| Four Sided Triangle | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Terence Fisher |
| Produced by | Michael Carreras Alexander Paal |
| Written by | Paul Tabori William F. Temple (novel) |
| Starring | Stephen Murray Barbara Payton James Hayter John van Eyssen |
| Music by | Malcolm Arnold |
| Cinematography | Reg Wyer |
| Editing by | Maurice Rootes |
| Release date(s) | 1953 |
| Running time | 81 minutes |
| Country | UK |
| IMDb profile | |
Four Sided Triangle is a 1953 British science-fiction film directed by Terence Fisher for Hammer Film Productions. Terence Fisher ( 23 February 1904 &ndash 18 June, 1980) was a film director who worked for Hammer Films. Michael Carreras (b December 21, 1927 in London, England, d April 19 1994 in London was a British Film William Frederick Temple (1914-1989 was a British Science fiction writer This article is for the actor For the BMX rider see Stephen Murray (BMX rider. Barbara Payton ( November 16, 1927 &ndash May 8, 1967) was an American film Actress. James Hayter ( April 23, 1907 &ndash March 27, 1983) was a British Actor. John Van Eyssen (1922-1995 was a South African born actor agent and executive Sir Malcolm Henry Arnold, CBE (21 October 1921 – 23 September 2006 was an English Composer and symphonist. Reginald Wyer (1898 - 1970 was a British Cinematographer. Among his notable early credits were The Seventh Veil (1945 and Quartet The year 1953 in film involved some significant events Events September 16 — The Robe debuts as The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The year 1953 in film involved some significant events Events September 16 — The Robe debuts as The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Science fiction Film is a Film genre that uses speculative, Science -based depictions of imaginary phenomena such as extra-terrestrial Terence Fisher ( 23 February 1904 &ndash 18 June, 1980) was a film director who worked for Hammer Films. Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom.
The film dealt with the moral and scientific themes (not to mention "mad lab" scenes) that were soon to put Hammer Films on the map with the same director's The Curse of Frankenstein. The Curse of Frankenstein is a 1957 British Horror film by Hammer Film Productions. Four Sided Triangle has most in common with Fisher's Frankenstein Created Woman (1967). Frankenstein Created Woman is a 1967 British Hammer Horror film directed by Terence Fisher.
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Synopsis
The film opens with Dr. Harvey (or "Doc" as he is known to the locals) relating to the audience an odd tale that took place in his peaceful village.
Bill and Robin are boyhood friends who compete for the affections of Lena, a beautiful girl about their own age. In adulthood, the two men collaborate on the invention of the Reproducer, a machine that can exactly duplicate physical objects.
Lena comes back into the picture, reviving the childhood feelings in the two men. It transpires that they abandon their work on the Reproducer, Robin going away to learn his family's business. Bill is disappointed to discover that Lena loves Robin and intends to marry him.
Seeing the hopelessness of winning Lena for himself, Bill convinces the young woman to allow him to use the Reproducer to create a duplicate of her. The experiment succeeds, and Bill names the woman he has created "Helen. "
Unfortunately, the experiment has worked too well, and when Helen is introduced to Robin, she falls hopelessly in love with him too. Bill decides his last chance is to use electro-shock to erase Helen's memory.
Helen agrees to give it a try, and Bill convinces Lena to help him with the procedure, manipulating some of the electronic equipment. The process seems to work, but the apparatus overheats and explodes, causing a terrific fire.
Robin arrives with Dr. Harvey, who has explained the situation to him, and manages to rescue a woman from the fire. Bill and the other woman perish in the flames.
There is some tension around the idea of which woman Robin has saved, Lena or Helen, especially when Dr. Harvey discovers that the woman has no memory. However, Dr. Harvey recalls that Bill had had to start Helen's heart with a device that he attached to the back of her neck, leaving two scars. Robin is relieved to find that there are no marks on the neck of the woman he has rescued: It is Lena.
Production details
Four-Sided Triangle was filmed on an impoverished budget even by Hammer Studio standards. Although the film is science-fiction, there is almost a total absence of special effects, gadgetry and trick photography. There is one brief and poignant shot of Helen (the duplicate woman) wistfully peering through a window at Lena (her template) who is looking at Robin. This camera set-up (a double exposure) is the only moment in the entire film when Lena and Helen are both shown onscreen at the same time.
In the crucial dual role of Lena and Helen, the actress Barbara Payton (more notorious for her scandalous personal life than acclaimed for her acting talents) is barely adequate. Barbara Payton ( November 16, 1927 &ndash May 8, 1967) was an American film Actress. Barbara Payton's clumsy diction and American accent are made even more obtrusive because Lena is supposedly an Englishwoman.
Four-Sided Triangle is adapted from a novel by William F. Temple, but the novel has a different ending. William Frederick Temple (1914-1989 was a British Science fiction writer In the film, we are expected to feel relieved because the "real" woman (Lena) has survived instead of the duplicate (Helen). In the original novel, the woman who survived the fire (presumably Lena) marries Robin, and their happy marriage produces two daughters . . . but a few years later, she and her young daughters are killed in a railway accident. Dr. Harvey then reveals that this woman had undergone plastic surgery to remove two scars from her neck: it was actually Lena (the "real" woman) who died in the fire, and Helen (the duplicate) who married Robin and gave birth to his daughters. Possibly author Temple may have felt that his readers would not tolerate the survival of an "artificial" woman (or any children born to her), thus prompting him to kill them off in the novel's epilogue.
Cast
- Barbara Payton (Lena Maitland/Helen)
- James Hayter (Dr. Barbara Payton ( November 16, 1927 &ndash May 8, 1967) was an American film Actress. James Hayter ( April 23, 1907 &ndash March 27, 1983) was a British Actor. Harvey)
- Stephen Murray (Bill Leggat)
- John Van Eyssen (Robin Grant)
- Percy Marmont (Sir Walter)
- Glyn Dearman (Bill as a child)
- Sean Barrett (Robin as a child)
- Jennifer Dearman (Lena as a child)
- Kynaston Reeves (Lord Grant)
- John Stuart (Solicitor)
- Edith Saville (Lady Grant)
Source
Hearne, Marcus & Jonathan Rigby. This article is for the actor For the BMX rider see Stephen Murray (BMX rider. John Van Eyssen (1922-1995 was a South African born actor agent and executive Percy Marmont ( 25 November, 1883 &ndash 3 March, 1977) was an English film actor Sean Barrett may refer to Seán Barrett (Irish politician (born 1944 former Irish Fine Gael Party TD and government minister Sean Barrett Kynaston Reeves ( May 29 1893, London England - December 5 1971, London England John Stuart may refer to John Stuart 4th Earl of Atholl (d 1579 John Stuart 3rd Earl of Bute (1713–1792 Prime Minister of Great Four Sided Triangle: Viewing Notes (accompanying R2 DVD release)
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