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Three Sundays to Live
Three Sundays to Live
	British campaign book cover
Directed by	Ernest Morris
Written by	Brian Clemens
Produced by	Edward J. Danziger; Harry Lee Danziger
Starring	Kieron Moore; Jane Griffiths
Cinematography	James Wilson
Edited by	Sidney Stone
Music by	Edwin Astley; Albert Elms
Production; company	Danziger Productions
Distributed by	United Artists Corporation (UK)
Release date	1957;
Running time	71 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Three Sundays to Live is a low budget 1957 second feature ('B')^[1]^: 138} film noir British film directed by Ernest Morris and starring Kieron Moore and Jane Griffiths.^[2]^[3]^[4] It was written by Brian Clemens and produced by The Danzigers.

The title refers to the law of the period, which required that after a death sentence had been passed, three Sundays must elapse before the execution.^[5]

Plot

Young dance band leader, Frank Martin, is condemned to death for a murder he didn't commit. Desperate to prove his innocence, Frank escapes from jail, and with his girlfriend Judy, embarks upon the search for a blonde singer who was used to frame him for the killing. Using a contact who owes Frank a favour, they trace the singer, but the real killer shoots her through a window after she agrees to help them. However, Martin manages to trick the murderer into believing he's killed the wrong woman. When the killer returns to try again, Frank is waiting.

Cast

Kieron Moore as Frank Martin
Jane Griffiths as Judy Allen
Basil Dignam as Davitt
Sandra Dorne as Ruth Chapman
Harold Ayer as Al Murray
John Stone as detective
Norman Mitchell as police sergeant
John Longden as warder
Ferdy Mayne as Davis
John Stuart as the judge (uncredited)
Bill Fraser as prison warder (uncredited)
George Roderick as second officer (uncredited)

Reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This sad and stereotyped crime story has no redeeming feature. The situations are implausible, the treatment sluggish, the acting unpersuasive. It is particularly unflattering to Scotland Yard, whose detectives, apparently, are quite incapable of recognising a blatant frame-up."^[6]

Kine Weekly wrote: "The players work hard, but uneven direction prevents them from ironing typical quota earmarks out of its script. ... The picture tries to thrill at the expense of the Law, but fails. Kieron Moore leaves nothing to chance as Frank, Jane Griffiths meets emotional demands as Judy, and Basil Dignam puts on a bold front as the well-meaning if unethical Davitt, but its conscientious cast is wasted on cheap pulp fiction. It'll leave the majority cold and incredulous."^[7]

Picturegoer wrote: "The strain on the onlooker's credulity reaches breaking point some time before the end. Ropey, to say the least."^[8]

The Daily Film Renter wrote: "Economically made, this product tells its story straightforwardly and keeps the pace moving so that it holds the attention. Performances are reasonably convincing throughout, if at times, the circumstances seem unlikely! A useful and reliable booking for program-building in not-too-sophisticated situations."^[9]

Chibnall and McFarlane wrote that the film "makes good use of varied settings. ... The courtroom scene is quite inventively done with music and dissolves from face to face but no spoken words."^[1]^: 151

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "poor", calling it "dreary and ridiculous."^[10]

References

^ ^a ^b Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-8445-7319-6.
^ "Three Sundays to Live". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
^ "Three Sundays to Live (1957)". BFI. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012.
^ "Three Sundays to Live (1957) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
^ Pruszewicz, Marek (7 August 2014). "When murderers were hanged quickly". BBC News. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
^ "Three Sundays to Live". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 24 (276): 153. 1 January 1957 – via ProQuest.
^ "Three Sundays to Live". Kine Weekly. 486 (2619): 21. 24 October 1957 – via ProQuest.
^ "Three Sundays to Live". Picturegoer. 34: 15. 9 December 1957 – via ProQuest.
^ "Three Sundays to Live". The Daily Film Renter (7490): 5. 18 October 1957 – via ProQuest.
^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 387. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.