''Sinful Davey'' is a 1969

picaresque The picaresque novel (Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for " rogue" or "rascal") is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish, but "appealing hero", usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corrup ...

adventure/

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...

and starring

John Hurt Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in ...

Pamela Franklin Pamela Franklin (born 3 February 1950) is a British former actress. She is best known for her role in the film '' The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie'' (1969), for which she won a NBR Award and received a BAFTA Award nomination. Franklin made her ac ...

, and in early appearances

Fionnula Flanagan Fionnghuala Manon "Fionnula" Flanagan (born 10 December 1941) is an Irish stage, television, and film actress. For her contributions to the entertainment industry, she was given the IFTA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. Flanagan is known fo ...

and

Anjelica Huston Anjelica Huston ( ; born July 8, 1951) is an American actress and director. Known for often portraying eccentric and distinctive characters, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as no ...

. John Huston later said the film was "very good" but "spoiled beyond recognition" by the producers.

Plot

In a British prison in the early 1800s, Scottish rogue Davey Haggart (

) is seen writing his memoirs while waiting to be hanged. Most of his story is told in flashback with

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-Diegetic#Film sound and music, diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, th ...

narration by Davey. His story begins as he is seen marching and beating a drum for the British Army, but he quickly deserts by jumping off a bridge with his drum and floating away. We learn that his father had been a

highwayman A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to footp ...

who was hanged at the age of 21 for attempting to rob the Duke of Argyll (

Robert Morley Robert Adolph Wilton Morley, CBE (26 May 1908 – 3 June 1992) was an English actor who enjoyed a lengthy career in both Britain and the United States. He was frequently cast as a pompous English gentleman representing the Establishment, of ...

) and that Davey is determined to exceed the number of his father's crimes. Annie (

), a childhood friend who is in love with him, follows him at different times, sometimes getting him out of trouble but hoping that he will reform. Davey winds up becoming a partner with McNab ( Ronald Fraser), a pickpocket and thief, sometimes teaming up with other criminals. Eventually, the two land in prison, where Davey is able to break into the women's quarters and start a raucous party with the female prisoners, led by Jean Carlisle (Fidelma Murphy). Davey is bailed out by Annie, but he then enables McNab's escape and turns to highway robbery, following in his father's footsteps. Constable Richardson (

Nigel Davenport Arthur Nigel Davenport (23 May 1928 – 25 October 2013) was an English stage, television and film actor, best known as the Duke of Norfolk and Lord Birkenhead in the Academy Award-winning films '' A Man for All Seasons'' and ''Chariots of Fir ...

), the local officer, tries to recruit Annie to help capture Davey, but she refuses. Davey goes into hiding in the

Scottish highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

, but still gets into trouble. Almost by accident, Davey foils an attempted assault and robbery of Sir James Graham (

Donal McCann Donal McCann (7 May 1943 – 17 July 1999) was an Irish stage, film, and television actor best known for his roles in the works of Brian Friel and for his lead role in John Huston's last film, '' The Dead''. In 2020, he was listed as number 4 ...

), a nephew of the Duke of Argyll, who invites Davey to his uncle's manor. While Davey wins the favor of the Duke and his family, McNab, Jean Carlisle, Annie, and Constable Richardson also converge on the estate at different times. Davey sets up an elaborate robbery of guests at a grand ball hosted by the Duchess (

Maxine Audley Maxine Audley (29 April 1923 – 23 July 1992) was an English theatre and film actress. She made her professional stage debut in July 1940 at the Open Air Theatre. Audley performed with the Old Vic company and the Royal Shakespeare Company many ...

), but Annie then returns the stolen jewels. When Richardson recognizes Davey as the thief he has been seeking, a lengthy chase ensues, with Davey stealing a horse and riding away until he is knocked off by a low-hanging tree branch. The story returns to Davey's prison cell, as he finishes writing his memoirs, expecting his execution to take place soon. Annie and McNab, however, are able to sabotage the gallows so that Davey escapes once again, riding away with Annie.

Production

Director John Huston and producer

Walter Mirisch Walter Mortimer Mirisch (born November 8, 1921) is an American film producer. He is president and executive head of production of The Mirisch Corporation, an independent film production company, which he formed in 1957 with his brother Marvin ...

clashed several times during and after the film's production, especially in regard to a musical score originally composed by John Barry, the casting of Huston's daughter Anjelica, and the final editing of the film. Critic David Sterrit describes the final product as "a box-office fiasco that nobody has particularly wanted to own. But it's also an interesting document from Huston's tired period, showing what can happen when a great director and a major studio clash over a project that was probably fated from the beginning not to click." The film is based on the autobiography of David Haggart titled ''The Life of David Haggart''. The film, about a Scottish rogue, was filmed in Ireland, and much of the cast have

Irish accents Hiberno-English (from Latin language, Latin ''Hibernia'': "Ireland"), and in ga, Béarla na hÉireann. or Irish English, also formerly Anglo-Irish, is the set of English dialects native to the island of Ireland (including both the Repub ...

instead of the more accurate Scottish accent. Four members of the film unit making the picture in Co.

Wicklow Wicklow ( ; ga, Cill Mhantáin , meaning 'church of the toothless one'; non, Víkingaló) is the county town of County Wicklow in Ireland. It is located south of Dublin on the east coast of the island. According to the 2016 census, it has ...

crashed in their Cessna plane at Glenmalure in 1967. All the occupants of the plane were injured to some extent, but John O’Connor, the location manager, was the most seriously injured. Huston left the film location to visit the hospital and stopped the filming.

Cast

as Davey Haggart *

as Annie *

as Richardson * Ronald Fraser as MacNab *

as Duke of Argyll *

Fidelma Murphy Fidelma is an Irish female given name. People named Fidelma * Fidelma Healy Eames (born 1962), politician * Fidelma Macken (born 1942), judge * Sister Fidelma, main character in the Sister Fidelma mysteries * Fidelma Rodgers-Jones born 1964 * Fid ...

as Jean Carlisle *

as Duchess of Argyll *

as Penelope *

as Sir James Campbell * Allan Cuthbertson as Captain Douglas *

Eddie Byrne Eddie Byrne (31 January 1911 – 21 August 1981) was an Irish actor. Career His stage work included many appearances with Dublin's Abbey Theatre, and also work with the National Theatre in London. Outside Ireland he is probably best known ...

as Yorkshire Bill *

Niall MacGinnis Patrick Niall MacGinnis (29 March 1913 – 6 January 1977) was an Irish actor who made around 80 screen appearances. Early life MacGinnis was born in Dublin in 1913.

as Boots Simpson * Noel Purcell as Jock * Judith Furse as Mary * Francis de Wolff as Andrew *

Paul Farrell Thomas Paul Farrell (21 September 1893 – 12 June 1975) was an Irish film and television actor. He is best remembered as the "Tramp" who gets beaten up by Alex and his "droogs", in Stanley Kubrick's ''A Clockwork Orange ''A Clockwork Oran ...

as Bailiff

Critical reception

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 ...

says- "A good cast overcomes the somewhat heavy-handed direction of Huston in this Tom Jones-inspired comedy".Sinful Davey at TV Guide
/ref>

References

External links

''Sinful Davey''
at

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

* sung by

Esther Ofarim Esther Zaied, better known by her married name Esther Ofarim ( he, אסתר עופרים; born June 13, 1941), is an Israeli singer. She came second in the 1963 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "T'en va pas", representing Switzerland. After ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sinful Davey 1969 films 1960s English-language films 1960s crime comedy films 1960s adventure comedy films American adventure comedy films American crime comedy films British adventure comedy films Films directed by John Huston Films set in Scotland Films shot in Ireland United Artists films British crime comedy films 1969 comedy films Films scored by Ken Thorne 1960s American films 1960s British films