This film is very engaging and works on a number of levels. It's about Ruth Ellis, the last female to be hanged in the UK and all the events leading up to that hanging. The film does not supply all the answers, rather it raises a number of questions about how the system and society contributed to this woman's tragic life, crime and ultimate death. My grandfather was one of many thousands who signed a petition for the commute of the sentence to life imprisonment.
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I wanted a permanent copy and to this fulfills this wish.
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thank you so much
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This film tells the story of the doomed relationship between bar hostess Ruth Ellis (Miranda Richardson) and her younger car-racing playboy lover David Blakley (Rupert Everett) and Ruth's subsequent execution for David's murder. Ruth Ellis is most famous for being the last woman to be hanged in Britain, and one can't help feeling that was an injustice after seeing this film. For once, the viewer cannot sympathise with the victim as he his portrayed by Everett to be an abusive, spoilt and immature man. Ruth is clearly unstable from drinking, taking medication and struggling to makes end meet with no help from Blakley. These factors are further exasperated by the tempestuous love/hate relationship between the couple and the immense jealousy that dogs their romance. The film is well acted and has that British sorry look of faded 1950s glamour of the time. It's a good social commentary on the subject of capital punishment and the abuse of women by their partners. The only disappointment of the film is that it was a true story.Read full review
A biography of the last few years of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in the UK and her stormy relationship with David Blakey the man she killed. I think that the trial (which isn't covered) should have been added to the film as we are left 'hanging' somewhat with only a letter written by Ruth before her execution to give us any idea of what she thought and felt at the end of her life. Excellent central performances though.
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