The man whose name entered the language as a synonym for organised social and economic isolation was the subject of one of the first films made in Ireland after World War 2. Captain Charles was a notorious landlord’s agent in the west of Ireland in the 1880s, and the true story of the collective action taken against him by his tenants driving him to ruin, provided the basis for director Frank Launder’s historic drama. The film features Stewart Granger in a lively performance as rebellious young tenant farmer Hugh Davin, with Cecil Parker playing the villainous Captain Boycott. Noel Purcell stars as schoolteacher Dan McGinty, who ferments revolution in the minds of his pupils with roguish charm and a Dublin accent that could be cut with a knife. Robert Donat makes a brief cameo appearance as Charles Stuart Parnell, who was then at the peak of his power in Ireland before an affair with a married woman destroyed his career. The film was shot on location in Wicklow, Westmeath and Mayo with a host of Abbey actors appearing in minor roles.oMichael Gray/Stills, Reels and Rushes.
U.K., 1947. Black and white. 93 mins.