Three Steps to the Gallows: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|1953 British film by John Gilling}} |
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| name = Three Steps to the Gallows |
| name = Three Steps to the Gallows |
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| image = Three Steps to the Gallows poster.jpg |
| image = Three Steps to the Gallows poster.jpg |
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| image_size = |
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| caption = Theatrical release poster |
| caption = Theatrical release poster |
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| director = [[John Gilling]] |
| director = [[John Gilling]] |
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| producer = [[Robert S. Baker]] <br> [[Monty Berman]] |
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| writer = |
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| writer = [[Paul Erickson (screenwriter)|Paul Erickson]] <Br> John Gilling |
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| narrator = |
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| starring = [[Scott Brady]]<br />[[Mary Castle]] |
| starring = [[Scott Brady]]<br />[[Mary Castle]] <br> [[Gabrielle Brune]] |
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| music = |
| music = [[Stanley Black]] |
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| cinematography = |
| cinematography = Monty Berman |
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| editing = |
| editing = [[Margery Saunders]] |
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| studio = [[Tempean Films]] |
| studio = [[Tempean Films]] |
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| distributor = |
| distributor =[[Eros Films]] <br /> [[Lippert Pictures]] (US) |
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| released = 1 January 1954 (US) |
| released = December 1953 <br> 1 January 1954 (US) |
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| runtime = 81 minutes |
| runtime = 81 minutes |
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| country = United Kingdom |
| country = United Kingdom |
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| budget = |
| budget = |
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| gross = |
| gross = |
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'''''Three Steps to the Gallows''''' |
'''''Three Steps to the Gallows''''' is a 1953 British [[B movie|second feature]]<ref name="Chibnall">{{Cite book |last=Chibnall |first=Steve |title=''The British 'B' Film'' |last2=McFarlane |first2=Brian |publisher=[[BFI]]/[[Bloomsbury Publishing|Bloomsbury]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-8445-7319-6 |location=London |pages=86}}</ref> [[crime film]] directed by [[John Gilling]] and starring [[Scott Brady]], [[Mary Castle]] and [[Gabrielle Brune]].<ref name="BFIsearch">{{Cite web |title=Three Steps to the Gallows |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/150055853 |access-date=24 November 2023 |website=British Film Institute Collections Search}}</ref> It was released in the USA by [[Lippert Pictures]] as '''''White Fire'''''. |
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==Premise== |
==Premise== |
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An American merchant ship officer on shore leave in London learns that his brother is about to be hanged in three days and sets out to prove his innocence against an organised smuggling gang based in a nightclub. His plight becomes increasingly tense in the face of double crosses and bad decisions in a race against time. |
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An American comes to London to attempt to save his brother from being hanged for a murder he didn't commit. |
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== |
==Cast== |
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{{div col|colwidth=30em}} |
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* [[Scott Brady]] - Gregor Stevens |
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* [[ |
* [[Scott Brady]] as Gregor Stevens |
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* [[ |
* [[Mary Castle]] as Yvonne Durante |
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* [[ |
* [[Gabrielle Brune]] as Lorna Dryhurst |
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* [[ |
* [[Ferdy Mayne]] as Mario Sartago |
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* [[Colin Tapley]] as Arnold Winslow |
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* [[John Blythe (actor)|John Blythe]] - Dave Leary |
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* [[ |
* [[John Blythe (actor)|John Blythe]] as Dave Leary |
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* [[Michael Balfour (actor)|Michael Balfour]] as Carter |
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* [[Lloyd Lamble]] |
* [[Lloyd Lamble]] as James Smith |
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* Julian Somers - John Durante |
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* [[ |
* [[Julian Somers]] as John Durante |
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* [[ |
* [[Ballard Berkeley]] as Inspector Haley |
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* [[ |
* [[Ronan O'Casey]] as Crawson |
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* [[Paul Erickson (screenwriter)|Paul Erickson]] |
* [[Johnnie Schofield]] as Charley |
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* [[Paul Erickson (screenwriter)|Paul Erickson]] as Larry Stevens |
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* Bill Lowe as Percy |
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⚫ | |||
* [[Ronald Leigh-Hunt]] |
* [[Ronald Leigh-Hunt]] as Captain Adams |
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* [[Dennis Chinnery]] |
* [[Dennis Chinnery]] as Bill |
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⚫ | |||
* Alastair Hunter as hotel manager |
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* [[Arthur Lovegrove]] as Tommy |
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* Harcourt Curaçao as Matt |
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* Russell Westwood as Mike |
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* [[Larry Taylor (actor)|Larry Taylor]] as Sam |
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* [[Neil Hallett]] as Real Counterman |
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* [[Conrad Phillips]] as clerk, travel agent |
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* [[Stanley Meadows]] as 2nd clerk, travel agent |
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* [[Arthur Mullard]] as prison warder |
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* [[Leonard Sharp (actor)|Leonard Sharp]] as clerk, Somerset House |
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* Joe Wadham as police driver |
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{{div col end}} |
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==Production== |
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It was produced by the [[Tempean Films]] and made at the [[Southall Studios]] with sets designed by the [[art director]] [[Wilfred Arnold]]. Location shooting took place in [[London]] including on [[Regent Street]], around [[Chelsea, London|Chelsea]] and at the [[Olympia Exhibition Centre]]. |
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==Critical reception== |
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''[[Kine Weekly]]'' said "Romantic crime melodrama, unfolded in the metropolis. Its tale of mayhem and murder wants a bit of following, yet, for all its complexity it manages to hold the interest and hand out quite a number of thrills. The cast, headed by popular American players, is sound. Grim and good humoured in turn, it provides the variety that is the spice of mystery fare."<ref>{{Cite journal |date=3 December 1953 |title=Three Steps to the Gallows |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/2826272946/1E0DC831E7BC4404PQ/1 |journal=[[Kine Weekly]] |volume=441 |issue=2423 |pages=19 |via=ProQuest}}</ref> |
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''[[Monthly Film Bulletin]]'' said "A conventional thriller. The only novel idea – using the British Industries Fair as the setting for a manhunt – has not been at all well exploited. Scott Brady adequately fills the role of the American-in-Britain inevitable in this type of crime story."<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1954 |title=Three Steps to the Gallows |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1305819127/1E0DC831E7BC4404PQ/4 |journal=[[Monthly Film Bulletin]] |volume=21 |issue=240 |pages=12 |via=ProQuest}}</ref> |
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In ''British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959'' [[David Quinlan (film critic)|David Quinlan]] rated the film as "average", writing: "Very formula thriller, given a litle gloss by its two Hollywood stars."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Quinlan |first=David |title=British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 |publisher=[[Batsford Books|B.T. Batsford Ltd.]] |year=1984 |isbn=0-7134-1874-5 |location=London |pages=387}}</ref> |
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Chibnall and McFarlane in ''The British 'B' Film'' wrote that the film: "took [a] walk on London's wild side ...in the company of a visiting American seaman huskily played by Scott Brady. His leading lady was another minor Hollywood star, the [[Rita Hayworth]] look-alike Mary Castle. Although formulaic, the action was brisk and often violent, and the settings, as usual, were authentic – including a sequence at the British Industries Fair."<ref name="Chibnall" /> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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<references/> |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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*{{IMDb title|0047674}} |
*{{IMDb title|0047674}} |
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*[https://www.reelstreets.com/films/three-steps-to-the-gallows/ ''Three Steps to the Gallows''] at [https://www.reelstreets.com/ ReelStreets] |
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{{John Gilling}} |
{{John Gilling}} |
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[[Category:British crime films]] |
[[Category:British crime films]] |
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[[Category:1953 crime films]] |
[[Category:1953 crime films]] |
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[[Category:Films directed by John Gilling]] |
[[Category:Films directed by John Gilling]] |
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[[Category:Films shot in London]] |
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[[Category:Films set in London]] |
[[Category:Films set in London]] |
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[[Category:Films shot at Southall Studios]] |
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[[Category:British black-and-white films]] |
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{{1950s-UK-film-stub}} |
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[[Category:1950s British films]] |
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[[Category:Eros Films films]] |
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[[Category:Films scored by Stanley Black]] |
Revision as of 15:00, 2 July 2024
Three Steps to the Gallows | |
---|---|
Directed by | John Gilling |
Written by | Paul Erickson John Gilling |
Produced by | Robert S. Baker Monty Berman |
Starring | Scott Brady Mary Castle Gabrielle Brune |
Cinematography | Monty Berman |
Edited by | Margery Saunders |
Music by | Stanley Black |
Production company | |
Distributed by | Eros Films Lippert Pictures (US) |
Release dates | December 1953 1 January 1954 (US) |
Running time | 81 minutes |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Three Steps to the Gallows is a 1953 British second feature[1] crime film directed by John Gilling and starring Scott Brady, Mary Castle and Gabrielle Brune.[2] It was released in the USA by Lippert Pictures as White Fire.
Premise
An American merchant ship officer on shore leave in London learns that his brother is about to be hanged in three days and sets out to prove his innocence against an organised smuggling gang based in a nightclub. His plight becomes increasingly tense in the face of double crosses and bad decisions in a race against time.
Cast
- Scott Brady as Gregor Stevens
- Mary Castle as Yvonne Durante
- Gabrielle Brune as Lorna Dryhurst
- Ferdy Mayne as Mario Sartago
- Colin Tapley as Arnold Winslow
- John Blythe as Dave Leary
- Michael Balfour as Carter
- Lloyd Lamble as James Smith
- Julian Somers as John Durante
- Ballard Berkeley as Inspector Haley
- Ronan O'Casey as Crawson
- Johnnie Schofield as Charley
- Paul Erickson as Larry Stevens
- Bill Lowe as Percy
- Ronald Leigh-Hunt as Captain Adams
- Dennis Chinnery as Bill
- Hal Osmond as desk clerk
- Alastair Hunter as hotel manager
- Arthur Lovegrove as Tommy
- Harcourt Curaçao as Matt
- Russell Westwood as Mike
- Larry Taylor as Sam
- Neil Hallett as Real Counterman
- Conrad Phillips as clerk, travel agent
- Stanley Meadows as 2nd clerk, travel agent
- Arthur Mullard as prison warder
- Leonard Sharp as clerk, Somerset House
- Joe Wadham as police driver
Production
It was produced by the Tempean Films and made at the Southall Studios with sets designed by the art director Wilfred Arnold. Location shooting took place in London including on Regent Street, around Chelsea and at the Olympia Exhibition Centre.
Critical reception
Kine Weekly said "Romantic crime melodrama, unfolded in the metropolis. Its tale of mayhem and murder wants a bit of following, yet, for all its complexity it manages to hold the interest and hand out quite a number of thrills. The cast, headed by popular American players, is sound. Grim and good humoured in turn, it provides the variety that is the spice of mystery fare."[3]
Monthly Film Bulletin said "A conventional thriller. The only novel idea – using the British Industries Fair as the setting for a manhunt – has not been at all well exploited. Scott Brady adequately fills the role of the American-in-Britain inevitable in this type of crime story."[4]
In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "average", writing: "Very formula thriller, given a litle gloss by its two Hollywood stars."[5]
Chibnall and McFarlane in The British 'B' Film wrote that the film: "took [a] walk on London's wild side ...in the company of a visiting American seaman huskily played by Scott Brady. His leading lady was another minor Hollywood star, the Rita Hayworth look-alike Mary Castle. Although formulaic, the action was brisk and often violent, and the settings, as usual, were authentic – including a sequence at the British Industries Fair."[1]
References
- ^ a b Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 86. ISBN 978-1-8445-7319-6.
- ^ "Three Steps to the Gallows". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
- ^ "Three Steps to the Gallows". Kine Weekly. 441 (2423): 19. 3 December 1953 – via ProQuest.
- ^ "Three Steps to the Gallows". Monthly Film Bulletin. 21 (240): 12. 1954 – via ProQuest.
- ^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 387. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.