Up the Junction (film)

Up the Junction
Original British 1968 quad film poster
Directed by	Peter Collinson
Screenplay by	Roger Smith
Based on	Up the Junction by Nell Dunn
Produced by	John Brabourne Anthony Havelock-Allan
Starring	Dennis Waterman Suzy Kendall Adrienne Posta Maureen Lipman Liz Fraser
Cinematography	Arthur Lavis
Edited by	John Trumper
Music by	Mike Hugg Manfred Mann
Color process	Technicolor
Production companies	BHE Films Crasto
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	25 January 1968 (1968-01-25) (UK)
Running time	119 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Up the Junction is a 1968 British "kitchen sink" drama film, directed by Peter Collinson and starring Dennis Waterman, Suzy Kendall, Adrienne Posta, Maureen Lipman and Liz Fraser.^[1] It is based on the 1963 book of the same name by Nell Dunn and was adapted by Roger Smith.^[2][3] The film's soundtrack was by Manfred Mann.^[4] The film followed Ken Loach's BBC TV adaptation of 1965, but returned to the original book.^[5] It generated less controversy and impact than the Loach version.^[6]

Plot summary[]

The film is set in London in the 1960s.

The film begins with a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce leaving a large house... it then moves across the Thames near Battersea Power Station, where a young woman gets out of the car and walks away alone.

Wealthy young heiress Polly Dean (Suzy Kendall) gives up a privileged life in Chelsea and moves to a working-class community in Battersea, where she takes a job in Macrindles confectionery factory in an attempt to distance herself from her moneyed upbringing and make her own living. On the factory floor everyone is singing and all are friendly, but perhaps somewhat unhygienic - smoking as they work on the sweets. The other girls mainly discuss men and sex.

She is asked to join the others in the pub, The Pavilion. They get the local boys to buy them drinks. She declines a lift home on a motorbike. Some are heading "up the junction". Polly walks home.

The next day Polly arrives at Clapham Junction railway station with a suitcase. She is finding a flat of her own. The agent thinks the flat is not good enough for her. She takes it anyway. She goes to the local market and buys a single banana, and eats it on a chair outside a junk shop. The assistant Pete (Dennis Waterman) tells her it is not a cafe but when the owner (Alfie Bass) comes out she says she needs furniture so he becomes more friendly. She buys an armchair and a sofa... and also finds a kitten. Pete gives her a lift back to her flat and unloads the furniture. He asks her on a date. He presumes she wants to go to the West End but she says she wants to walk around the streets of Battersea.

She becomes friends with two working-class sisters, Sylvie (Maureen Lipman) and Rube (Adrienne Posta). Rube becomes pregnant and has a traumatic illegal abortion. Tragedy then strikes when Rube's boyfriend Terry (Michael Gothard) is killed in a motorcycle accident.

Meanwhile, Polly begins a relationship with Pete. The two go on a trip to the seaside, travelling by an E-type Jaguar that Pete tells Polly he has hired for the weekend. They argue in their hotel, it becoming clear that Pete envies Polly's access to an easy life, and is frustrated by her rejection of a wealthy lifestyle. His argument with her points out her ability to choose, whereas most people do not have this choice. The argument ends the relationship. He storms off and is caught speeding in the Jaguar which, it transpires, was stolen.

In court Polly and her friends see Pete sentenced to six months' imprisonment. Polly pulls strings to see him in the lock-up for a final word before he is driven away to jail.

Main cast[]

Critical reception[]

In The New York Times, Renata Adler wrote of "the latest in the series of British working-class color films that seem to come from British directors with the regularity of episodes from "Our Gal Sunday," and it is by far the best of them. A lot of things are wrong with it, but a lot is going for it, too." Of the performances, she singled out the "very talented" Suzy Kendall in a challenging role, "a really beautiful piece of characterization by Dennis Waterman," and "strong" support from Adrienne Posta, Maureen Lipman and Michael Gothard. Peter Collinson's direction was also noted for his "well-shot scenes of Battersea and of the candy factory."^[3]

References[]

External links[]

• Up the Junction at the British Film Institute
• Up the Junction at IMDb

This article related to a British film of the 1960s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by .

• v
• t