the United States....
as Tom Demarest - Frances Green as Lucille
Reception
On its original release, the film made little impact at the box-office and its press was mainly negative. This was partly because at the time the issue of paedophilia and child sexual abuse was a great taboo, rarely referred to or spoken about, and merely to produce a film dealing openly with the issue was deemed sordid and distasteful. Another hindrance to commercial success was that the film was far from easy to categorise, so it was difficult to market to any specific film audience demographic. In terms of genre it had elements of suspense, horror, courtroom drama and social commentary, but did not fit neatly into any general classification. In addition some of the publicity chosen for the film – such as a promotional poster with an image of armed police with tracker dogs, and the tagline "A nightmare manhunt for maniac prowler!" – was misleading as it implied a fugitive-on-the-run chase thriller. Hammer Studios boss James CarrerasJames Carreras
Sir James Carreras MBE was one of the founders of Hammer Film Productions. He was knighted in 1970. His son was the film director and producer Michael Carreras.- Films as Executive Producer :...
later commented: "Message pictures? I tried one – Never Take Sweets from a Stranger. Nobody bought it. I'm not an artist. I'm a businessman." The film did garner some positive reviews, with Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
for example saying: "Gwen Watford and Patrick Allen, as the distraught parents, and Alison Leggatt, as a wise, understanding grandmother, lead a cast which is directed with complete sensitivity by Cyril Frankel. Both Watford and Allen are completely credible while Leggatt, well-served by John Hunter's script, is outstanding. Aylmer, who doesn't utter a word throughout the film, gives a terrifying acute study of crumbling evil." The film quickly disappeared from view, and for many years remained little-known and rarely screened. Indeed no indication can be found that it was ever shown on British television.
By the 1990s, at a time when a general reassessment and re-evaluation of Hammer's back catalogue, including its more obscure entries, was under way, critics and aficionados revisited Never Take Sweets from a Stranger with fresh eyes, and found a brave, honest and in some ways groundbreaking film. In 1994, Hammer denizen Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
noted: "Never Take Sweets from a Stranger, an excellent film, was decades ahead of its time." Its reputation has continued to improve, and in 2010 the film made its first appearance on DVD, along with five other elusive and sought-after Hammer rarities, in a U.S. triple DVD collection called Icons of Suspense.
Location filming
Despite its nominal Canadian setting, exterior filming for Never Take Sweets from a Stranger took place at Black ParkBlack Park
Black Park is a Country Park in Wexham, Buckinghamshire, England to the north of the A412 road between Slough and Iver Heath. It is managed by Buckinghamshire County Council...
in Wexham
Wexham
Wexham is a settlement and civil parish in the county of Buckinghamshire. It is on the borders of the unitary authority of Slough and the non-metropolitan county of Berkshire, in southern England....
, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
. Black Park was featured in numerous Hammer productions due to its atmospheric appearance on film and its proximity to Hammer's Bray Studios base.
External links
- Never Take Sweets from a Stranger at Eccentric Cinema