The Guest (1963)

While renovating his house in London, Aston, out of pity, lodges a homeless man, but Aston's brother taunts and harasses the cranky old bum.

Director:

Clive Donner

Writer:

Harold Pinter (play)

Stars:

Alan Bates, Donald Pleasence, Robert Shaw

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview:
Alan Bates	...	Mick
Donald Pleasence	...	Mac Davies / Bernard Jenkins
Robert Shaw	...	Aston

Storyline

Aston (Robert Shaw), a quiet, reserved man, lives alone in a top-floor cluttered room of a small abandoned house in a poor London district. He befriends and takes in Mac Davies (Donald Pleasence), an old derelict who has been fired from a menial job in a café. In time, Aston offers him a job as caretaker of the house. Aston's brother, Mick (Sir Alan Bates), a taunting sadist, harasses the derelict when his brother is away, countermanding his orders. Eventually, Aston, irritated by the cantankerous old man, puts him out.

---

Plot Keywords:

london england | 1960s | homeless man | boarding house | home renovation | 

---

Taglines:

Based on the play 'The Caretaker'.

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

July 1963 (UK)

Also Known As:

The Guest

Filming Locations:

31 Downs Road, Hackney, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£30,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Caretaker Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Donald Pleasence was nominated for the 1962 Tony Award (New York City) for Actor in a Drama for "The Caretaker" and re-created his role in this movie.

---

Quotes

Mick: I could turn this place into a penthouse. For instance this room. This room could have been the kitchen. Right size, nice window, sun comes in. I'd have I'd have teal-blue, copper and parchment linoleum squares. I'd have those colours re-echoed in the walls. I'd offset the kitchen units with charcoal-grey worktops. Plenty of room for cupboards for the crockery. We'd have a small wall cupboard, a large wall cupboard, a corner wall cupboard with revolving shelves. You shouldn't be short of ...

---

Connections

Referenced in This Week in Britain: The Caretaker (1963)

User Reviews

hypnotic

Like the other commenter I too am wondering why this isn't available on DVD. Luckily I video-taped a PBS broadcast years ago but Pinter deserves to be immortalized in a DVD collection with all the supplementary material available. (Perhaps now that he's won the Nobel) This movie was my introduction to Pinter and while I have to acknowledge the acting it was the script that hypnotized me when I happened upon it channel surfing one evening. So brilliantly absurd that you may join it as I first did from any point in the play and be instantly compelled by Pinter's bizarre reality. Bates, Shaw and Pleasance are perfectly cast but Donald Pleasance reveals a brilliance pitifully missing in his many supporting Hollywood roles. One wonders if the actors felt the magic their collaboration conveys and if so they must have been ecstatic.