Violent Playground (1958)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Basil Dearden

Writer:

James Kennaway (original screenplay)

Release Date:

12 May 1958 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama | Crime

Plot:

Struggle between a Liverpool Juvenile Liaison officer and a young and dangerous pyromaniac. |

Plot Keywords:

Rock Music | Teenager

Cast

Stanley Baker	...	Detective Sgt. Jack Truman
Anne Heywood	...	Catherine 'Cathie' Murphy
David McCallum	...	Johnnie Murphy
Peter Cushing	...	Priest
John Slater	...	Detective Sgt. Willie Walker
Clifford Evans	...	Heaven
Moultrie Kelsall	...	Superintendent
George A. Cooper	...	Chief Inspector
Brona Boland	...	Mary Murphy
Fergal Boland	...	Patrick Montgomery Murphy
Michael Chow	...	Alexander
Tsai Chin	...	Primrose
Sean Lynch	...	Slick
Bernice Swanson	...	Meg (as Benice Swanson)
Freddie Starr	...	Tommy (as Fred Fowell)

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Gerard Gardens, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, UK

Company:

Rank Organisation, The

Soundtrack:

Play Rough

A little gem of a film, shot on location in Gerard Gardens Liverpool

This film was shot on location in Gerard Gardens in Liverpool, and was the UK's answer to films such as 'Blackboard Jungle'. The film stands the test of time quite well, with all the moral stories still (or even more) relevant today. The film feature some fine performance from some notable British actors such as David McCallum, Stanley Baker, Peter Cushing and Anne Heywood. Baker plays a Liverpool cop assigned to juvenile liaison duties, with the premise that if you catch the kids at an early age, they will end up being responsible adults.

Notable cameos in the film include Freddie Starr (Fred Fowell) and Melvyn Hayes (Gloria). Tsai Chin and Michael Chow play brother and sister (they are real life brother and sister) who are caught up in an arsonists web. Tsai Chin is still acting and can be seen in the latest Nicole Kidman film 'The Interpretor'.

Violent Playground features a gun siege in a school, so is unlikely to be shown on TV following similar events in Scotland / Russia.

I lived in Gerard Gardens where the film was shot (though was not born at the time), and have fond memories of the area. I have recently completed a documentary on Gerard Gardens which includes extracts from 'Violent Playground', and a small UK film 'Coast to Coast' which stars Lenny Henry and Pete Postlewaite. The tenements were demolished in 1987 and the films go some way in keeping the memory alive.

There were some complaints from the residents when the film was released, as the film portrayed the area in a bad light. Time has helped heal those wounds.

A little gem of a film, I would recommend you seek this out