The End of the Road

Finlay Currie plays Mick-Mack, a veteran electroplater forced to retire from his factory. He is left embittered and now regarded as a burden on his family, he has to swallow his pride and claim benefits from the post office.

He reluctantly takes on a job as a nightwatchman but loses it when he leaves his post, with his son and wife arguing he is heading for a nervous breakdown, but at least his knowledge and skill comes to the aid of the factory owners.

In some ways this is the precursor to the provocative British kitchen sink dramas that would emerge in the late 1950s. Currie gives a skillful portrayal of a working man who has reached the end of his tether, his family contemplating putting him in a home.

It is a small scale film, Currie plays a proud man who at the same time can irritate you.