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Violent Playground

"EVERY CITY HAS ITS DANGEROUS YOUTH. Stark, explosive drama - as the camera lays bare the heart of a big city and probe the secrets of its Violent Playground."

1958-01-14 Crime 1hr 48m

A Liverpool juvenile liaison officer struggles with a young and dangerous pyromaniac.

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Violent Playground

Storyline

A Liverpool juvenile liaison officer struggles with a young and dangerous pyromaniac.

  • Released
    1958-01-14
  • Revenue
    n/a
  • Budget
    n/a
  • Runtime
    1hr 48m
  • Genre
    Crime, Drama
  • Status
    Released
  • Language
    English
  • imdb-logo
    0
  • Production
    The Rank Organisation

Crew

Basil Dearden
Director
James Kennaway
Screenplay
Michael Relph
Producer
Keywords:
northern england detective film noir social commentary school juvenile delinquent british noir

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Cast

Stanley Baker

Stanley Baker
Detective Sergeant Jack Truman
Anne Heywood

Anne Heywood
Cathie Murphy
David McCallum

David McCallum
Johnnie Murphy
Peter Cushing

Peter Cushing
Father Laidlaw
John Slater

John Slater
Sgt. Walker
Clifford Evans

Clifford Evans
Headmaster Evans
Moultrie Kelsall

Moultrie Kelsall
Superintendent
George A. Cooper

George A. Cooper
Chief Inspector
Brona Boland

Brona Boland
Mary Murphy
Fergal Boland

Fergal Boland
Patrick Murphy
Michael Chow

Michael Chow
Alexander
Tsai Chin

Tsai Chin
Primrose
Sean Lynch

Sean Lynch
Slick
Bernice Swanson

Bernice Swanson
Meg
Freddie Starr

Freddie Starr
Tommy
Sheila Raynor

Sheila Raynor
Mrs. Catlin
Christopher Cooke

Christopher Cooke
David Catlin
Irene Arnold

Irene Arnold
Mrs. Baker
Oonagh Quinn

Oonagh Quinn
Jilly Baker
Ali Allen

Ali Allen
Boy (uncredited)
Grace Arnold

Grace Arnold
Customer in Grocer's Shop (uncredited)
John Boxer

John Boxer
Police Sergeant (uncredited)
Jeremy Bulloch

Jeremy Bulloch
Pageboy at Hotel (uncredited)
John Bush

John Bush
(uncredited)
Michael Collins

Michael Collins
Police Officer in Patrol Car (uncredited)
Keith Crane

Keith Crane
William (uncredited)
Gerrard Gibson

Gerrard Gibson
(uncredited)
Victoria Harrington

Victoria Harrington
Child (uncredited)
Melvyn Hayes

Melvyn Hayes
Kid in Johnnie's Gang (uncredited)
Lindsay Hooper

Lindsay Hooper
Police Sergeant (uncredited)
Robert Howell

Robert Howell
(uncredited)
Anthony John

Anthony John
Child (uncredited)
Stratford Johns

Stratford Johns
Police Constable (uncredited)
Billy Lawrence

Billy Lawrence
(uncredited)
Phyllis Morris

Phyllis Morris
(uncredited)
Robert Raglan

Robert Raglan
Doorman at Grand Hotel (uncredited)
Philip Ray

Philip Ray
Stallholder (uncredited)
Anthony Richmond

Anthony Richmond
(uncredited)
Lynne Roberts

Lynne Roberts
Maureen Owen
Delene Scott

Delene Scott
(uncredited)
Cyril Shaps

Cyril Shaps
Hairdresser (uncredited)
Jack Sharp

Jack Sharp
Mechanic (uncredited)
Leonard Sharp

Leonard Sharp
Spectator at Fire (uncredited)
Leslie Slysz

Leslie Slysz
(uncredited)
James Sutherland

James Sutherland
(uncredited)
Gareth Tandy

Gareth Tandy
(uncredited)
John Tatham

John Tatham
Police Sergeant (uncredited)
Anne Tirard

Anne Tirard
(uncredited)
Dervis Ward

Dervis Ward
Constable (uncredited)
Kathleen Williams

Kathleen Williams
(uncredited)
Lynn Williams

Lynn Williams
(uncredited)
John H. Watson

John H. Watson

Videos and Photos

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Violent Playground
Violent Playground
Violent Playground
Violent Playground
Violent Playground
Violent Playground

Movie Reviews

Reviews for Violent Playground
reviewer avatar

A Review by Geronimo1967 6

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2023-11-01

David McCallum features strongly in this rather gritty story of "Johnnie", a bit of a pyromaniac, who falls foul of local policeman "Truman"... read more

David McCallum features strongly in this rather gritty story of "Johnnie", a bit of a pyromaniac, who falls foul of local policeman "Truman" (Stanley Baker) who is charged with dealing with the town's more violently recalcitrant youth. The latter character is not just about law enforcement, though, he is about rehabilitation and the gist of the story is to demonstrate that, whilst never easy or straightforward, there is always a certain degree of hope. "Truman" alights on the young "Johnnie" after he encounters his young niece and nephew running petty - and quite clever - scams on their neighbours. When he takes them home, he sees that their mother "Cathie" (Anne Heywood) is trying to do her best against formidable odds and that their other life influence is caught up in the semi-legal world of sex, drugs and rock and roll. In itself, the story is nothing particularly remarkable - but the characters are engaging, not always likeable, but they have depth which Basil Dearden takes his time to let us experience. The writing is pretty overly simplistic, though, and Baker really only has one gear as an actor and though he isn't bad here, he falls to resonate much as a man who might actually care. Visually, this film shows us a Liverpool that was still in the grips of post war doldrums, and the photography does much to engender the sense of need felt by many of the working class residents; it also shows us that it wasn't just London that had a rich mix of "personalities" embedded within the community - some tolerated more than others! Most folk watching now will only recall McCallum from his "Duckie" role in "NCIS". This film clearly demonstrates that for a while in the late 1950s, he was an actor prepared to push boundaries and tackle some borderline taboo topics with enthusiasm and skill.

Read Full Review (The thoughts and opinions expressed here are solely those of the reviewer.)
A Review by CinemaSerf

David McCallum features strongly in this rather gritty story of "Johnnie", a bit of a pyromaniac, who falls foul of local policeman "Truman" (Stanley Baker) who is charged with dealing with the town's more violently recalcitrant youth. The ...

reviewer avatar

A Review by Geronimo1967 6

Written by Geronimo1967 on 2023-11-01

David McCallum features strongly in this rather gritty story of "Johnnie", a bit of a pyromaniac, who falls foul of local policeman "Truman" (Stanley Baker) who is charged with dealing with the town's...

read more