Give Us This Day (1949)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Edward Dmytryk

Writers:

Pietro Di Donato (novel)
Ben Barzman (adaptation) ...

Release Date:

21 July 1950 (West Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

One of the few (if any at the time this film was made) films shot in England with New York City's 'Little Italy" as the locale...

Plot Keywords:

Italian | New York City | Bricklayer | Tenement | Little Italy

Cast

Sam Wanamaker	...	Geremio
Lea Padovani	...	Annuziata
Kathleen Ryan	...	Kathleen
Charles Goldner	...	Luigi
Bonar Colleano	...	Julio
William Sylvester	...	Giovanni (as Bill Sylvester)
George Pastell	...	The lucy (as Nino Pastellides)
Philo Hauser	...	Head of Pig
Sid James	...	Murdin
Karel Stepanek	...	Jaroslav
Ina De La Haye	...	Dame Katarina
Rosalie Crutchley	...	Julio's wife
Ronan O'Casey	...	Bastian
Robert Rietty	...	Pietro
Charles Moffat	...	Pasquale

Also Known As:

Christ in Concrete (USA) (original script title)
Salt to the Devil (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

USA:120 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #13967) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | West Germany:12 | Belgium:16 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Denham Studio, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Plantagenet

Trivia:

Award: Prix de l'Ecran Français 1951.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A Light in the Window Lost (2009)

Soundtrack:

Without Love, You're Nothing

A stunning film, too rarely seen.

I saw this film many years ago on television and was quite stunned by it. This very simple drama of the life of an ordinary working man is turned into high tragedy through the wonderful talents of the filmmaker. The film is all the more impressive when one considers that it was made on the cheap in London, though set in New York. The low budget gives rise to one or two false notes, but the story is so well told that you easily forget about those. Perhaps the lack of budget was a blessing, in that it allowed the actors and director to concentrate on the more ineffable qualities of story-telling. I would love to see this film again. It should be revived so that many more people can appreciate the great talent of Edward Dmytrk and the social-realist style, of which it is a wonderful example.