This film is currently unavailable
Tiger Bay
A young girl witnesses a murder, befriending the killer and shielding him from the police.
Police drama 1959 113 mins
Director: J. Lee Thompson
Overview
Beautifully shot and genuinely involving, Tiger Bay is a flare that signals the impending 1960s. Things were changing. Director J. Lee Thompson shaped a serious child character, devious and maybe even dislikeable were it not for Hayley Mills' skill and charisma. The script was reworked after her casting, and the interplay with Horst Bucholtz is multi-layered and convincing
Tiger Bay comes from a time when filmmakers were part of a wider sense of idealism and there was a pervading belief that films could change society. British audiences had seen this template before – in Hunted or The Yellow Balloon (also directed by Thompson) – but never with such defiance. Its progressive attitude embraces feminism and what Monthly Film Bulletin applauded as 'a firm feeling for outcasts and foreigners, their solidity and their background.' Exquisite photography brings Cardiff to life, hinting at a city that mixes the Dickensian with something more daringly forward-facing. Prime Minister Harold McMillan screened the film for a visiting President Eisenhower upon release. His thoughts went unrecorded.
Related
Police drama
The Wicker Man The Wicker Man
Horror 1973 88 mins Director: Robin Hardy
Christopher Lee and Edward Woodward star in the folk horror classic about a policemen investigating an island given over to paganism.
The Blue Lamp The Blue Lamp
Police drama 1949 85 mins Director: Basil Dearden
Dirk Bogarde stars as a loose-cannon crook with Dixon of Dock Green (Jack Warner) on his tail, in the classic Ealing policier.
The Riverside Murder The Riverside Murder
Thriller 1935 65 mins Director: Albert Parker
Ingeniously plotted and twisting whodunit that leaves Alastair Sim baffled as to the identity of the killer.
Loot Loot
Comedy 1970 102 mins Director: Silvio Narizzano
Silvio Narizzano adapts Joe Orton’s extraordinarily funny satire on police corruption and the conventions of detective fiction.
Hell Is a City Hell Is a City
Police drama 1959 96 mins Director: Val Guest
Punchy crime thriller with a realist streak as Stanley Baker pursues a fugitive through the streets of Manchester.
Wolcott Part 4 Wolcott Part 4
Police drama 1981 42 mins Director: Colin Bucksey
The concluding episode of the pioneering black detective series.
Featuring John Mills
When the Wind Blows When the Wind Blows
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1986 84 mins Director: Jimmy Teru Murakami
A middle-aged couple prepare for nuclear war in this humorous and macabre cautionary tale, adapted by Raymond Briggs (The Snowman) from his best-selling book.
Brown on Resolution Brown on Resolution
War 1935 71 mins Director: Walter Forde
Walter Forde’s 1935 war drama stars a young John Mills as the illegitimate son of a naval officer who brings down a German cruiser in WWI.
The October Man The October Man
Drama 1947 95 mins Director: Roy Ward Baker
Roy Ward Baker directs John Mills and Joan Greenwood in this mystery noir about an amnesiac implicated in the murder of a young woman.
The Green Cockatoo The Green Cockatoo
Action and Adventure 1940 64 mins Director: William Cameron Menzies
From an original scenario by Graham Greene, this is a neat crime thriller about a girl (René Ray) who witnesses a murder, becomes a suspect herself, and gets mixed up with a sleazy Soho gangster (John Mills).
Scott of the Antarctic Scott of the Antarctic
Historical drama 1948 110 mins Director: Charles Frend
This tale of adventure and daring was one of Ealing Studio’s most ambitious features, beautifully shot by Jack Cardiff with a Vaughan Williams score.
Flame in the Streets Flame in the Streets
Drama 1961 93 mins Director: Roy Ward Baker
John Mills stars as a progressive union leader who is confronted with his own internal prejudices when his daughter brings her West Indian boyfriend home.
Directed by J. Lee Thompson
The Yellow Balloon The Yellow Balloon
Thriller 1953 80 mins Director: J. Lee Thompson
A young boy is coerced into helping a fugitive in J. Lee Thompson’s taut crime thriller, set amid the bombed-out ruins of post-war London.
New
Men of Hard Skin Men of Hard Skin
Drama 2019 95 mins Director: José Celestino Campusano
A history of abuse is uncovered in this provocative and challenging coming-of-age drama from Argentina.
Pin Cushion Pin Cushion
Drama 2017 82 mins Director: Deborah Haywood
Lyn (Joanna Scanlan) and Iona (Lily Newmark) are excited to be starting afresh in a new town, but trouble comes along when Iona becomes besties with the local mean girls.
Permission Permission
Drama 2018 88 mins Director: Soheil Beiraghi
Powerful and piercing story of an Iranian Futsal star who is refused permission from her husband to attend an international tournament.
The Amazing Johnathan Documentary The Amazing Johnathan Documentary
Documentary 2019 91 mins Director: Benjamin Berman
A fascinating documentary about the famed comic-magician John Edward Szeles as he makes a surprising comeback.
Jonathan Agassi Saved My Life Jonathan Agassi Saved My Life
Documentary 2018 106 mins Director: Tomer Heymann
The private life of a renowned gay porn legend is laid bare in this intimate and insightful documentary.
The Dead Don't Die The Dead Don't Die
Horror 2019 104 mins Director: Jim Jarmusch
Bill Murray, Adam Driver and Tilda Swinton lead this star-studded, bonkers addition to the zombie canon from cult director Jim Jarmusch.