O Segredo de uma Sentença

This is a brilliant film. If you've ever heard of this case but not identified with it, or think that justice is always done in court, WATCH THIS FILM. I watched it and struggled not to cry- even as a fictional story it would be moving, but the fact that it is real makes it even more poignant. The shots are brilliant too and this makes it one of the best political films I have ever seen. This film will force you to rethink your views on capital punishment.

In the 50's, in the post-war London, Derek Bentley (Christopher Eccleston) is a mentally retarded teenager with mentality of a child. He lives with his family and spends most of his time inside his room, with his cats, dogs and a turtle. When he buys a compact vinyl in a store with his sister, he befriends the delinquent teenager Chris Craig (Paul Reynolds), whose older brother is a notorious thief, and dresses like American gangsters. This friendship leads Derek to one of the most famous cases of unfair trial of the England history.

"Let Him Have It" is a 1991 film based on a true story of a mentally deficient nineteen-year-old teenager that was sentenced to the gallows in 1953 for a crime that he did not commit. The film shows manipulation of the testimonies, a strange behavior of the judge that gives directions to the jury and disregards the request of merci from the jury. The performances are top-notch, highlighting Christopher Eccleston, but this film is very unpleasant. In Brazil, "Let Him Have It" was released o VHS only and it was worthy watched it again after so many years. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "O Segredo de Uma Sentença" ("The Secreto of One Sentence")

I did not know about this case before I watched this film, but the synopsis on the back of the video case was so compelling I had to rent it. I did not expect to be emotionally involved but it was hard to keep from shouting at the TV screen that it's unfair. The system portrayed seemed almost hellbent on sending Derek to the gallows, guilty or not. Even when evidence seem tainted or appeared to cast doubts on the veracity of some of the testimonies, the only cry ringing out was that a cop was killed and someone's blood must be spilled in revenge. It is chilling to know that sometimes justice can be blinded when emotions are involved, showing how important it must be to fully understand the implications before imposing any penalties which cannot be reversed even if desired.

This is a very convincing film of the life of Derek Bentley and his eventual execution. 1950s Britain is just beginning to emerge from the years of post-War austerity with all of the milk bars, pop records and teddy boy youth culture showing a new, malign confidence. The undercurrent is definitely youth crime gone wild. But is Derek Bentley really one of the gang?

Christopher Eccleston is absolutely brilliant playing Bentley, and truly captures the inner torment and diffidence of a young man suffering from years of epilepsy and failure at school. Bentley is clearly not normal and probably more impressionable than most people of his age – this is the essence of this tragic story. He wants to be like everyone else but stupidly chooses the wrong people – or do they choose him?

You are never sure whether Bentley's friend Chris Craig (the brilliant Paul Reynolds) is a nasty piece of work or maybe someone else led astray, this time by his truly monstrous, menacing older brother Niven Craig (Mark McGann) who he sees receiving 10 years for armed resistance to police arrest. Who is Craig - is he Pinkie in Brighton Rock (Boulting 1947), Jimmy Hanley in the Blue Lamp (Dearden, 1950) or one of the famous five with a gun?

After his brother's trial, Chris lies down at night and then – rather poignantly and in a nice little flourish from director Peter Medak – lays down his handgun on his bedside table, finding a gap amongst his toy cars, trams and aeroplanes. Perhaps he's just a naïve little kid after all.

When the gang goes to the cinema what else would they watch but a Jimmy Cagney gangster movie? Maybe if they'd watched the Blue Lamp instead they would have been warned off.

Anyway, Bentley clearly did not murder the policeman on the rooftop - that was Craig (some say it was a policeman's bullet gone astray). Bentley was executed for a crime he did not commit, pure and simple.

Good, haunting musical score by Michael Kamen.

Derek Bentley a partly retarded youth due to an injury as a child in a bombing raid in World War 11 becomes involved with Christopher Craig and other anti-social misfits called "teddy boys" during the early 1950's.

In November 1952 Craig, with Bentley under his influence decide to rob a confectionery business in Croydon, London but are observed climbing onto the roof of the building and are reported to the police.

When the police arrive and apprehend the youths, Craig opens fire on the officers from a concealed gun killing P.C. Miles, although Bentley has already surrendered beforehand to Detective Fairfax, already wounded by Craig in an earlier part of the shootout.

At the following trial of the two youths for murder, the already biased Lord Chief Justice Goddard is determined to exact the supreme vengeance on the perpetrators of this crime. Craig who fired the shot killing the Police Constable is detained at Her Majesty's pleasure being a juvenile under the age of 16 years. Bentley aged 19 and considered an adult is sentenced to death as an accomplice.

Despite a public outcry over Bentley's fate, and petitions made to save him from the gallows, the Home Secretary Sir David Maxwell Fyfe refuses to grant him a reprieve,and Bentley is hanged on 28th January 1953.

The great irony of this case is that the Home Secretary was the successful chief British Prosecutor of the Nazi War Criminals in 1946 in Nuremburg but tarnished his reputation in a most disgraceful manner in the way he treated the semi-illiterate Derek Bentley who was made the condemned victim for his part in this crime because the real killer could not face the supreme penalty.

The other most shameful and disgusting aspect of this case is that it took over 45 years for the unforgiving self righteous British law courts and representations to the various Governments of the day, to finally overturn the conviction of Derek Bentley, although both his parents had died beforehand, but at least give the rest of his surviving family the satisfaction of knowing that his sentence was totally improper and unjust.

Christopher Eccleston gives a fine performance as Derek Bentley, along with Tom Courtenay as Bentley's father, who wages a relentless but futile attempt to save his son from his fate. The rest of the supporting cast is great.

A must see for those who think justice is blind and fair to everyone.