''Daughter of Darkness'' is a 1948 British film, with macabre overtones, directed by

Lance Comfort Lance Comfort (11 August 1908 – 25 August 1966) was an English film director. In a career spanning over 25 years, he became one of the most prolific film directors in Britain, though he never gained critical attention and remained on the ...

and starring

Anne Crawford Imelda Anne Crawford (22 November 1920 – 17 October 1956) was a British film actress, born in Palestine of a Scottish father and an English mother, and brought up in Edinburgh. Biography A contemporary of Margaret Lockwood and Phyllis Calver ...

Maxwell Reed Maxwell Reed (2 April 1919 – 31 October 1974) was a Northern Irish actor who became a matinee idol in several British films during the 1940s and 1950s. Biography Early Years Reed was born in Larne. He left school aged fifteen to work on ...

and – in the central role –

Siobhán McKenna Siobhán McKenna (; 24 May 1922 – 16 November 1986) was an Irish stage and screen actress. Background She was born Siobhán Giollamhuire Nic Cionnaith in Belfast in the newly-created Northern Ireland into a Catholic and nationalist family. ...

. Released in January 1948, it was based on a then ten-year-old play by

Max Catto Maxwell Jeffrey Catto (29 July 1907 – 12 March 1992) was born Mark Finkell in Manchester, England and was an English playwright and novelist. Writing career Catto wrote adventure novels and dramas for more than four decades and also wrote under ...

called ''They Walk Alone''. An expensive film for its day, it was shot at

Riverside Studios Riverside Studios is an arts centre on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. The venue plays host to contemporary performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production. Having closed for redevelopment i ...

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

, London, (known at that time as Alliance Studios) and on location. McKenna was offered a Hollywood contract following her memorable performance, but heeded the counsel of

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...

to remain in theatre work.

Plot

In the small Irish town of Ballyconnen, Emmy Baudine (Siobhán McKenna) is a beautiful but disturbed young woman who works for the local priest. When the

fair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

comes to town, she encounters Dan (Maxwell Reed), a handsome young boxer – and lays his face open with her fingernails when he attempts to seduce her. Urged by the village women's jealousy and forebodings, Father Corcoran (Liam Redmond), reluctantly sends Emmy to friends, farming family, in Yorkshire, and Emmy endeavours to suppress the strange feelings of fascination and revulsion that she experiences in the presence of the opposite sex. But the fair's seeping, relentless prowl for profit, has already left Ireland, and is trundling its poisoned way through the arteries of Britain, seemingly knowing where its next victims live. Their next meeting cannot be resisted; nor can the allure of Emmy Baudine: to wherever she moves.

Cast

as Bess Stanforth *

as Dan *

as Emmy Baudine * George Thorpe as Tallent *

Barry Morse Herbert Morse (10 June 19182 February 2008), known professionally as Barry Morse, was a British-Canadian actor of stage, screen, and radio, best known for his roles in the ABC television series '' The Fugitive'' and the British sci-fi drama '' ...

as Robert Stanforth *

Liam Redmond Liam Redmond (27 July 1913 – 28 October 1989) was an Irish character actor known for his stage, film and television roles. Early life Redmond was one of four children born to cabinet-maker Thomas and Eileen Redmond. Educated at the Christi ...

as Father Cocoran *

Cyril Smith Sir Cyril Richard Smith (28 June 1928 – 3 September 2010) was a prominent British politician who after his death was revealed to have been a prolific serial sex offender against children. A member of the Liberal Party, he was Member of ...

as Joe *

Honor Blackman Honor Blackman (22 August 1925 – 5 April 2020) was an English actress, known for the roles of Cathy Gale in '' The Avengers''Aaker, Everett (2006). ''Encyclopedia of Early Television Crime Fighters''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 58. (1962 ...

as Julie Tallent * Denis Gordon as Saul Trevethick * Grant Tyler as Larry Tallent *

Norman Shelley Norman Shelley (16 February 1903 – 21 August 1980) was a British actor, best known for his work in radio, in particular for the BBC's '' Children's Hour''. He also had a recurring role as Colonel Danby in the long-running radio soap opera ''T ...

as Smithers * George Merritt as Constable *

Iris Vandeleur Iris Vandeleur (1884–1969) was a British stage and film actress. In 1951 she appeared in the BBC television series ''Sherlock Holmes'' as Mrs. Hudson, the landlady. In the West End she appeared in 1939 in Ian Hay's comedy ''Little Ladyshi ...

as Mrs. Smithers * Ann Clery as Miss Foley *

Arthur Hambling Arthur Hambling (14 March 1888 – 6 December 1952) was a British actor, on stage from 1912, and best known for appearances in the films ''Henry V'' (1944) and ''The Lavender Hill Mob'' (1951). In 1939 he appeared in the West End in N.C. Hunter ...

as Jacob * David Greene as David Price

Critical reception

The Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' wrote, "an opportunity to see McKenna, one of the most compelling of Irish stage actresses, portraying a maniac with full-blooded commitment." ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' noted, "strong stuff for 1948." In his ''Guide to British Cinema'', Geoff Mayer writes, "''Daughter of Darkness'', with a budget of two hundred thousand pounds and three weeks of location shooting in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, was not a financial success and represented a setback to Comfort's career, which saw him relegated to low-budget films in the 1950s and 1960s. Yet the film's mixture of

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

and horror establishes it as one of the most startling British films of the 1940s. "

References

External links

* {{Lance Comfort 1948 films 1948 crime films British crime films Films directed by Lance Comfort Films scored by Clifton Parker British black-and-white films 1940s English-language films 1940s British films