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The Innocents (film)
Encyclopedia
The Innocents is a 1961
British
horror film
based on the novella The Turn of the Screw
by Henry James
. The title of the film was taken from William Archibald
's stage adaptation
of James' novella. Directed and produced by Jack Clayton
, it stars Deborah Kerr
, Michael Redgrave
and Megs Jenkins
. Falling within the subgenre of psychological horror
, the film achieves its effects through lighting, music, and direction rather than gore and conventional shocks. Its distinctive atmosphere owes much to cinematographer Freddie Francis
, who employed deep focus
in many scenes, as well as bold, minimal lighting. It was filmed on location at the gothic mansion of Sheffield Park
in East Sussex
. The film includes the first role in cinema for child actor Pamela Franklin
.
Jack Clayton wanted the film to be distinct from the Hammer
horror films of the period, and employed a number of devices to achieve this. He varied the distances between camera and objects, and employed black-and-white photography. For the first 45 seconds of the film the screen is black and singing is heard, and only after this do the credits appear (projectionists thought this was an error). To ensure that his child actors' performances were not too knowing, Clayton also withheld the full details of the story from Martin Stephens
and Pamela Franklin
, who only received those parts of the script that lacked the surprising and mysterious adult elements of the film. By such means Clayton was able to create a horror film that left the strange events depicted for the viewer to interpret.
At Bly, Miss Giddens is instantly taken with Flora. She also forges a friendship with Mrs. Grose (Megs Jenkins), the kindly housekeeper. The boy, Miles, is away at boarding school, though Flora delightedly insists that her brother is coming home. Sure enough, Miss Giddens receives a letter saying that Miles has been expelled from school because of his bad influence on the other boys. Mrs. Grose says she can't imagine Miles being a bad influence, and when Miss Giddens meets the boy herself, she too thinks his teachers must have exaggerated. He seems charming and mature – though perhaps too mature, with flirtatious flattery toward his governess.
The children are friendly and polite, but Miss Giddens is disturbed by their occasional odd behaviors. They seem to be sharing secrets. She is upset by unexplained voices, and by several visions of a woman and man, whom Mrs. Grose identifies, from their descriptions, as Miss Jessel and Peter Quint – the uncle's valet until his death. Eventually, Mrs. Grose reveals that Quint was abusive to Miss Jessel, and that they were indiscreet, performing sexual acts in plain sight of the other servants and even, perhaps, the children. After Quint's death, Miss Jessel went into a deep depression and drowned herself.
When Miles recites a poem invoking a "lost lord" to rise from the grave, Miss Giddens concludes that the ghosts of Quint and Miss Jessel inhabit the bodies of the children so they can continue their relationship. She is determined to rescue them from this possession.
One night Miss Giddens finds Flora at a window, watching Miles, who is walking in the garden. When Miss Giddens escorts him to bed, he kisses her goodnight, in a disturbingly adult manner.
The next day Miss Giddens finds Flora dancing alone by the lake – and again sees the figure of Miss Jessel staring at them from across the water. Convinced that the children will be freed from the possession if they will confess what is happening, Miss Giddens begs Flora to admit that Miss Jessel is there. Flora begins to scream and cry, calling Miss Giddens wicked and insane. Hours later, Flora is still hysterical, and when Mrs. Grose finally leaves her bedside, she says she can't imagine where Flora learned such obscenities. Miss Giddens orders her to take Flora away from Bly. She is certain that Miles is on the brink of confessing his ordeal to her and that she must be left alone with him.
That night, alone with Miles, Miss Giddens presses him to talk about the ghosts, and then about why he was expelled from school. Initially, and as usual, Miles is glib and evasive, but he eventually admits that he frightened the other boys with violence and vulgar language. Miss Giddens enjoins him to say who taught him this language and behavior. Miles suddenly begins yelling obscene insults and laughing maniacally, and Peter Quint's face appears in the window behind him, joining in the boy's laughter. Miles then runs outside; Miss Giddens follows, calling that all he has to do is "say his name" and it will all be over. Quint appears on the hedge nearby, but Miles does not seem to see him and screams that she is insane. He finally shouts Quint's name, then the hand of Quint appears. Miles grows still and falls to the ground. Miss Giddens cradles him and assures him that he is free. She then realizes that Miles is dead. Sobbing in horror, she leans over him and kisses him on the lips.
, much of the screenplay is derived from William Archibald's play of the same name, which premiered on Broadway in 1950, rather than coming directly from James' novella, though he credits Truman Capote with about 90% of the film's script as it appears on the screen. Frayling attributes the Freudian subtext to screenwriter Capote, whose contribution gives the film a Southern Gothic
feel – with the governess's repressed erotic sensibility counterpointed by shots of lush and decaying plants and rapacious insect life. Clayton though chose to downplay this aspect in the finished film to preserve the ambiguity between the ghost story and Freudian element.
Reportedly, when first screened, Twentieth Century Fox executives were disturbed by the scene (which does not occur in the novella) in which the governess kisses the boy Miles directly on the lips. The film has been given a 12 rating by the BBFC. Its original classification by the BBFC was "X", which meant that no person under the age of 16 years was allowed into the cinema to see it.{BBFC website}
, from her 1980 album Never for Ever
, was inspired by the film.
An audiotrack from this film was sampled into the cursed tape of the 2002 film The Ring
.
"O Willow Waly", the song from the film, written by Georges Auric
and Paul Dehn
and sung on the soundtrack by Isla Cameron
, was released in the UK on a Decca single in March, 1962. The catalogue number was 45-F.11441.
for Best Director. William Archibald and Truman Capote
won a 1962 Edgar Award
from the Mystery Writers of America
for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. The film premiered in New York City on December 25, 1961 and was entered into the 1962 Cannes Film Festival
.
Director Martin Scorsese
placed The Innocents on his list of the 11 scariest horror films of all time.
The film at the time did not attract an audience, but critics would call it one of the best psychological thrillers ever made, and it received praise and cult status over the years. Time Out named it as the eighteenth in a list of the 100 greatest British films
.
1961 in film
The year 1961 in film involved some significant events, with West Side Story winning 10 Academy Awards.-Top grossing films : After theatrical re-issue- Awards :Academy Awards:* Atlantis, the Lost ContinentB...
British
Cinema of the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has had a major influence on modern cinema. The first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by William Friese Greene, a British inventor, who patented the process in 1890. It is generally regarded that the British film industry...
horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
based on the novella The Turn of the Screw
The Turn of the Screw
The Turn of the Screw is a novella written by Henry James. Originally published in 1898, it is ostensibly a ghost story.Due to its ambiguous content, it became a favourite text of academics who subscribe to New Criticism. The novella has had differing interpretations, often mutually exclusive...
by Henry James
Henry James
Henry James, OM was an American-born writer, regarded as one of the key figures of 19th-century literary realism. He was the son of Henry James, Sr., a clergyman, and the brother of philosopher and psychologist William James and diarist Alice James....
. The title of the film was taken from William Archibald
William Archibald (playwright)
William Archibald was a Trinidadian-born playwright, dancer, choreographer and director, whose stage adaptation of Henry James' The Turn of the Screw was made into the 1961 British horror film The Innocents....
's stage adaptation
The Innocents (play)
The Innocents is a 1976 play written by William Archiblad. The show opened at the Morosco Theatre on October 21, 1976 and closed on October 30, 1976 after 12 performances.-Setting:...
of James' novella. Directed and produced by Jack Clayton
Jack Clayton
Jack Clayton was a British film director who specialised in bringing literary works to the screen.-Career:A native of East Sussex, Clayton started his career as a child actor on the 1929 film Dark Red Roses...
, it stars Deborah Kerr
Deborah Kerr
Deborah Kerr, CBE was a Scottish film and television actress from Glasgow. She won the Sarah Siddons Award for her Chicago performance as Laura Reynolds in Tea and Sympathy, a role which she originated on Broadway, a Golden Globe Award for the motion picture The King and I, and was a three-time...
, Michael Redgrave
Michael Redgrave
Sir Michael Scudamore Redgrave, CBE was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author.-Youth and education:...
and Megs Jenkins
Megs Jenkins
Muguette Mary "Megs" Jenkins was an English character actress who appeared in British films and television programmes.-Life and career:...
. Falling within the subgenre of psychological horror
Psychological horror
Psychological horror is a subgenre of horror fiction that relies on character fears, guilt, beliefs, eerie sound effects, relevant music and emotional instability to build tension and further the plot...
, the film achieves its effects through lighting, music, and direction rather than gore and conventional shocks. Its distinctive atmosphere owes much to cinematographer Freddie Francis
Freddie Francis
Frederick William Francis BSC was an English cinematographer and film director.He achieved his greatest successes as a cinematographer, including winning two Academy Awards, for Sons and Lovers and Glory...
, who employed deep focus
Deep focus
Deep focus is a photographic and cinematographic technique using a large depth of field. Depth of field is the front-to-back range of focus in an image — that is, how much of it appears sharp and clear. Consequently, in deep focus the foreground, middle-ground and background are all in focus...
in many scenes, as well as bold, minimal lighting. It was filmed on location at the gothic mansion of Sheffield Park
Sheffield Park Garden
Sheffield Park Garden is an informal landscape garden five miles east of Haywards Heath, in East Sussex, England. It was originally laid out in the 18th century by Capability Brown, and further developed in the early years of the 20th century by its owner, Arthur G. Soames. It is now owned by the...
in East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
. The film includes the first role in cinema for child actor Pamela Franklin
Pamela Franklin
Pamela Franklin is a British actress who appeared in feature films from 1961 until 1976, and on American television throughout the 1970s.-Early life and career as a child actress:...
.
Jack Clayton wanted the film to be distinct from the Hammer
Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later...
horror films of the period, and employed a number of devices to achieve this. He varied the distances between camera and objects, and employed black-and-white photography. For the first 45 seconds of the film the screen is black and singing is heard, and only after this do the credits appear (projectionists thought this was an error). To ensure that his child actors' performances were not too knowing, Clayton also withheld the full details of the story from Martin Stephens
Martin Stephens (actor)
Martin Stephens is an English former child actor, best known for his performances in the films Village of the Damned and The Innocents...
and Pamela Franklin
Pamela Franklin
Pamela Franklin is a British actress who appeared in feature films from 1961 until 1976, and on American television throughout the 1970s.-Early life and career as a child actress:...
, who only received those parts of the script that lacked the surprising and mysterious adult elements of the film. By such means Clayton was able to create a horror film that left the strange events depicted for the viewer to interpret.
Plot
Miss Giddens (Deborah Kerr) applies for a job as a governess. It is to be her first position, but the wealthy bachelor interviewing her (Michael Redgrave) is unconcerned with her lack of experience. He values his freedom to travel and socialize and unabashedly confesses that he has "no room, mentally or emotionally" for his niece and nephew, who were orphaned and left in his care as infants, and whom he keeps at Bly, his country estate. The previous governess, Miss Jessel, died suddenly less than a year ago. All he cares about is that Miss Giddens accept full responsibility for the children, never troubling him with whatever problems may arise.At Bly, Miss Giddens is instantly taken with Flora. She also forges a friendship with Mrs. Grose (Megs Jenkins), the kindly housekeeper. The boy, Miles, is away at boarding school, though Flora delightedly insists that her brother is coming home. Sure enough, Miss Giddens receives a letter saying that Miles has been expelled from school because of his bad influence on the other boys. Mrs. Grose says she can't imagine Miles being a bad influence, and when Miss Giddens meets the boy herself, she too thinks his teachers must have exaggerated. He seems charming and mature – though perhaps too mature, with flirtatious flattery toward his governess.
The children are friendly and polite, but Miss Giddens is disturbed by their occasional odd behaviors. They seem to be sharing secrets. She is upset by unexplained voices, and by several visions of a woman and man, whom Mrs. Grose identifies, from their descriptions, as Miss Jessel and Peter Quint – the uncle's valet until his death. Eventually, Mrs. Grose reveals that Quint was abusive to Miss Jessel, and that they were indiscreet, performing sexual acts in plain sight of the other servants and even, perhaps, the children. After Quint's death, Miss Jessel went into a deep depression and drowned herself.
When Miles recites a poem invoking a "lost lord" to rise from the grave, Miss Giddens concludes that the ghosts of Quint and Miss Jessel inhabit the bodies of the children so they can continue their relationship. She is determined to rescue them from this possession.
One night Miss Giddens finds Flora at a window, watching Miles, who is walking in the garden. When Miss Giddens escorts him to bed, he kisses her goodnight, in a disturbingly adult manner.
The next day Miss Giddens finds Flora dancing alone by the lake – and again sees the figure of Miss Jessel staring at them from across the water. Convinced that the children will be freed from the possession if they will confess what is happening, Miss Giddens begs Flora to admit that Miss Jessel is there. Flora begins to scream and cry, calling Miss Giddens wicked and insane. Hours later, Flora is still hysterical, and when Mrs. Grose finally leaves her bedside, she says she can't imagine where Flora learned such obscenities. Miss Giddens orders her to take Flora away from Bly. She is certain that Miles is on the brink of confessing his ordeal to her and that she must be left alone with him.
That night, alone with Miles, Miss Giddens presses him to talk about the ghosts, and then about why he was expelled from school. Initially, and as usual, Miles is glib and evasive, but he eventually admits that he frightened the other boys with violence and vulgar language. Miss Giddens enjoins him to say who taught him this language and behavior. Miles suddenly begins yelling obscene insults and laughing maniacally, and Peter Quint's face appears in the window behind him, joining in the boy's laughter. Miles then runs outside; Miss Giddens follows, calling that all he has to do is "say his name" and it will all be over. Quint appears on the hedge nearby, but Miles does not seem to see him and screams that she is insane. He finally shouts Quint's name, then the hand of Quint appears. Miles grows still and falls to the ground. Miss Giddens cradles him and assures him that he is free. She then realizes that Miles is dead. Sobbing in horror, she leans over him and kisses him on the lips.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Deborah Kerr Deborah Kerr Deborah Kerr, CBE was a Scottish film and television actress from Glasgow. She won the Sarah Siddons Award for her Chicago performance as Laura Reynolds in Tea and Sympathy, a role which she originated on Broadway, a Golden Globe Award for the motion picture The King and I, and was a three-time... |
Miss Giddens |
| Michael Redgrave Michael Redgrave Sir Michael Scudamore Redgrave, CBE was an English stage and film actor, director, manager and author.-Youth and education:... |
The Uncle |
| Peter Wyngarde Peter Wyngarde Peter Paul Wyngarde is an Anglo-French actor best known for playing the character Jason King, a bestselling novelist turned sleuth, in two British television series in the late 1960s and early 1970s: Department S and Jason King .-Biography:He was born Cyril Goldbert in Marseilles, France, the... |
Peter Quint |
| Megs Jenkins Megs Jenkins Muguette Mary "Megs" Jenkins was an English character actress who appeared in British films and television programmes.-Life and career:... |
Mrs. Grose |
| Martin Stephens Martin Stephens (actor) Martin Stephens is an English former child actor, best known for his performances in the films Village of the Damned and The Innocents... |
Miles |
| Pamela Franklin Pamela Franklin Pamela Franklin is a British actress who appeared in feature films from 1961 until 1976, and on American television throughout the 1970s.-Early life and career as a child actress:... |
Flora |
| Clytie Jessop Clytie Jessop Clytie Jessop is a British actress, notable for her association with cinematographer and film director Freddie Francis.Her first screen role was as the ghost of Miss Jessel in The Innocents , based on Henry James's The Turn of the Screw. She appeared only in long shot... |
Miss Jessel |
| Isla Cameron Isla Cameron Isla Cameron was a Scottish actress and singer.Isla was born in Scotland but was brought up in Dorset and Somerset. While trying to become an actress she joined Joan Littlewood who had co-founded the Theatre Workshop in 1945. Joan’s husband at the time, Ewan MacColl was to become Isla’s singing... |
Anna |
Production notes
According to Professor Christopher FraylingChristopher Frayling
Sir Christopher John Frayling is a British educationalist and writer, known for his study of popular culture.-Biography:Frayling read history at Churchill College, Cambridge and gained a PhD in the study of Jean-Jacques Rousseau...
, much of the screenplay is derived from William Archibald's play of the same name, which premiered on Broadway in 1950, rather than coming directly from James' novella, though he credits Truman Capote with about 90% of the film's script as it appears on the screen. Frayling attributes the Freudian subtext to screenwriter Capote, whose contribution gives the film a Southern Gothic
Southern Gothic
Southern Gothic is a subgenre of Gothic fiction unique to American literature that takes place exclusively in the American South. It resembles its parent genre in that it relies on supernatural, ironic, or unusual events to guide the plot...
feel – with the governess's repressed erotic sensibility counterpointed by shots of lush and decaying plants and rapacious insect life. Clayton though chose to downplay this aspect in the finished film to preserve the ambiguity between the ghost story and Freudian element.
Reportedly, when first screened, Twentieth Century Fox executives were disturbed by the scene (which does not occur in the novella) in which the governess kisses the boy Miles directly on the lips. The film has been given a 12 rating by the BBFC. Its original classification by the BBFC was "X", which meant that no person under the age of 16 years was allowed into the cinema to see it.{BBFC website}
In popular culture
"The Infant Kiss", a song by Kate BushKate Bush
Kate Bush is an English singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Her eclectic musical style and idiosyncratic vocal style have made her one of the United Kingdom's most successful solo female performers of the past 30 years.In 1978, at the age of 19, Bush topped the UK Singles Chart...
, from her 1980 album Never for Ever
Never for Ever
- Personnel :* Ian Bairnson: Guitar, Bass vocals* Brian Bath: Acoustic & Electric Guitar, Background Vocals* Andrew Bryant: Vocals, Background Vocals* Kevin Burke: Violin...
, was inspired by the film.
An audiotrack from this film was sampled into the cursed tape of the 2002 film The Ring
The Ring (2002 film)
The Ring is a 2002 American psychological horror film directed by Gore Verbinski and starring Naomi Watts and Martin Henderson. It is a remake of the 1998 Japanese horror film Ring....
.
"O Willow Waly", the song from the film, written by Georges Auric
Georges Auric
Georges Auric was a French composer, born in Lodève, Hérault. He was a child prodigy and at age 15 he had his first compositions published. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Georges Caussade, and under the composer Vincent d'Indy at the Schola Cantorum...
and Paul Dehn
Paul Dehn
Paul Dehn was a British screenwriter.-Biography and work:Dehn was born in 1912 in Manchester, England. He was educated at Shrewsbury School, and attended Brasenose College, Oxford...
and sung on the soundtrack by Isla Cameron
Isla Cameron
Isla Cameron was a Scottish actress and singer.Isla was born in Scotland but was brought up in Dorset and Somerset. While trying to become an actress she joined Joan Littlewood who had co-founded the Theatre Workshop in 1945. Joan’s husband at the time, Ewan MacColl was to become Isla’s singing...
, was released in the UK on a Decca single in March, 1962. The catalogue number was 45-F.11441.
Reception
The Innocents was nominated for two BAFTA Awards, including Best British Film and Best Film from any Source. For his direction, Clayton was awarded the National Board of Review AwardNational Board of Review of Motion Pictures
The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures was founded in 1909 in New York City, just 13 years after the birth of cinema, to protest New York City Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr.'s revocation of moving-picture exhibition licenses on Christmas Eve 1908. The mayor believed that the new medium...
for Best Director. William Archibald and Truman Capote
Truman Capote
Truman Streckfus Persons , known as Truman Capote , was an American author, many of whose short stories, novels, plays, and nonfiction are recognized literary classics, including the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's and the true crime novel In Cold Blood , which he labeled a "nonfiction novel." At...
won a 1962 Edgar Award
Edgar Award
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards , named after Edgar Allan Poe, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America...
from the Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America
Mystery Writers of America is an organization for mystery writers, based in New York.The organization was founded in 1945 by Clayton Rawson, Anthony Boucher, Lawrence Treat, and Brett Halliday....
for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. The film premiered in New York City on December 25, 1961 and was entered into the 1962 Cannes Film Festival
1962 Cannes Film Festival
-Jury:*Tetsuro Furukaki *Henry Deutschmeister *Sophie Desmarets *Jean Dutourd *Mel Ferrer *Romain Gary *Jerzy Kawalerowicz *Ernst Krüger...
.
Director Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
placed The Innocents on his list of the 11 scariest horror films of all time.
The film at the time did not attract an audience, but critics would call it one of the best psychological thrillers ever made, and it received praise and cult status over the years. Time Out named it as the eighteenth in a list of the 100 greatest British films
Time Out 100 best British films
In February 2011, Time Out surveyed 150 film industry experts to produce its list of "The 100 best British films." Nicholas Roeg's Don't Look Now topped the list.-List breakdown:...
.