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The Yellow Balloon (1953)

| Drama | 4 October 1953 (USA)
The Yellow Balloon Poster
One of two young boys accidentally falls to his death when playing in a bombed-out London neighborhood. Frankie, the survivor feels guilty about his friend's death. Len, a petty thief who ... See full summary »

Director:

(as J. Lee-Thompson)

Writers:

(from an original story by), (screenplay) | 1 more credit »

Stars:

, , | See full cast & crew »
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Cast

Cast overview:
Andrew Ray ... Frankie
... Em
... Ted
... Constable Chapman
Stephen Fenemore ... Ron
... Len
Marjorie Rhodes ... Mrs. Stokes
... Spiv
... Pawnbroker
... Barrow Boy (as Sydney James)
Veronica Hurst ... Sunday School Teacher
... Iris
Campbell Singer ... Potter
... Bibulous Customer
Hy Hazell ... Mary
See full cast »
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Storyline

One of two young boys accidentally falls to his death when playing in a bombed-out London neighborhood. Frankie, the survivor feels guilty about his friend's death. Len, a petty thief who has just killed a pub owner during a botched robbery, learns of the accident. He poses as Frankie's friend and blackmails the boy into stealing from his parents to finance Len's escape. When Len decides that Frankie may know enough to connect him with the murder, he decides to silence the boy in a tense "hide and seek" chase through the ruins. Written by Mike Rogers <MICHAELPEM@aol.com>

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Plot Keywords:

british noir | See All (1) »

Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

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Release Date:

4 October 1953 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Der gelbe Ballon  »

Filming Locations:

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Company Credits

Production Co:

,  »
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Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

(RCA Sound System)

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1
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Connections

Featured in A Story of Children and Film (2013) See more »

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User Reviews

 
taught thriller set in a bombed out East End
8 July 2009 | by – See all my reviews

Very fine, taught thriller set in a bombed out East End. Andrew Ray plays the respectable young lad who comes under the spell of a baddie (William Sylvester) and through whose eyes, unfortunately for me, the film is largely seen through. The kid does well enough but as a consequence, the film is on the edge of sentimentality the whole time. That it does avoid lapsing into paper handkerchief mode is due to the sharp direction and atmospheric cinematography, dark black shadows and all. To be fair this is also helped by the most convincing performance from the young lad who at no time goes for the easy options. Sparkling performance from Hy Hazel towards the end.
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