The Man in the Back Seat
Encyclopedia
The Man in the Back Seat is a 1961
British B-movie
crime film, directed by Vernon Sewell
and starring Derren Nesbitt
and Keith Faulkner
. The film was based on an Edgar Wallace
story, and was tightly shot, with only four name-credited actors (one of whom remains silent throughout the film) and much of the action taking place in a cramped flat and the claustrophobic confines of a car at night.
) of his takings as he leaves the local dog track. They attack him brutally, then realise to their disgust that the case containing the cash is chained to Joe's wrist. They bundle him practically unconscious into the back seat of their car as they drive around trying to figure out a way to release the case. They come up with various possible solutions, but nothing works and they end up at Frank's house, to the horror of Frank's wife Jean (Carol White
), who does not want their criminal activities to be brought to her doorstep.
They manage to free the case after administering another severe beating to Joe, and decide to get rid of him by dousing him in alcohol and dumping him near the local hospital, where they assume a passer-by will find him and think he has suffered a drunken fall. As they are about to leave the scene, they realise that they have left behind incriminating fingerprints, so have no option but to retrieve the unconscious Joe again. Not knowing what else to do, they go back to Jean's and contact a local back-street quack doctor, who takes one look at Joe and says he will soon be dead. As a last resort, Tony and Frank decide to drive through the night to Birmingham and leave the body there, where there will be nothing to connect the crime to them.
They again load Joe into the back seat and set off on the journey in the rainswept night, with Tony becoming increasingly paranoid that every vehicle behind them on the road is on their trail. They are barely out of London when Tony looks in the driving mirror, and to his terror sees the ghostly wide-open eyes of the supposedly dying Joe staring reproachfully at him in reflection from the back seat. In total panic, Tony drives the car off the road and down an embankment. The crash kills him instantly but Frank, seriously injured but alive, manages to crawl clear of the wreckage. The police and ambulance services arrive and confirm Tony's death. The remorse-stricken Frank pleads with them to see if they can help the other passenger, but the car explodes before anything more can be done.
1961 in film
The year 1961 in film involved some significant events, with West Side Story winning 10 Academy Awards.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:* Atlantis, the Lost ContinentB...
British B-movie
B-movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
crime film, directed by Vernon Sewell
Vernon Sewell
Vernon Campbell Sewell was a British film director, screenwriter, producer writer and, briefly, an actor. Sewell was born in London, England in 1903. He was educated at Marlborough College. He directed over 30 films during his career, starting with Morgenrot in 1933...
and starring Derren Nesbitt
Derren Nesbitt
Derren Nesbitt is an English actor. Possibly his best known role was as SS Major von Hapen in Where Eagles Dare.In 2008 he was writing a book on "biblical myths and falsehoods".-Acting career:...
and Keith Faulkner
Keith Faulkner
Keith Faulkner is an English-born British actor who started his career at Corona Academy in childhood at the age of eleven and moved onto andult career in film and television in the late 1950s and early 1960s before leaving the "business" and moving to Australia, with the Telecommunications...
. The film was based on an Edgar Wallace
Edgar Wallace
Richard Horatio Edgar Wallace was an English crime writer, journalist, novelist, screenwriter, and playwright, who wrote 175 novels, 24 plays, and numerous articles in newspapers and journals....
story, and was tightly shot, with only four name-credited actors (one of whom remains silent throughout the film) and much of the action taking place in a cramped flat and the claustrophobic confines of a car at night.
Plot
Cold and vicious Tony (Nesbitt) and his more pleasant natured but easily-influenced partner-in-crime Frank (Faulkner) hatch a plan to rob bookmaker Joe Carter (Harry LockeHarry Locke
Harry Locke was a British character actor.He was born and died in London. He was a familiar face in three decades of British cinema, with appearances including Passport to Pimlico , Reach for the Sky , Carry On Nurse , The Devil-Ship Pirates and The Family Way .In 1969 he appeared in Randall...
) of his takings as he leaves the local dog track. They attack him brutally, then realise to their disgust that the case containing the cash is chained to Joe's wrist. They bundle him practically unconscious into the back seat of their car as they drive around trying to figure out a way to release the case. They come up with various possible solutions, but nothing works and they end up at Frank's house, to the horror of Frank's wife Jean (Carol White
Carol White
Carol White was a British actress.She achieved notability for her performances in the television play Cathy Come Home and the films Poor Cow and I'll Never Forget What's'isname , but alcoholism and drug abuse damaged her career, and from the early 1970s she worked infrequently.-Life and...
), who does not want their criminal activities to be brought to her doorstep.
They manage to free the case after administering another severe beating to Joe, and decide to get rid of him by dousing him in alcohol and dumping him near the local hospital, where they assume a passer-by will find him and think he has suffered a drunken fall. As they are about to leave the scene, they realise that they have left behind incriminating fingerprints, so have no option but to retrieve the unconscious Joe again. Not knowing what else to do, they go back to Jean's and contact a local back-street quack doctor, who takes one look at Joe and says he will soon be dead. As a last resort, Tony and Frank decide to drive through the night to Birmingham and leave the body there, where there will be nothing to connect the crime to them.
They again load Joe into the back seat and set off on the journey in the rainswept night, with Tony becoming increasingly paranoid that every vehicle behind them on the road is on their trail. They are barely out of London when Tony looks in the driving mirror, and to his terror sees the ghostly wide-open eyes of the supposedly dying Joe staring reproachfully at him in reflection from the back seat. In total panic, Tony drives the car off the road and down an embankment. The crash kills him instantly but Frank, seriously injured but alive, manages to crawl clear of the wreckage. The police and ambulance services arrive and confirm Tony's death. The remorse-stricken Frank pleads with them to see if they can help the other passenger, but the car explodes before anything more can be done.
Cast
- Derren NesbittDerren NesbittDerren Nesbitt is an English actor. Possibly his best known role was as SS Major von Hapen in Where Eagles Dare.In 2008 he was writing a book on "biblical myths and falsehoods".-Acting career:...
as Tony - Keith FaulknerKeith FaulknerKeith Faulkner is an English-born British actor who started his career at Corona Academy in childhood at the age of eleven and moved onto andult career in film and television in the late 1950s and early 1960s before leaving the "business" and moving to Australia, with the Telecommunications...
as Frank - Carol WhiteCarol WhiteCarol White was a British actress.She achieved notability for her performances in the television play Cathy Come Home and the films Poor Cow and I'll Never Forget What's'isname , but alcoholism and drug abuse damaged her career, and from the early 1970s she worked infrequently.-Life and...
as Jean - Harry LockeHarry LockeHarry Locke was a British character actor.He was born and died in London. He was a familiar face in three decades of British cinema, with appearances including Passport to Pimlico , Reach for the Sky , Carry On Nurse , The Devil-Ship Pirates and The Family Way .In 1969 he appeared in Randall...
as Joe Carter
External links
- The Man in the Back Seat at BFI Film & TV Database
- The Man in the Back Seat at BritMovie