Seventy Deadly Pills
Seventy Deadly Pills
| 01 January 1963 (USA)
Seventy Deadly Pills Trailers

A small boy, Dickie Goodwin, finds some strychnine pills mixed with sweets in a stolen car left in a deserted garage. With them he buys his way into the Rocket Gang. Brian, the leader, shares out the pills for swaps next day. One of the gang eats hers and collapses. The police frantically search for the pills and a broadcast appeal is made. Brian hears this and reaches the gang at Battersea funfair just in time to save them.

Reviews
JohnHowardReid

This movie finds ace director Pat Jackson reduced to shooting a Children's Film Foundation feature. Fortunately, as usual, his many friends have rallied around. The cast is one of the most extensive ever in this league with Leslie Dwyer, Harry Fowler, Warren Mitchell (especially delightful as a bullying but not overbright crook) and Ian Fleming (incorrectly given as Flemming in the film's credits) all providing delightful cameos. Jackson has made full use of his extensive documentary know-how to film extensively on natural locations – often very effectively, as in the opening chase with the cameras actually mounted in both the pursued and pursuing cars, plus the overhead shots in the garage, the dingy streets in which the boys roam and live, plus the climax at Battersea Park Fun Fair. The film moves at a smart clip and rates as one of the most well-made of all Children's Film Foundation features. Although Jackson's script is perhaps just a little too clever and a little too literary to be wholly convincing, (and also it's a bit hard to believe that the children would not gobble up all the sweets straight away), Jackson has drawn some likable (if a little strained) character studies from the children. The film editing with its elaborate cross-cutting is also far more stylish than the average CFF effort, while the photography, music scoring and sound effects are absolutely first-class. Made at Marlebone Studios.

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