Maria Marten, or The Murder in the Red Barn *** (1935, Tod Slaughter, Sophie Stewart, D J Williams, Eric Portman) – Classic Movie Review 10,865

‘Sensational! Eerie! Sinister! Weird! The most unusual picture of the year!’

Director Milton Rosmer’s cheaply-produced, enjoyable 1935 horror crime thriller Maria Marten, or The Murder in the Red Barn stars Tod Slaughter, who is in his full-blooded, over-the-top element as Squire William Corder. It is based on the true story of the 1827 Red Barn Murder and the popular 19th-century melodramas about the case, and is a highly sensationalised and sentimental version of the story, taking many liberties with the facts.

This intriguing 1820s rural England true story barnstorming melodrama tells the tale of the Victorian villain William Corder, who moves up in society when he marries an heiress but is spooked after he seduces and then murders innocent country maiden Maria Marten (Sophie Stewart) in the red barn, having got her pregnant, and the gypsy boy Carlos (Eric Portman) is blamed. Corder buries Maria Marten’s body beneath the barn floor.

Both the film and the performances are highly melodramatic and theatrical (it opens with an MC introducing the characters in front of a painted backdrop) and the rip-snorting performances spur the entertainingly over-the-top thriller. The film is let down by a poor, cheap-looking production and slack and careless handling, though, even so, it is slightly more lavishly produced and inventive than quota-quickie producer George King’s later efforts. The film is perhaps not really very good by any normal standards but nevertheless it really is vastly entertaining and a great deal of fun.

It is shot at Sound City, Shepperton, Surrey, England.

It is released by Odeon Entertainment in 2006 in the UK on DVD.

Also in the cast are D J Williams as Farmer Thomas Marten, Clare Greet as Mrs Marten, Gerard Tyrrell as Timothy Winterbottom, Ann Trevor as the maid Nan, Stella Rho as Gypsy Crone, Dennis Hoey as Gambling Winner, Quentin McPhearson as Matthew Sennett, Antonia Brough as Maud Sennett, Herbert Leonard as Compere, and Noel Dainton as Officer Steele of the Bow Street Runners.

Maria Marten, or The Murder in the Red Barn is directed by Milton Rosmer, runs 70 minutes, is made by George King Productions, is released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1936) (UK) and Olympic Pictures (1936) (US), is written by Randall Faye, is shot in black and white by George Stretton, is produced by George King, is scored by Leo T Croke, and is designed by D W Daniels.

The Red Barn where Maria Marten was murdered is in the village of Polstead, Suffolk, England, where crime writer Ruth Rendell lived. The villain’s scalp is still on show at the Bury St Edmunds Museum.

Tod Slaughter (1885–1956).

Tod Slaughter (1885–1956) took to the stage in 1905 and became a theatre star as the villain of Victorian melodramas that he toured around England. Slaughter made his film debut here at the age of 50. It set the no-holds barred tone for the rest of his career. When he died of coronary thrombosis on 10 February 1956 at the age of 70 he was on stage on that last day with Maria Marten. His other stage and film triumph was with Sweeney Todd (1936). His films also include The Crimes of Stephen Hawk (1936), The Face at the Window (1939), Crimes at the Dark House (1940), and The Curse of the Wraydons (1946).

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 10,865

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