King & Country (1964)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Joseph Losey

Writers:

J.L. Hodson (story)
Evan Jones (screenplay)

Release Date:

30 November 1965 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

During World War I, an army private is accused of desertion during battle. The officer assigned to defend him at his court-martial finds out there is more to the case than meets the eye. |

Plot Keywords:

Desertion | Officer | Court Martial | Military | Doctor

Awards:

Nominated for 4 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Dirk Bogarde	...	Capt. Hargreaves
Tom Courtenay	...	Pvt. Arthur Hamp
Leo McKern	...	Capt. O'Sullivan
Barry Foster	...	Lt. Webb
Peter Copley	...	Colonel
James Villiers	...	Capt. Midgley
Jeremy Spenser	...	Pvt. Sparrow (as Jeremy Spencer)
Barry Justice	...	Lt. Prescott
Vivian Matalon	...	Padre
Keith Buckley	...	Corporal of the Guard
James Hunter	...	Pvt. Sykes
Jonah Seymour	...	Cpl. Hamilton (MP)
Larry Taylor	...	Sergeant Major
David Cook	...	Pvt. Wilson
Richard Arthure	...	Guard 'Charlie'

Also Known As:

King and Country (Europe) (DVD box title)

Runtime:

Canada:88 min | USA:86 min | Argentina:89 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Canada:14A (video rating) | Finland:K-16 | Argentina:16 | UK:X (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating)

Company:

BHE Films

Trivia:

Richard Moore was offered a role in this but was not free most of the dates.

KING AND COUNTRY (Joseph Losey, 1964) ***

Losey's sole war film is a fine effort but, along the years, it seems to have been overlooked in write-ups on the director's work; sharing its taut court-martial scenario with Stanley Kubrick's undeniably superior PATHS OF GLORY (1957), its gritty look at British Army life was also the subject of Sidney Lumet's more highly-rated THE HILL (1965; interestingly enough, both films were made by American directors!).

That said, Losey's film boasts a top British cast (Dirk Bogarde, Tom Courtenay, Leo McKern, Barry Foster, James Villiers and Peter Copley) and the music is provided by harmonica virtuoso Larry Adler; also notable is Denys Coop's probing camera-work - though, for a dialogue-driven film, the muddled soundtrack proves a distinct liability!

Still, its thought-provoking script deals with matters such as how one can properly discern between cowardice and shell-shock on the battlefield (the interrogation by Bogarde, as Courtenay's defence counsel, of pompous doctor McKern is perhaps the film's highlight), and also questions the reasoning behind the fact that, sometimes, a man must be sacrificed for the good of the battalion's morale.

In the end, though, the film suffers from a rather slow pace - particularly when focusing on the mostly irrelevant camaraderie among Courtenay's fellow soldiers, which often resorts to gratuitous cruelty towards animals!