If this wasn't a Pinter would it be remembered? The answer is yes - it was after all joint winner at Cannes of the second prize, the Grand Prix - but it would not be remembered to the same extent, and even then remembrance of this film is a minority sport.
There is the excellent acting of Jacqueline Sassard, as the protagonist who is not the protagonist, around whom the lives of all are affected by her present. A shame her film career was so short, one of many from that era who retired as an actress once they married (e.g. The well known Grace Kelly or the lesser known Virginia North). Dirk Bogarde too acts very well.
But time has not been kind to the film, which is a mixture of a college drama and a kitchen sink drama. The visuals, though very reminiscent of the Oxford college and the wonderful surrounding countryside, are dated. The film in parts is slow, but it is worth watching, if only because it is a Pinter / Bogarde / Sassard.
There is the excellent acting of Jacqueline Sassard, as the protagonist who is not the protagonist, around whom the lives of all are affected by her present. A shame her film career was so short, one of many from that era who retired as an actress once they married (e.g. The well known Grace Kelly or the lesser known Virginia North). Dirk Bogarde too acts very well.
But time has not been kind to the film, which is a mixture of a college drama and a kitchen sink drama. The visuals, though very reminiscent of the Oxford college and the wonderful surrounding countryside, are dated. The film in parts is slow, but it is worth watching, if only because it is a Pinter / Bogarde / Sassard.