Sapphire
The sensational story of a girl who didn't belong.
1959 | 92m | English
Popularity: 2 (history)
| Director: | Basil Dearden |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Janet Green |
| Staring: |
| Two Scotland Yard detectives investigate the murder of a young woman of mixed race who had been passing for white. As they interview a spate of suspects -- including the girl's white boyfriend and his disapproving parents -- the detectives wade through a stubbornly entrenched sludge of racism and bigotry. | |
| Release Date: | Nov 02, 1959 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Basil Dearden |
| Writer: | Janet Green |
| Genres: | Crime, Mystery, Thriller |
| Keywords | london, england, scotland yard, police, intrigue, murder investigation, racial prejudice, mixed race, police procedural, metropolitan police, passing for white |
| Production Companies | The Rank Organisation, Artna Films Ltd. |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $0 |
| Updates |
Updated: Aug 03, 2024 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Nigel Patrick | Superintendent Robert Hazard |
| Michael Craig | Inspector Phil Learoyd |
| Yvonne Mitchell | Mildred |
| Paul Massie | David Harris |
| Bernard Miles | Ted Harris |
| Olga Lindo | Mrs. Harris |
| Earl Cameron | Dr. Robbins |
| Gordon Heath | Paul Slade |
| Barbara Steele | Student |
| Peter Vaughan | Detective Whitehead (uncredited) |
| Yvonne Buckingham | Sapphire Robbins |
| Jocelyn Britton | Patsy |
| Robert Adams | Horace Big Cigar |
| Desmond Llewelyn | Police Constable |
| Fenella Fielding | Lingerie Shop Manageress |
| Susan Stranks | Student |
| Freda Bamford | Sgt. Cook |
| Rupert Davies | Ferris |
| Orlando Martins | Barman |
| Harry Baird | Johnnie Fiddle |
| Grace Arnold | Sapphire's Landlady |
| Thomas Baptiste | Man on the Street |
| Victor Brooks | Police Sgt. |
| Basil Dignam | Doctor Burgess |
| Dorothy Gordon | Lily |
| Nora Gordon | Newsagent's Wife |
| Lucy Griffiths | Johnnie Fiddle's Landlady |
| Vanda Hudson | Girl at Tulip Club |
| Dan Jackson | Nightclub Owner |
| Philip Lowrie | Student |
| Bartlett Mullins | Newsagent |
| Philip Ray | Mr. Young |
| Lloyd Reckord | Pianist in International Club |
| John Richardson | Student |
| Richard Vernon | Doctor at Crime Scene |
| Christopher Witty | Boy |
| Dolores Mantez | Student (International Club) |
| Anthony Singleton | Bit Part |
| Geremy Phillips | Youth |
| Joan Hooley | Woman in Street |
| Boscoe Holder | Dancer in Nightclub |
| George Curtis | Police Constable |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Basil Dearden | Director |
| Carmen Dillon | Art Direction |
| John Dankworth | Musician |
| Lukas Heller | Additional Dialogue |
| Janet Green | Writer |
| Julie Harris | Costume Design |
| Philip Green | Music |
| Arthur Ridout | Sound Editor |
| Bill Daniels | Sound Recordist |
| David W. Orton | Assistant Director |
| John D. Guthridge | Editor |
| H. A. R. Thomson | Camera Operator |
| Dudley Messenger | Sound Recordist |
| Tilly Day | Continuity |
| Dickie Bamber | Standby Property Master |
| Harry Waxman | Director of Photography |
| W.T. Partleton | Makeup Artist |
| Arthur Alcott | Production Controller |
| Harry Fairbairn | Sound Assistant |
| Douglas Pierce | Production Manager |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Michael Relph | Producer |
| Earl St. John | Executive Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 8 | 17 | 3 |
| 2024 | 5 | 8 | 15 | 4 |
| 2024 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 5 |
| 2024 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 4 |
| 2024 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 4 |
| 2024 | 9 | 4 | 7 | 2 |
| 2024 | 10 | 5 | 9 | 2 |
| 2024 | 11 | 6 | 15 | 3 |
| 2024 | 12 | 5 | 9 | 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | 6 | 14 | 3 |
| 2025 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2025 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
Trending Position
When the eponymous girl is found murdered, it falls to "Supt. Hazard" (Nigel Patrick) and his sidekick "Learoyd" (Michael Craig) to get to the bottom of things. There seems a genuine sense of shock amongst her friends, her landlady and her fiancée "David" (Paul Massie) and his family but when her br ... other, a doctor, arrives the whole investigation takes on an whole new complexion. What now ensues in a rather unsophisticated police drama, admittedly, but the social and racial aspects of life in London in the late 1950s are writ large - a poignant and frankly rather shameful indictment of attitudes amongst people of various social classes who allow bigotry to remain an accepted part of day-to-day life - even amongst those looking into the crime. Patrick is solid here, as is the victim's would-be father-in-law Bernard Miles ("Ted") and though the denouement has shades of Agatha Christie to it, it's still quite a well paced, compelling and uncomfortable, watch.