Conduct Unbecoming (1975 film)

Last updated

Conduct Unbecoming
Conduct Unbecoming VideoCover.jpeg
DVD Cover
Directed by Michael Anderson
Written byRobert Enders
Based on Conduct Unbecoming
by Barry England
Produced by Michael Deeley
Andrew Donally
Barry Spikings
Starring Michael York
Richard Attenborough
Trevor Howard
Stacy Keach
Christopher Plummer
Susannah York
CinematographyRobert Huke
Edited by John Glen
Music by Stanley Myers
Production
company
Distributed by British Lion
Release date
  • 5 October 1975 (1975-10-05)
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Conduct Unbecoming is a 1975 British period legal drama film directed by Michael Anderson and adapted by Robert Enders from Barry England's play of the same name . It features an ensemble cast, starring Michael York, Richard Attenborough, Trevor Howard, Stacy Keach, Christopher Plummer and Susannah York. Set in a British Indian Army barracks in the late 19th-century, the film centers on an impromptu court-martial following the assault of an officer's widow.

Contents

Conduct Unbecoming was released by British Lion Films on 5 October 1975, to generally positive reviews. The American National Board of Review ranked the film in its Top Ten Films of 1975.

Plot

In 1880, two young British officers arrive to join a regiment in India. 2nd Lieutenant Arthur Drake (Michael York), from a middle-class background, is eager to fit in. 2nd Lieutenant Edward Millington (James Faulkner), the son of a general, is keen to get out as soon as possible and deliberately antagonizes his fellow officers. The two newcomers learn the rules (and traditions) of the regiment from Lieutenant Richard Fothergill (Michael Culver). Drake participates in a regimental mess game where officers chase a wooden pig on wheels, pulled by him, attempting to pierce its anus with their swords.

Fothergill warns the young officers about Mrs. Marjorie Scarlett (Susannah York) – attractive, flirtatious widow of Captain Scarlett – who is a constant, somewhat menacing presence in the regiment. Her husband, whose bloody uniform hangs prominently in a glass case as a testament to his brutal death at the hand of "barbarians", was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his valor. Majors Alastair Wimbourne (Christopher Plummer) and Lionel Roach (Richard Attenborough) had viewed the savaged body of the fallen hero.

At a mess dance one night, Millington gets drunk and tries to seduce Mrs. Scarlett in the garden. She repels him, but moments later runs back into the mess wounded and in shock, claiming the culprit was Millington. An informal court martial – a private hearing designed to avoid public scandal for the regiment – is presided over by Captain Stuart Harper (Stacy Keach), with Drake ordered to be Millington's defending officer.

Drake is pressured by his superior officer to plead guilty for Millington and close the case quickly, but he challenges the orders in order to give the defendant a fair trial. Drake learns from Mrs. Scarlett's Indian servant, Mrs. Bandanai (Persis Khambatta), that she'd suffered a similar attack with a sword six months prior – long before he and Millington joined the regiment. When pressed, Mrs. Bandanai says it was Captain Scarlett who assaulted her.

When shown her dress from the night of the assault, with blood and a cut that could have been made with a sword point, Mrs. Scarlett acts out for the "court" the attack she endured, which mimics the regimental game of officers chasing then stabbing a wooden pig on wheels. She admits it was not Millington who attacked her, but will not say who did.

Millington, now indisputably proved innocent, is welcomed back by his brother officers; but Drake, disgusted by the truth he's uncovered, resigns. Wimbourne knows who the culprit is and, hiding Drake in the shadows so he may witness what is to take place, confronts the guilty man privately in the final scene.

Cast

Production

Barry England's play premiered in 1969 and had a short run on Broadway the following year. [1]

The film was greenlit by Michael Deeley who had recently become managing director of British Lion Films, and was part financed through a US tax deal. Deeley said there had been a number of screenplays written, including one by Terence Rattigan which Deeley says cost £250,000. He said all of them "failed to crack the adaptation" but there was "a very simple solution, which was to go back to the stage play and strip out as much extraneous dialogue as possible. Robert Enders delivered a perfect screenplay by these means." [2]

Deeley hired Michael Anderson to direct, in part because he was efficient, and the film was shot at Shepperton Studios over four weeks starting mid November 1974. This meant the filmmakers have five weeks before the studio shut down over Christmas. Deeley says "the picture ran like clockwork". [3] The veteran Elizabeth Haffenden designed the costumes in her final film production.

Reception

Deeley says the film was "well made, at the right price and completely fulfilling British Lion's objective – to make money". [4]

Film critic John Simon wrote – "Conduct Unbecoming can be viewed with modest pleasure if only for its performances and the cinematography of Bob Huke". [5]

The American National Board of Review ranked the film in its Top Ten Films of 1975.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jane Seymour (actress)</span> English actress (born 1951)

Jane Seymour is an English actress. After making her screen debut as an uncredited extra in the 1969 musical comedy Oh! What a Lovely War, Seymour transitioned to leading roles in film and television, including a leading role in the television series The Onedin Line (1972–1973) and the role of psychic Bond girl Solitaire in the James Bond film Live and Let Die (1973).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susannah York</span> English film, stage and television actress (1939–2011)

Susannah Yolande Fletcher, known professionally as Susannah York, was an English actress. Her appearances in various films of the 1960s, including Tom Jones (1963) and They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969), formed the basis of her international reputation. An obituary in The Telegraph characterised her as "the blue-eyed English rose with the china-white skin and cupid lips who epitomised the sensuality of the swinging sixties", who later "proved that she was a real actor of extraordinary emotional range".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stacy Keach</span> American actor (born 1941)

Walter Stacy Keach Jr. is an American actor, active in theatre, film and television since the 1960s. Keach first distinguished himself in Off-Broadway productions and remained a prominent figure in American theatre across his career, particularly as a noted Shakespearean. He is the recipient of several theatrical accolades, four Drama Desk Awards, two Helen Hayes Awards and two Obie Awards for Distinguished Performance by an Actor. He was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in Arthur Kopit's 1969 production of Indians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mess</span> Place where military personnel eat and socialize

The mess is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the officers' mess, the chief petty officer mess, and the enlisted mess. In some civilian societies this military usage has been extended to the eating arrangements of other disciplined services such as fire fighting and police forces.

<i>Murphys War</i> 1971 film by Peter Yates

Murphy's War is an Eastmancolor 1971 Panavision war film starring Peter O'Toole and Siân Phillips. It was directed by Peter Yates based on the 1969 novel by Max Catto. The film's cinematographer was Douglas Slocombe.

The Squeeze is a 1977 British gangster thriller, directed by Michael Apted, based on a novel by Bill James. The screenplay was written by Minder creator Leon Griffiths.

Michael Deeley is an Academy Award-winning British film producer known for motion pictures such as The Italian Job (1969), The Deer Hunter (1978), and Blade Runner (1982). He is also a founding member and Honorary President of British Screen Forum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eyre Coote (British Army officer, born 1762)</span> British general and politician (1762–1823)

Eyre Coote was an Irish-born British soldier and politician who served as Governor of Jamaica. He attained the rank of general in the British Army and was created a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath before being stripped of his rank and honours in 1816 after conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman.

<i>Tunes of Glory</i> 1960 British film by Ronald Neame

Tunes of Glory is a 1960 British drama film directed by Ronald Neame, starring Alec Guinness and John Mills, featuring Dennis Price, Kay Walsh, John Fraser, Duncan MacRae, Gordon Jackson and Susannah York. It is based on the 1956 novel and screenplay by James Kennaway. The film is a psychological drama focusing on events in a wintry Scottish Highland regimental barracks in the period immediately following the Second World War. Writer Kennaway served with the Gordon Highlanders, and the title refers to the bagpiping that accompanies every important action of the battalion.

<i>Fat City</i> (film) 1972 film by John Huston

Fat City is a 1972 American sports drama film directed and produced by John Huston, and adapted by Leonard Gardner from his 1969 novel of the same title. It stars Stacy Keach, Jeff Bridges, Susan Tyrrell, and Candy Clark in her film debut.

<i>Gray Lady Down</i> 1978 film by David Greene

Gray Lady Down is a 1978 American submarine disaster film directed by David Greene and starring Charlton Heston, David Carradine, Stacy Keach, Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox and Rosemary Forsyth, and includes the feature film debut of Michael O'Keefe and Christopher Reeve. It is based on David Lavallee's 1971 novel Event 1000.

<i>The Duellists</i> 1977 period drama film directed by Ridley Scott

The Duellists is a 1977 British period drama film directed by Ridley Scott and produced by David Puttnam. Set in France during the Napoleonic Wars, the film focuses on a series of duels between two rival officers, the obsessive Bonapartist Gabriel Feraud and aristocratic Armand d'Hubert, that spans nearly 20 years and reflects the political tumult of early 19th-century France. The film is based on Joseph Conrad's short story "The Duel", first published in A Set of Six.

<i>Guns at Batasi</i> 1964 British film

Guns at Batasi is a 1964 British drama film starring Richard Attenborough, Jack Hawkins, Flora Robson, John Leyton and Mia Farrow. The film is based on the 1962 novel The Siege of Battersea by Robert Holles and was directed by John Guillermin. Although the action is set in an overseas colonial military outpost during the last days of the British Empire in East Africa, filming was done at Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom.

Barry England was an English novelist and playwright. He is chiefly known for his 1968 thriller Figures in a Landscape, which was nominated for the inaugural Booker Prize.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis M. Drake</span> American politician

Francis Marion Drake was an American merchant, lawyer, banker and politician. He fought in the American Civil War and later became the 16th Governor of Iowa. He is the namesake of Drake University.

<i>Sunset Grill</i> (film) 1993 American film

Sunset Grill is a 1993 American neo-noir mystery film directed by Kevin Connor and starring Peter Weller as a private detective in Los Angeles. It co-stars Lori Singer and Stacy Keach.

Conduct Unbecoming is a play by Barry England. The plot concerns a scandal in a British regiment stationed in India in the 1880s.

The New Year Honours 1973 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 1 January 1973 to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 1973.

As part of the British honours system, Special Honours are issued at the Monarch's pleasure at any given time. The Special Honours refer to the awards made within royal prerogative, operational honours and other honours awarded outside the New Years Honours and Birthday Honours.

References

  1. News of the Rialto: 'Conduct Unbecoming' Is Coming On the Rialto: 'Conduct Unbecoming' Is Coming By LEWIS FUNKE. New York Times 31 May 1970: 61.
  2. Deeley p 107
  3. Deeley p 108
  4. Deeley p 108
  5. Simon, John (1983). John Simon: Something to Declare Twelve Years Of Films From Abroad. Clarkson N. Potter Inc. p. 220.

Notes