Serious Charge

I have only just seen this film on an obscure satellite channel. Way ahead of its time. It would not be out of place if it were remade today (without the awful version of "Livin' Doll"!) Does anyone know who played the youths in the film (apart from Cliff Richard and Andrew Ray) One looked like Nanette Newman and another like Bryan Forbes but they are not mentioned on this site. If it is them perhaps this film is where they met and fell in love.

One thing that struck me as I watched the film is that 46 years on nothing has changed, at least not for the better. A sad indictment on our society.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this film. Superb performance from Anthony Quayle, as you would expect, and from the woman playing Hester. The plot is ahead of it's time and not what you'd expect from 1959. The story is a good one, well told, well paced, with excellent performances. The film has aged well, perhaps with the exception of the portrayal of the youngsters which seemed dated and cliched.

However I did smile that the vicar played top level football on a Saturday (the equivalent of today's Premier League) without training during the week, totally unnecessary to the plot and completely unbelievable! Cliff Richard's performance of Living Doll adds curiousity value. Another lost gem from Talking Pictures TV.

This was the first film to deal with homosexuality in British cinema, and it is absurd as there is not one homosexual character in it. I say this, and without spoilers, that the Vicar might be, well, repressed but it is all such a muddle I ended up not caring. But disregarding this the acting is not bad and Anthony Quayle, Sarah Churchill and especially Irene Browne are excellent. Irene Browne, the Vicar's mother has the best lines in the film, and her voice alone commands attention. I will just say that the vicar falls into troubled waters and there is an attempt at showing homophobia and the human havoc it can cause. Andrew Ray attempts being convincing as a juvenile delinquent ( very attractive to 1950's audiences ) but of course to be disapproved of. Cliff Richard improbably plays another delinquent and ridiculously stops the film by singing ' Living Doll ' which was a hit at the time. All this sounds as if I do not like watching it, and that is not true. When I feel low I watch it just for the acting, and its enjoyable absurdity. And even Sarah Churchill transforms herself from being prudish, sexually repressed and drab into one of the best ( elegant ) seducers on film. I like watching her in anything. See it and smile and remember that this really is an imitation of life. I give it just 5 because the actors save the film from poor direction and an awful musical soundtrack.

Please don't read any re views with spoilers. The first hour of this film is pretty dull. The second half is something else and worth every minute.

A decent vicar has to contend with a group of bratty teens and an "old maid" who acts like he is the last gas station before the desert and is determined to land him as a husband. One wouldn't think these two situations would converge and get an innocent caring clergyman into serious trouble, but it did. It is rather shocking in fact.

Cliff Richard has a small role in this, but after all his surgeries it is difficult to be sure which character he plays. Also on hand is a busty, flash in the pan French teen actress.

Enjoy watching this poor dolt get out of this pickle!

Very daring for its day (1959) "Serious Charge" may now look very much like a period piece yet this British movie about a vicar falsely accused of molesting a teenage boy still packs a punch thanks in large part to a fine script by Guy Elmes and Mickey Delamar and good performances from Anthony Quayle as the vicar, Andrew Ray as the boy who makes the allegation, Sarah Churchill as the woman who has the hots for Quayle and, perhaps best of all, Irene Browne as Quayle's no-nonsense mother. It was also the film that introduced a young Cliff Richard to the big screen as Ray's younger brother, (he sings "Livin' Doll"). Now Cliff and the teenage teraways are the films weakest links which in all other respects treats its subject seriously and with a surprising degree of intelligence. It's almost unimaginable that a similar film would have been made in America at this time.