Libel **½ (1959, Olivia de Havilland, Dirk Bogarde, Paul Massie, Robert Morley) – Classic Movie Review 3,690

Anthony Asquith’s polished but stuffy 1959 British courtroom drama thriller film Libel retells an old story that has not aged too well. But it has an alluring cast – Dirk Bogarde, Olivia de Havilland, Paul Massie, Robert Morley.

Director Anthony Asquith’s partly polished, partly stuffy 1959 British courtroom drama thriller Libel retells an old story that has not aged too well in this rather musty and creaky version, based on Edward Wooll’s 1934 play, updated from World War One.

However, it is dressed up with a hard-working, alluring cast – Dirk Bogarde as Sir Mark Loddon, an English knight who claims that he is libelled by a Canadian commercial pilot, Jeffrey Buckenham (Paul Massie), who claims that he was an actor in a PoW camp with him, Olivia de Havilland as Bogarde’s wife Lady Margaret, Robert Morley as his barrister Sir Wilfred, and Richard Wattis as the Judge.

Bogarde’s character Sir Mark, a shell-shocked World War Two veteran with memory problems, sues for libel after being accused of murder, being an impostor and impersonating a prisoner-of-war by his former comrade, Buckenham, who has seen a TV broadcast in London of an interview with Sir Mark at his home. Buckenham is convinced that the knight is a fraud, and he is a look-alike actor named Frank Welney. All three were prisoners in a German camp during the war and escaped together.

Now even de Havilland’s wife character Lady Margaret has her doubts if her husband is Sir Mark or Frank Welney.

Some shaky acting and wobbly handling that would not normally be expected from these very considerable talents make an intriguingly themed movie askew. Bogarde’s performance, though, is impeccable and the film is mainly worthwhile for him. It is based on the same real-life story that produced those better movies The Return of Martin Guerre (1982) and Sommersby (1993).

Also in the very interesting cast are Wilfrid Hyde White, Anthony Dawson, Martin Miller, Millicent Martin (in her first cinema feature), Richard Dimbleby (as himself, the TV Panorama presenter), Bill Shine, Ivan Samson, Sebastian Saville, Gordon Stern, Josephine Middleton, Kenneth Griffith, Joyce Carey, Robert Shaw, Geoffrey Bayldon, and Arthur Howard.

Robert Shaw and Geoffrey Bayldon appear in small credited roles as photographers, while Oliver Reed appears as an extra in courtroom visitors’ gallery.

Libel is directed by Anthony Asquith, runs 100 minutes, is made by De Grunwald Productions, is released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, is written by producer Anatole de Grunwald with Karl Tunberg, is shot in black and white by ace cinematographer Robert Krasker, is produced by Anatole de Grunwald, and is scored by Benjamin Frankel.

The original 1935 Broadway production of Libel starred Colin Clive and was directed by Otto Preminger, before his debut as a Hollywood film director. The play was adapted for radio in 1941 and 1943, with Ronald Colman, using the original World War One references. There was also an early BBC TV production in 1938, with Wyndham Goldie.

De Havilland gets top billing on the opening credits, Bogarde on the closing credits.

John Mortimer said he did much rewriting on the screenplay but, when he saw the film, was relieved not to be credited.

The location shots include Longleat House (fictionalised as Ingworth House) in Wiltshire, and London.

It was released on 23 October 1959.

It was a financial success, but only just. On a budget of $615,000, the film earned $1,170,000, resulting in a profit of $10,000. It was not too popular in the US and Canada, where it earned only $245,000, but did much better ‘elsewhere’ (especially the UK) to take $925,000.

It was award free, but did get nominated for the Academy Award for Best Sound (A. W. Watkins).

The cast are Dirk Bogarde as Sir Mark Loddon/ Frank Wellney/ Number Fifteen, Olivia de Havilland as Lady Margaret Loddon, Paul Massie as Jeffrey Buckenham, Robert Morley as Sir Wilfred, Wilfrid Hyde White as Hubert Foxley, Anthony Dawson as Gerald Lodden, Richard Wattis as The Judge, Martin Miller as Dr. Schrott, Richard Dimbleby as Himself, Millicent Martin as Maisie, Robert Shaw as photographer, Geoffrey Bayldon as photographer, Sam Kydd as Newspaper vendor, Oliver Reed as extra, Bill Shine, Ivan Samson, Sebastian Saville, Gordon Stern, Josephine Middleton, Kenneth Griffith, Joyce Carey, and Arthur Howard.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3,690

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