10 Rillington Place
| 10 Rillington Place | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Richard Fleischer |
| Produced by | Basil Appleby Leslie Linder Martin Ransohoff |
| Screenplay by | Clive Exton |
| Based on | Ten Rillington Place by Ludovic Kennedy |
| Starring | Richard Attenborough Judy Geeson John Hurt |
| Music by | John Dankworth |
| Cinematography | Denys Coop |
| Editing by | Ernest Walter |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | May 12 1971 (USA) |
| Running time | 111 min |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
10 Rillington Place is a 1971 British crime drama film starring Richard Attenborough, John Hurt and Judy Geeson adapted by Clive Exton from the book Ten Rillington Place by Ludovic Kennedy.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The film dramatises the case of British serial killer John Christie, who committed most or all of his crimes in the titular apartment, and the miscarriage of justice involving Timothy Evans.
Christie strangled at least eight women (including the baby Geraldine Evans), the first two victims being buried in the back garden of the house during World War II. After Evans moved into the building with his wife Beryl and infant daughter Geraldine in 1949, Christie convinced his new tenants that he could help Beryl terminate her unwanted pregnancy; he then raped and strangled Beryl. He told Evans that she had died accidentally, and that Evans should leave town until the investigation died down. Evans entrusted Christie with his daughter, whom Christie then murdered as well. Police neglected to search the property thoroughly, they missed the bones of the earlier victims visible in the garden. As a result of false confessions, Evans was tried for their murders (specifically, his daughter), and executed in 1950. Christie went on to murder his own wife and three prostitutes at the house before his crimes were detected. He was hanged in 1953.
The film relies on the same argument advanced by Kennedy in his book that Evans was innocent of the murders and was framed by Christie. That argument has now been accepted by the Crown, when Evans was officially pardoned by Roy Jenkins in 1966. The case is one of the first major miscarriages of justice to occur in the immediate post-war period.
[edit] Cast
- Richard Attenborough as John Reginald Christie
- Judy Geeson as Beryl Evans
- John Hurt as Timothy John Evans
- Pat Heywood as Mrs. Ethel Christie
- Isobel Black as Alice
- Phyllis MacMahon as Muriel Eady
- Ray Barron as Workman Willis
- Douglas Blackwell as Workman Jones
- Gabrielle Daye as Mrs. Lynch
- Jimmy Gardner as Mr. Lynch
- Edward Evans as Detective Inspector
- Tenniel Evans as Detective Sergeant
- David Jackson as Constable
- George Lee as Police Constable
- Richard Coleman as Police Constable who arrests Christie
- André Morell as Judge Lewis
- Robert Hardy as Malcolm Morris
- Geoffrey Chater as Christmas Humphreys
- Basil Dignam as Member of the Medical Board
- Sam Kydd as Furniture Dealer
- Rudolph Walker as West Indian man
- Reg Lye as Tramp
[edit] Location
In 1954, the year after Christie's execution, Rillington Place (in Ladbroke Grove) was renamed Ruston Close, but number 10 continued in multiple occupation. The three families living there in 1970 refused to move out for the shooting of the film, which was therefore set in the empty number 7. Richard Attenborough, who played Christie in the film, spoke of his reluctance to accept the role:
| “ | I do not like playing the part, but I accepted it at once without seeing the script. I have never felt so totally involved in any part as this. It is a most devastating statement on capital punishment.[2] | ” |
The house was demolished later, and the area has changed beyond all recognition.
The production also filmed in Merthyr Vale railway Station. Merthyr Vale was Timothy Evans's hometown and also where he confessed to the police.
[edit] External links
[edit] Notes
- ^ Variety film review; 10 February 1971.
- ^ "Christie's ghost returns" (subscription required), The Times (57872): 5, 18 May 1970, http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/842/399/60784594w16/purl=rc1_TTDA_0_CS84243122&dyn=3!xrn_4_0_CS84243122&hst_1?sw_aep=mclib, retrieved 18 April 2009.
