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Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
- Alan Bates Films
- Character Arc
- David Warner Films
- Dirk Bogarde Films
- Elizabeth Hartman Films
- Falsely Accused
- Historical Drama
- Hugh Griffith Films
- Ian Holm Films
- Jews
- John Frankenheimer Films
- Living Nightmare
- Prisoners
- Racism and Race Relations
Review:
A year before starring in Ken Russell’s Women in Love (1969), Alan Bates played the title role in this relentlessly depressing — perhaps it could only be so — adaptation of Bernard Malamud’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel (directed by John Frankenheimer, with a script by Dalton Trumbo), based on the unjust imprisonment of Menahem Mendel Beilis in early-20th-century Russia. It was bold of the filmmakers to directly address antisemitism — and specifically the issue of blood libel — so clearly in their film, which doesn’t shy away from showing how challenging it was to be a Jew (practicing or not) at this time. From the brutal opening pogrom:
… to Bates being falsely accused of rape by the entitled daughter (Elizabeth Hartman) of his employer:
… to his imprisonment and torture for a crime he had nothing to do with, we gradually see him developing a stronger sense of political agency and identity.
It’s a grueling 2 hours and 20 minutes to sit through, however — and chances are only fans of Bates (excellent), Bogarde, or the original novel will want to seek it out.
Notable Performances, Qualities, and Moments:
- Alan Bates as Yakov Bok
- Dirk Bogarde as Bibikov
- Marcel Grignon’s cinematography
Must See?
No, though it’s worth a one-time look if you’re curious.
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