Tread Softly Stranger
Encyclopedia
Tread Softly Stranger is a 1958
British crime drama directed by Gordon Parry
and starring Diana Dors
, George Baker
and Terence Morgan
. The film was shot in black-and-white
in film noir
style, and its setting in a gritty working industrial town in northern England mirrors the kitchen sink realism
movement coming into vogue in English drama and film at the time. The screenplay was adapted from the 1953 stage play Blind Alley by Jack Popplewell
.
was used for the extensive location filming – to which native son Johnny Mansell (George Baker
) has fled after racking up large gambling debts in London. Johnny moves into a cramped flat with his brother Dave (Terence Morgan
), a clerk in a local steel mill, and Dave's girlfriend Calico (Diana Dors
), a hostess in a local nightclub. There is an instant attraction between Calico and Johnny, and it becomes apparent that the relationship between Dave and Calico is rather one-sided. It transpires that in an attempt to keep hold of her, he has embezzled £300 from his employers which he has use to buy her clothes and various gifts. He now has one week to repay the money before the firm's auditors make their visit.
Calico comes up with a plan for the brothers to rob the payroll at Dave's workplace to steal enough money to cover Dave's fraud and Johnny's debts. However at the arranged time Johnny is delayed in getting to the rendezvous, and Dave decides to go ahead with the robbery on his own. Johnny arrives at the mill just as Dave is leaving with thousands of pounds, but they are disturbed by the elderly night-watchman and there is a struggle in which Dave shoots and kills him.
Initially the police can find no leads as to the perpetrators of the murder, but the night-watchman's son (Patrick Allen
) is certain that the robbery was an inside job and his suspicions lead him to Dave when he tracks down a blind witness who heard the killing. The police enquiries finally lead them to Johnny, who is arrested and taken away for questioning. The night-watchman's son then confronts Dave with his evidence, not revealing that his witness is blind, and convinces him to confess his own guilt.
which would be watched once and then forgotten. Its reputation was upgraded in later decades, with critics finding much to admire, particularly the cinematography by Douglas Slocombe
with its authentic feel of everyday life in a steel town of the era. The main incongruity in the film is cited as the noticeable lack of Yorkshire accents in characters who were supposedly born and brought up in the county, while it has also been questioned whether a town such as Rawborough in the 1950s would have been the venue for a nightclub of the type in which Calico is employed.
Tread Softly Stranger received its first DVD release in the UK in 2008. Fans of the film noted that in the shot chosen for the DVD cover Dors had a drink in her hand and Baker was smoking; however, in a somewhat excessive display of 21st century political correctness
, the glass and the cigarette had been airbrushed out of the shot.
1958 in film
The year 1958 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* February 16- "In the Money" by William Beaudine is released on this date. It would be the last installment of The Bowery Boys series which began back in 1946....
British crime drama directed by Gordon Parry
Gordon Parry (film director)
Gordon Parry was a British film director and producer. Born in Aintree on 24 July 1908, he directed his first film Third Time Lucky in 1948. He died in 1981.-Selected filmography:* Third Time Lucky * Fast and Loose...
and starring Diana Dors
Diana Dors
Diana Dors was an English actress, born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, Wiltshire. Considered the English equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, Dors described herself as: "The only sex symbol Britain has produced since Lady Godiva."-Early life:Diana Mary Fluck was born in Swindon,...
, George Baker
George Baker (actor)
George Baker, MBE was an English actor and writer. He was best-known for portraying Tiberius in I, Claudius, and Inspector Wexford in The Ruth Rendell Mysteries.-Personal life:...
and Terence Morgan
Terence Morgan
Terence Ivor Grant Morgan was an English actor in theatre, cinema and television. He was the nephew of British character actor Verne Morgan...
. The film was shot in black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
in film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
style, and its setting in a gritty working industrial town in northern England mirrors the kitchen sink realism
Kitchen sink realism
Kitchen sink realism is a term coined to describe a British cultural movement which developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in theatre, art, novels, film and television plays, whose 'heroes' usually could be described as angry young men...
movement coming into vogue in English drama and film at the time. The screenplay was adapted from the 1953 stage play Blind Alley by Jack Popplewell
Jack Popplewell
Jack Popplewell was an English writer and playwright.-Life:Popplewell was born and grew up in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire. He published his first song in 1940, and his first play, Blind Alley was staged in London in 1953...
.
Plot
The action takes place in the Yorkshire steel town of Rawborough – RotherhamRotherham
Rotherham is a town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Don, at its confluence with the River Rother, between Sheffield and Doncaster. Rotherham, at from Sheffield City Centre, is surrounded by several smaller settlements, which together form the wider Metropolitan Borough of...
was used for the extensive location filming – to which native son Johnny Mansell (George Baker
George Baker (actor)
George Baker, MBE was an English actor and writer. He was best-known for portraying Tiberius in I, Claudius, and Inspector Wexford in The Ruth Rendell Mysteries.-Personal life:...
) has fled after racking up large gambling debts in London. Johnny moves into a cramped flat with his brother Dave (Terence Morgan
Terence Morgan
Terence Ivor Grant Morgan was an English actor in theatre, cinema and television. He was the nephew of British character actor Verne Morgan...
), a clerk in a local steel mill, and Dave's girlfriend Calico (Diana Dors
Diana Dors
Diana Dors was an English actress, born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, Wiltshire. Considered the English equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, Dors described herself as: "The only sex symbol Britain has produced since Lady Godiva."-Early life:Diana Mary Fluck was born in Swindon,...
), a hostess in a local nightclub. There is an instant attraction between Calico and Johnny, and it becomes apparent that the relationship between Dave and Calico is rather one-sided. It transpires that in an attempt to keep hold of her, he has embezzled £300 from his employers which he has use to buy her clothes and various gifts. He now has one week to repay the money before the firm's auditors make their visit.
Calico comes up with a plan for the brothers to rob the payroll at Dave's workplace to steal enough money to cover Dave's fraud and Johnny's debts. However at the arranged time Johnny is delayed in getting to the rendezvous, and Dave decides to go ahead with the robbery on his own. Johnny arrives at the mill just as Dave is leaving with thousands of pounds, but they are disturbed by the elderly night-watchman and there is a struggle in which Dave shoots and kills him.
Initially the police can find no leads as to the perpetrators of the murder, but the night-watchman's son (Patrick Allen
Patrick Allen
John Keith Patrick Allen was a British film, television and voice actor.-Life and career:Allen was born in Nyasaland , where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada during World War II where he remained to finish his education at McGill...
) is certain that the robbery was an inside job and his suspicions lead him to Dave when he tracks down a blind witness who heard the killing. The police enquiries finally lead them to Johnny, who is arrested and taken away for questioning. The night-watchman's son then confronts Dave with his evidence, not revealing that his witness is blind, and convinces him to confess his own guilt.
Cast
- Diana DorsDiana DorsDiana Dors was an English actress, born Diana Mary Fluck in Swindon, Wiltshire. Considered the English equivalent of the blonde bombshells of Hollywood, Dors described herself as: "The only sex symbol Britain has produced since Lady Godiva."-Early life:Diana Mary Fluck was born in Swindon,...
as Calico - George BakerGeorge Baker (actor)George Baker, MBE was an English actor and writer. He was best-known for portraying Tiberius in I, Claudius, and Inspector Wexford in The Ruth Rendell Mysteries.-Personal life:...
as Johnny Mansell - Terence MorganTerence MorganTerence Ivor Grant Morgan was an English actor in theatre, cinema and television. He was the nephew of British character actor Verne Morgan...
as Dave Mansell - Patrick AllenPatrick AllenJohn Keith Patrick Allen was a British film, television and voice actor.-Life and career:Allen was born in Nyasaland , where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada during World War II where he remained to finish his education at McGill...
as Paddy Ryan - Jane Griffiths as Sylvia
- Thomas HeathcoteThomas HeathcoteThomas Heathcote was a British character actor.He was educated at Bradfield College, near Reading in Berkshire, England. His films included A Night to Remember , Village of the Damned , Billy Budd , A Man for All Seasons , Night of the Big Heat and Quatermass and the Pit...
as Sgt. Lamb - Russell NapierRussell NapierRussell Gordon Napier was an Australian actor.Russell Napier was born in Perth, Western Australia. Originally a lawyer, Napier was active as an actor from 1947 to 1974, playing both comedic and dramatic roles in both cinema and television. Notably, he starred in a live BBC television production...
as Potter - Norman Macowan as Danny
- Maureen Delaney as Mrs. Finnegan
- Wilfrid LawsonWilfrid Lawson (actor)Wilfrid Lawson was a British character actor of stage and screen.-Life and career:...
as Holroyd - Betty Warren as Flo
- Joseph TomeltyJoseph TomeltyJoseph Tomelty was a Northern Irish character actor and playwright. He worked in film, television, radio and on the stage, starring in Sam Thompson's 1960 play Over the Bridge.-Early life:...
as Joe Ryan - Andrew KeirAndrew KeirAndrew Keir was a Scottish actor, who rose to prominence featuring in a number of films from Hammer Film Productions in the 1960s. He was also active in television, and particularly in the theatre, in a professional career that lasted from the 1940s to the 1990s...
as Inspector Harris
Reception
Tread Softly Stranger did well at the box-office on its original release but received little critical attention, being seen as a typical crime potboilerPotboiler
Potboiler or pot-boiler is a term used to describe a poor quality novel, play, opera, or film, or other creative work that was created quickly to make money to pay for the creator's daily expenses . Authors who create potboiler novels or screenplays are sometimes called hack writers...
which would be watched once and then forgotten. Its reputation was upgraded in later decades, with critics finding much to admire, particularly the cinematography by Douglas Slocombe
Douglas Slocombe
Douglas Slocombe OBE, BSC, A.S.C. is a British cinematographer who has enjoyed a long career in the British film industry...
with its authentic feel of everyday life in a steel town of the era. The main incongruity in the film is cited as the noticeable lack of Yorkshire accents in characters who were supposedly born and brought up in the county, while it has also been questioned whether a town such as Rawborough in the 1950s would have been the venue for a nightclub of the type in which Calico is employed.
Tread Softly Stranger received its first DVD release in the UK in 2008. Fans of the film noted that in the shot chosen for the DVD cover Dors had a drink in her hand and Baker was smoking; however, in a somewhat excessive display of 21st century political correctness
Political correctness
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,...
, the glass and the cigarette had been airbrushed out of the shot.
External links
- Tread Softly Stranger at BritMovie