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The Young And The Guilty
The Young And The Guilty“A clever and thought-provoking film
  from the Fifties that is very much a
  story of its time; about a very young
  and innocent teenaged couple who
  fall in love and send each other touching
  romantic letters — one of which is
  intercepted by the girl’s father, who
  totally misconstrues the contents
  causing hurt and destroying trust in
  The Young And The Guilty...”

YOUNG TEENAGERS DEEPLY IN LOVE, clever schoolboy Eddie Marshall (Andrew Ray: The Yellow Balloon; Woman In A Dressing Gown) and fellow student, shy and dreamy Sue Connor (Janet Munro: Swiss Family Robinson; The Day The Earth Caught Fire), already believe that they want to marry and live happily ever after.

In their touching, poetic and romantic letters they declare their love for each other and Eddie tells Sue that he thinks of himself as her husband and she as his wife. But when Sue's concerned father George (Edward Chapman) reads one of the letters they see as private, he immediately jumps to the wrong conclusion; totally misunderstanding the nature of the teenagers' truly innocent relationship.

“A poignant and heartfelt
story of two innocent
teenaged schoolchildren
who fall madly,
deeply in love, and the
resulting backlash
of a father’s misunderstanding,
The Young And The
Guilty is a fine
and thought-provoking
film...”
Although Sue's mother Gladys (Phyllis Calvert) calmly tries to reassure her husband, he insists on talking to Eddie's parents, Maude (Hilda Fenemore) and Joe (Campbell Singer) and confronting Eddie.

Eddie has won a scholarship to a private school, is doing well and the ambitious Maude has her sights set on University for him. She is disappointed in Joe, nags and criticises him constantly and feels he is stupid and beneath her. Maude sees her dreams being shattered; but it is Joe who tries to bring sense to the situation.

Devastated by what she sees as her father's betrayal when he should have respected her privacy, Sue nevertheless agrees to stop seeing Eddie; but Eddie — although angry and upset that their parents have made something beautiful into something unclean — cannot let his true love go…

A poignant and heartfelt story of two innocent teenaged schoolchildren who fall madly, deeply in love, and the resulting backlash of a father's misunderstanding, The Young And The Guilty is a fine and thought-provoking film.

Billed as "a story that may shock you; And at the same time shame you", The Young And The Guilty was filmed in 1958 when Elvis's pelvis was in full swing and Cliff Richard was busy establishing himself — and the Swinging Sixties had yet to unleash the 'S'-word.

Also featuring: Sonia Rees as Brenda and Jean St Clair as neighbour Mrs Humbolt. Music Composed by Sydney John Kay and Performed by The Associated British Studio Orchestra under the Direction of Louis Levy; Director of Photography is Norman Warwick; Original Story and Screenplay by Ted Willis; Produced by Warwick Ward; and Directed by Peter Cotes.

* The Young And The Guilty is released in the UK on DVD, courtesy of Network Distributing's The British Film collection**, on 6 October 2014. Running Time: 65 Minutes Approximately | B&W | Catalogue Number: 7954221 | RRP: £9.99.

Special Features: Original Theatrical Trailer | Instant Play Facility.

**The British Film collection was launched by Network Distributing in April 2013 as part of a five-year plan to release over 450 vintage British films through a deal with Studiocanal, one of Europe's leading distribution and production companies. Many of the films have never previously been available to own.

"A poignant and heartfelt story of two innocent teenaged schoolchildren who fall madly, deeply in love, and the resulting backlash of a father's misunderstanding, The Young And The Guilty is a fine and thought-provoking film" — Maggie Woods