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White Cradle Inn
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Wikipedia article
'White Cradle Inn' is a 1947 British drama film directed by Harold French and starring Madeleine Carroll, Ian Hunter, and Michael Rennie.[https://web.archive.org/web/20090114091135/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/title/57901 BFI.org] It was released as 'High Fury' in the U.S.; and filmed on location in Switzerland and at Shepperton Studios. In Switzerland after the Second World War, a French evacuee boy wants to stay there rather than return home, leading to a moral dilemma.
It is the first film to feature the self-sacrifice of cutting a rope to save others attached.
Plot
The White Cradle Inn and its estates lie in a picturesque valley in the Swiss Alps. For generations it has been the property of the family of innkeeper Magda (Madeleine Carroll), who now lives there with her philandering husband Rudolph (Michael Rennie).
The story is set during WWII, and a teenage French orphan named Roger (Michael McKeag) is billeted with the couple, as are many French children evacuated to families in the valley. When the time comes for the children to return to France, Magda is keen to adopt Roger, but Rudolph has taken a dislike to him, calling him a coward. Rudolph only finally agrees to sign the adoption papers if Magda will sign over the ownership of the Inn to him. She agrees to do this, but when the boy, anxious to prove he is no coward, urges Rudolph to take him on a climbing trip to the mountains, it is a journey that will have fatal consequences.
At the summit of an Alpine peak Roger slips. He is roped to Rudi. He catches a tree on a very steep slope. When Rudi tries to get down he too slips, and is left dangling below Roger. His weight is going to pull Roger off so he cuts the rope to save Roger, instantly falling to his death.
Cast
* Madeleine Carroll as Magda
* Ian Hunter as Anton
* Michael Rennie as Rudolph
* Anne-Marie Blanc as Louise
* Michael McKeag as Roger
* Arnold Marl as Joseph
* Willy Fueter as Bernard (Benny)
* Margarete Hoff as Maria
* Max Haufler as Frederick
* Gerhard Kempinski as President
Critical reception
In a contemporary review, 'Variety' commented that "the characters here rarely come to life" - criticising direction and performances, before concluding, "Madeleine Carroll may prove something of a draw, but the picture will need plenty of selling, both here and in America"; while more recently, 'TV Guide' wrote, "The chances for a strong drama here were excellent, but the treatment never lives up to the potential. The actors give weak characterizations, never injecting the needed emotion for the story to work. There is some good-looking Alpine scenery, but this doesn't compensate for the film's weaknesses"; whereas the 'Radio Times' noted, "Despite Ian Hunter offering Carroll gallant support as the local doctor, the performances are slightly strained, with McKeag being a weak link. But the dnouement is authentic and tense."
References
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