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I Start Counting
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Wikipedia article
'I Start Counting' is a 1970 British coming-of-age drama thriller film directed by David Greene and starring Jenny Agutter and Bryan Marshall. Its plot follows a teenaged girl who comes to suspect that her adult foster brother is a serial killer. It was based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Audrey Erskine Lindop.
The film was moderately controversial because of Agutter's squeaky-clean image and youth (16, playing a 14-year-old), when coupled with the film's sexual content.[http://www.britmovie.co.uk/2008/08/27/I-Start-Counting-1969 Britmovie.co.uk] It also included Simon Ward's first major film role.
Young Phil Collins makes a little appearance as an ice cream vendor.
Plot
Wynne Kinch (Agutter), an adopted 14-year-old girl, has a crush on her 32-year-old stepbrother, George (Bryan Marshall). While spying on George in the bathroom, Wynne notices he has several scratches on his back, and finds a jumper she made for him thrown in the rubbish, with blood on it; this leads her to suspect him of being the serial killer of several local teenage girls, who is still at large. Despite this belief, Wynne continues to have romantic sexual fantasies about George, and dreams of marrying him when she comes of legal age.
Throughout the film, she regularly visits the house she previously lived in with her family.
Later on, Wynne hides in George's minibus, thinking she may catch him in the act of murder, but instead discovers he is having an affair with a mentally fragile woman (Lana Morris), whose blood was on the discarded jumper after she had slashed her wrists in a suicide attempt.
Wynne's best friend Corinne (Clare Sutcliffe) teases her about her crush on George and, when the family goes out on a picnic, Corinne flirts with him; he gets angry at her for acting like a "pathetic little mini-tart", and pins her down roughly on the ground. Corinne runs off, and later telephones Wynne to tell her she will stay out all night with an unnamed boy who, she says, they both know. Wynne worries about her friend, goes searching for her at her former home, and finds Corinne's dead body. She then comes across the real murderer; a bus conductor whom Wynne and Corinne see regularly on their journey when they go on the bus and was the man who Corinne was out with. He chases Wynne and accidentally pushes her into the river nearby. While helping her out, he seems to break down in distress, at which point the police arrive.
The film ends with Wynne and George watching their old house being demolished.
Cast
Production
Filming
The film was shot at Bray Studios in Berkshire and on location around Bracknell. The sets were designed by the art director Brian Eatwell.Music
The theme song, also titled "I Start Counting", was sung by Lindsey Moore.References
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