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The Silence of Dean Maitland

silenceofdeanmaitland

The Silence of Dean Maitland (Ken G. Hall, 1934) Cinesound Productions, prod. Ken G. Hall, wr. Gayne Dexter, Edmund Barclay from play by Maxwell Gray, dp Frank Hurley; John Longden (Dean Maitland), Charlotte Francis (Alma Lee), Jocelyn Howarth, Bill Kerr (Cyril Maitland Jnr); clergyman murders the father of his pregnant lover and then allows his best friend to be convicted for the crime; 97 min.

That's Bill Kerr (1922-2014) as the Dean's son. He's blind, explaining why he's not a bit worried about his Dad holding a gun. This was Bill's second film, after Harmony Row (F.W. Thring, 1933). He is superb in Razorback (Russell Mulcahy, 1984).

With a budget of £10,000, the film was shot at Cinesound's Bondi studio and on locations in Sydney and near Camden. Shortly before it was due for release, the censors demanded cuts in an opening scene where Alma swims on a deserted beach and in the crucial scene where she seduces the rather willing clergyman. Aware of the value of such free publicity, Cinesound mounted a loud public appeal against the cuts and received much press comment in the film's favour. The censor finally lifted his demand for cuts in the love scene, but a brief shot in which Alma's towel slips while she is changing out of her bathing costume was removed. Pike & Cooper: 165.

References and Links

Hall, Ken G. 1980, Australian Film: The Inside Story, Summit, Sydney; second edition: the first edition was entitled Directed by Ken G. Hall, 1977.

Pike, Andrew & Ross Cooper 1998, Australian Film 1900-1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, revised edition, Oxford University Press, Melbourne.


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