Directed by:
Ralph ThomasCinematography:
Ernest StewardCast:
Dirk Bogarde, Marie Versini, Dorothy Tutin, Ian Bannen, Cecil Parker, Athene Seyler, Alfie Bass, Christopher Lee, Leo McKern, Donald Pleasence, Laurence Payne (more)Plots(1)
This is the sixth attempt to bring the Charles Dickens novel to the screen (previously filmed in 1911, 1917, 1922, 1925, 1935). It's the long-told story of a frivolous young lawyer who spends most of his time drinking. But he meets the woman of his dreams, and, eventually, awakened to responsibility in aiding victims of the French Revolution, gives his life for her in the ultimate sacrifice. Christopher Lee, who would go on to countless other roles as a heartless villain, is excellent as the amoral Marquis St. Evremonde. Of interest to those who yearn for historical--and literary--accuracy in films is the fact that this version of the classic was the first to be produced in Britain, with location scenes for the French Revolution sequences shot in Bourges and Valencay. This version strives for the careful attention to detail that mark the best BBC-produced literary translations today. In addition, the subtlity of Bogarde's performance lends an entirely different quality to the pivotal role of Sydney Carton. Unlike Ronald Colman's misty-eyed nobility as he approaches the guillotine in the 1935 version, Bogarde faces his death as the inevitable result of his devotion to a cause that is larger than life itself. Perhaps this is not as melodramatic as the Hollywood version, but, to some, it is infinitely more satisfying. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Cast
Dirk Bogarde
UK
Best movies:
The Password is Courage (1962)
Un pont trop loin (1977)
The Damned (1969)
Marie Versini
France
Best movies:
Winnetou (1963)
A Tale of Two Cities (1958)
Is Paris Burning? (1966)
Dorothy Tutin
UK
Best movies:
Savage Messiah (1972)
The Importance of Being Earnest (1952)
King Lear (1983) (TV movie)
Ian Bannen
UK
Best movies:
Braveheart (1995)
The Hill (1965)
Gandhi (1982)
Cecil Parker
Best movies:
Father Brown (1954)
The Lady Vanishes (1938)
The Citadel (1938)
Athene Seyler
UK
Best movies:
The Citadel (1938)
A Tale of Two Cities (1958)
Campbell's Kingdom (1957)
Alfie Bass
UK
Best movies:
Brief Encounter (1945)
Murder by Proxy (1954)
The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
Christopher Lee
UK
Best movies:
Leo McKern
Australia
Best movies:
The Omen (1976)
King Lear (1983) (TV movie)
Ryan's Daughter (1970)
Donald Pleasence
UK
Best movies:
The Great Escape (1963)
Watch Out, We're Mad (1974)
Jesus of Nazareth (1977) (TV movie)
Laurence Payne
UK
Best movies:
Ben-Hur (1959)
A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
A Tale of Two Cities (1958)
Sacha Pitoëff
Switzerland
Best movies:
Vengeance of the Three Musketeers (1961)
The Spies (1957)
The Seven Deadly Sins (1952)
Dominique Davray
France
Best movies:
A Trap for Cinderella (1965)
Les Misérables (1982)
The Wing and the Thigh (1976)
Paul Guers
France
Best movies:
La Belle et l'empereur (1959)
Marie-October (1959)
The Octopus (1984) (series)
Dominique Boschero
France
Best movies:
A Tale of Two Cities (1958)
Speaking of Murder (1957)
La Mer à boire (1963)
Duncan Lamont
Portugal
Best movies:
Battle of Britain (1969)
Murder at the Gallop (1963)
Mutiny on the Bounty (1962)
Alan Tilvern
UK
Best movies:
Love and Death (1975)
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Night and the City (1950)
Harold Kasket
UK
Best movies:
Moulin Rouge (1952)
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
The Mouse That Roared (1959)
Rosalie Crutchley
UK
Best movies:
The Nun's Story (1959)
Cadfael (1994) (series)
Agatha Christie: Poirot (1989) (series)
Robert Rietty
UK
Best movies:
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)
Doctor Zhivago (1965)