…………………………………………………

Victim Movie Review

Victim is a 1961 British neo noir thriller film directed by Basil Dearden and starring Dirk Bogarde. It’s a very effective, groundbreaking movie.

………………………………………………….

“There was a time when that was against the law, you know“

…………………………………………………..

…………………………………………………..

Lawyer Melville Farr is blackmailed for being homosexual at the cost of derailing his promising career. This movie is groundbreaking for being the first openly homosexual in subject matter English-language film, and especially for being pro-gay in its stance. What the movie lacks in true tension, it more than compensates in intricate storytelling and palpable drama.

The movie is a neo noir in approach, meaning that it makes heavy use of its strong black-and-white cinematography, dark atmosphere, loud and ominous score and an entangled mystery storyline involving a lot of players, some of whom less interesting, but some most definitely memorable to follow.

Dirk Bogarde is excellent in the role of Farr. He was actually gay himself in real life, which made him very brave for having taken this for its time period highly provocative role. His performance is by far the most emotive and strongest of the bunch, and it’s easy to root for the poor guy to escape his predicament.

I also really appreciated Sylvia Syms in the role of his wife. Her performance is terrific. The confrontation that the two have is by far the most realistic, the most dramatic moment in the movie, and I wish the film had more such strong drama scenes. Others are less memorable, but Barrett himself is a deeply tragic presence.

…………………………………………………..

…………………………………………………..

The relationship between the two is very bravely tackled. Although not showcased on screen, it is talked about extensively, which made the movie brave for its time in its openness about the subject matter of homosexuality. Most movies around this period would use coded language, but this one directly addresses it to a superb effect.

However, Victim could have been much better at the end of the day. Yes, the technical aspects are excellent, especially its creepy, grandiose score and fantastic cinematography, but the tension was mostly lacking, at least the true noir tension that I am accustomed to. The first and the third act are excellent, but the second act was overly complicated in scenarios and unnecessarily detailed in that regard.

Although less interesting in its overly intricate second act and lacking in genuine suspense, Victim is still a groundbreaking British thriller film that directly addressed the subject of homosexuality, all enveloped in a very interesting blackmail storyline. The central performance from Dirk Bogarde is terrific and some of the scenes here hold palpable drama and emotion.

My Rating – 4

You can get Victim on Amazon.