Prison Without Bars is a 1938 British black-and-white crime film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Corinne Luchaire, Edna Best and Barry K. Barnes.[1] It is set in a girl's reform school, and was based on a play by Gina Kaus, previously filmed in France as Prison sans Barreaux (1938).[2] Corinne Luchaire starred in both versions.[3]
| Prison Without Bars | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Brian Desmond Hurst |
| Written by | Arthur Wimperis Margaret Kennedy (dialogue) |
| Based on | play by Egon Eis Otto Eis Gina Kaus Hans Wilhelm |
| Produced by | Alexander Korda |
| Starring | Corinne Luchaire Edna Best Barry K. Barnes |
| Cinematography | Georges Périnal Bernard Browne |
| Edited by | William Hornbeck Charles Crichton |
| Music by | John Greenwood |
Production company | London Film Productions |
| Distributed by | United Artists Corporation (UK) |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 72 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
A young progressive thinking woman becomes superintendent at a French girl's reformatory dominated by the harsh previous head. A young girl is blackmailed by her acquaintance over her love for the superintendent's fiancé, but is released to join him in the end, when all is revealed.[4]
In The New York Times, Frank S. Nugent dismissed the film as "another prison picture, and while we would not want to pass too harsh a sentence upon it, neither can we fairly pretend that it is innocent":[5] whereas, in December 1938, The Daily Telegraph selected it as one of their ten best films of the year.[6]
Films directed by Brian Desmond Hurst | |
|---|---|
|
This article related to a British film of the 1930s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This article about a 1930s crime drama film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
This article about a 1930s romantic drama film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |