Never Take Sweets from a Stranger (1960)

Never Take Sweets from a Stranger (1960) (DVD) (*)

$21.99

Language Selections:
English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 )
Italian ( Subtitles )

Product Origin/Format:
Italy ( PAL/Region 0 )

Running Time:
78 min

Aspect Ratio:
Widescreen (2.35:1)

Special Features:
Interactive Menu
Scene Access
Trailer(s)

Movie filmed in 1960 and produced in:
United Kingdom ( Great Britain, Ireland )

Directed By:
Cyril Frankel

Written By:
John Hunter
Roger Garis

Actors:
Gwen Watford ..... Sally Carter
Patrick Allen ..... Peter Carter
Felix Aylmer ..... Clarence Olderberry Sr.
Niall MacGinnis ..... Defense Counsel
Alison Leggatt ..... Martha
Bill Nagy ..... Clarence Jr
Michael Gwynn ..... Prosecutor
Budd Knapp ..... Hammond
MacDonald Parke ..... Judge
Estelle Brody ..... Eunice Kalliduke
Helen Horton ..... Sylvia Kingsley
Robert Arden ..... Tom Demarest
Gaylord Cavallaro ..... Neal Phillips
Vera Cook ..... Mrs. Demarest
Janina Faye ..... Jean Carter

Synopsis:

Jean Carter, nine-year-old daughter of the town's newly-appointed school principal, Peter Carter and his wife Sally, is playing in the woods with her 11-year-old friend Lucille, when Jean discovers she has lost her purse containing her "candy" money. Lucille tells her she knows where they can get sweets for nothing, and leads her to an imposing mansion, from which the owner, Clarence Olderberry, Sr., a tall, gaunt man of 70 has been watching the girls from a window. That night Jean, unable to sleep, tells her parents that Oldeberry made her and Lucille dance before him nude in exchange for some candy. Carter files a complaint, but the local police chief, Captain Hammond, is skeptical of Jean's story and warns Carter that the Oldenberry family put the town on the map and have far more standing in the community than the new-comer Carters. Oldenberry, Jr. also tells Carter that if he follows up on the complaint he may be certain that Oldenberry's lawyers will show Jean no mercy. In the ensuing trial, the defense lawyers confuse Jean, make her an uncreditable witness, and Oldenberry is acquitted, after the enraged Carter attacks him physically in court. While her parents are packing to leave town, Jean and Lucille again are playing in the woods, and are approached by Oldenberry, and the two girls flee in blind panic. Reaching a desolate lake, they find an old rowboat and attempt to escape in it, but the mooring rope is still attached to the shore. And Oldenberry is using it to pull the boat and the girls to him.

Set in Canada, this nasty little fable is about a respectable village elder (Patrick Allen) who is also a sexual deviate. Using candy as bait, he persuades two little girls to dance naked for him. When the girls complain to their parents, the old man is taken to court, but his prestige in town assures an acquittal. Inevitably, the man's perversities lead to the death of a child. The British title for this repellant film was Never Take Sweets From a Stranger; it was based on John Hunter's play The Pony Cart.

Peter Carter meets official resistance when he finds his 9 year old daughter has been the victim of the pedophile patriarch of the town's most powerful family.

This product was added to our catalog on Thursday 01 July, 2021.