The story of British serial killer John Christie, who committed most or all of his crimes in the titular terraced house, and the miscarriage of justice involving Timothy Evans.
Richard Attenborough
John Christie
John Hurt
Timothy Evans
Judy Geeson
Beryl Evans
Pat Heywood
Ethel Christie
Isobel Black
Alice
Miss Riley
Baby Geraldine
André Morell
Judge Lewis
Robert Hardy
Malcolm Morris
Phyllis MacMahon
Muriel Eady
Gabrielle Daye
Mrs Lynch
Jimmy Gardner
Mr. Lynch
Edward Evans
Det. Inspector
Tenniel Evans
Det. Sgt.
Ray Barron
Workman Willis
Douglas Blackwell
Workman Jones
Basil Dignam
Member of Medical Board
Edward Burnham
Member of Medical Board
Reg Lye
Tramp
Sam Kydd
Furniture Dealer
Rudolph Walker
West Indian
Geoffrey Chater
Christmas Humphreys
Jack Carr
Constable
Arthur Gross
Man In Pub
David Jackson
George Lee
Richard Coleman
Norman Henry
Edwin Brown
Norma Shebbeare
Tommy Ansah
Jack Armstrong
Ernest Blyth
Margaret Boyd
Rodney Cardiff
Edward Cast
Vic Chapman
Jimmy Charters
Maxwell Craig
Arthur Gross
Patrick Halpin
George Hilsdon
George Holdcroft
Fred Hugh
Cyril Kent
Robin Keston
Anthony Lang
Howard Lang
Roy Lansford
Dido Plumb
Colin Rix
Jack Sharp
John Tatham
Tony Thawnton
Mickey Varey
Eric Wetherell
John Wilder
Jack Carter
Barrister (uncredited)
Director
Richard Fleischer
Book
Ludovic Kennedy
Screenplay
Clive Exton
May 29, 2023
7
Richard Attenborough is superb in this creepy and true tale of John Christie. He lives with his wife Ethel (Pat Heywood) in the ground floor of the address where, above, a young couple of pregnant Beryl (Judy Gleeson) and Timothy Evans (John Hurt) have just moved in. Unbeknown to them, though, the outwardly affable Christie lives a double life. His other "career" is to help unfortunate women deal with ailments for which they cannot just go to their doctor. We assume that he gets his kicks whilst they are anaethetised and then they end up behind a false wall in his kitchen! It transpires that he might just be able to help the poverty stricken Evans's out - they cannot afford the child they already have, let along bring another into the world, and their rows are regularly heard by the entire street! Maybe Christie has a solution? Of course, by this stage we are fully aware of the real motives behind this proposed "generosity" and clearly it is all very perilous for Beryl, and quite possibly for her slightly flaky husband too. This story had a profound effect on the British public in 1949, when all this happened, and may well have hastened the abolition of the death penalty some 15 years later. The potent performances here make it very easy to see why. So often the victims were never reported missing, or if they were there was no connection to Christie as few of them ever told anyone else where they were going, or why! The truth only came to light after he had been evicted for unlawfully sub-letting their flat. It's a tough watch, this. Richard Fleischer doesn't offer us graphic imagery or audio, he allows our own well informed imagination to do most of the heavy lifting here, and that technique really works!
Status:
Released
Original Language:
English
Budget:
$0.00
Revenue:
$0.00