A Dangerous Age

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A Dangerous Age
United States Poster
Directed bySidney J. Furie
Written bySidney J. Furie
StarringBen Piazza
Anne Pearson
Kate Reid
Austin Willis
Barbara Hamilton
CinematographyHerbert Alpert
Edited byDavid Nicholson
Music byPhil Nimmons
Release dates
  • September 9, 1957 (1957-09-09) (Toronto, Canada)
Running time
71 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish
Budget$29,000 (Canadian)

A Dangerous Age is a 1957[1][2][3][4][5] film directed by Sidney J. Furie. It is Sidney J. Furie's[6][7] low-budget tale about young lovers (Ben Piazza and Anne Pearson) on the run from an uncaring adult world – they just want to get married but are thwarted at every turn – remains something of landmark in English-Canadian feature production.

According to the Canadian Film Encyclopedia "The first Canadian feature in many years to win praise at the Festival de Cannes and the Venice International Film Festival, it merited serious international critical attention and remains a landmark of Canadian film production. Its low-key, quasi-documentary style, evocative use of locations and what some British critics called its "honesty" stand in marked contrast to Hollywood’s "adolescent crisis" films of the same period."[8]

Plot

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Nancy, 17, and David, 19, are young college students who are in love and want to marry. Their parents object, so the couple elopes to the USA with a forged birth certificate for Nancy. David has second thoughts after seeing a married couple argue.

They are told they have to wait for twenty four hours so they go back over the border and are pulled over by the police.

David persuades Nancy to go on the run with him. They flee but are caught by the police. David and Nancy decide to wait to get married.

Cast

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  • Ben Piazza as David
  • Anne Pearson as Nancy
  • John Sullivan
  • Kate Reid
  • Aileen Seaton
  • Shane Rimmer
  • Austin Willis
  • Barbara Hamilton

Production

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A Dangerous Age[9] began as an hour-long drama for CBC-TV, where the 24-year-old Furie worked as a writer. [8] The story was based on a real incident where Furie attempted to elope and was stopped.[10]

The film was financed by Furie's father.[11]

The movie was shot over twelve days in and around Toronto, starting 9 August 1957. The two lead actors were Americans but the rest of the cast were Canadians. "It's not an epic but I think it's a good entertainment feature for the double bills" said Furie. He added, "This is not a Canadian story specifically. It could take place anywhere. My reason for importing the two lead players from the US was simply I found I couldn't get the types I wanted here."[12]

Reception

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The film received critical praise when it was released in the UK where Furie was recognized as a fresh talent; however, it was ignored in Canada. [8]

Furie sold the movie to the USA for a thousand dollars' profit and was able to pay back his father.[11]

Critical

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The Evening Standard said "Canadian films can proudly step into the world market" and called it "a good, engrossing, and above all a hopeful film" made with "freshness and enthusiasm."[13]

The Daily Herald film reviewer "found it enthralling and I was bowled over by the most apt background music I've heard in years."[14]

The Daily Telegraph said "Mr Furie catches very well the atmosphere of hope deferred which is so abominable to youth. He has made a promising debut as director and if 20 minutes were cut from the 69 minutes the picture runs it would seem very much better than it does at the moment."[15]

The Sunday Dispatch wrote "beautifully written and acted, it is warm, touching and honest."[16]

The San Franscisco Examminer said "it had a tender and warm freshness about it."[17]

References

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  1. ^ "Canadian Film History: 1939 to 1973". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  2. ^ "Caine and Able". Literary Review of Canada. 2016-04-28. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  3. ^ https://llr.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?vid=44NTU_INST:NTU_VU10 [bare URL]
  4. ^ Rowlands, Paul. "AN INTERVIEW WITH SIDNEY J. FURIE (PART 1 OF 2)". Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  5. ^ Vlessing, Etan (2010-09-26). "DGC honors Furie with lifetime achievement". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  6. ^ "Daily Hive | Torontoist". dailyhive.com. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  7. ^ Take One's Essential Guide to Canadian Film, ed. Wyndham Wise, University of Toronto Press, 2001, p. 83
  8. ^ a b c "A Dangerous Age". Canadian Film Encyclopedia.
  9. ^ Retrieved October 14, 2015
  10. ^ Rowlands, Paul (2017). "AN INTERVIEW WITH SIDNEY J. FURIE (PART 1 OF 2)". Money Into Light.
  11. ^ a b Kremer, Daniel. Sidney J. Furie: Life and Films. The University Press of Kentucky, 2015. pp 20-21
  12. ^ Karr, Jack (26 November 1957). "'A Dangerous Age' ready for screens in a month". The Toronto Star. p. 40.
  13. ^ Oakes, Philip (8 May 1958). "Films". Evening Standard. p. 6.
  14. ^ "The new films". Daily Herald. 9 May 1958. p. 6.
  15. ^ "Lightweight heavily treated". The Daily Telegraph. 10 May 1958. p. 9.
  16. ^ "Films". Sunday Dispatch. 11 May 1958. p. 10.
  17. ^ "Play by play". The San Francisco Examiner. 6 November 1958. p. 37.
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