THE BEST OF BRITISH: THE MIND BENDERS (1962 12 b/w)

On itv gold 1, your next "Best of British" presentation stars Peter Finch and Rita Tushingham in the 1964 adaptation of the novel by Edna O'Brien, "Girl With Green Eyes". Here on itv gold 2, we're pleased to bring you a rare British gem, as Dirk Bogarde and Mary Ure are joined by John Clements and Wendy Craig in Basil Dearden's "The Mind Benders". Here's the storyline: "A British scientist is discovered to have been passing information to the Communists, then kills himself. Another scientist decides that they might have brainwashed him by a sensory deprivation technique, but he doesn't know if someone really can be convinced to act against their strongest feelings. So, he agrees to be the subject in an experiment in which others will try to make him stop loving his wife." Wendy Craig was to be reunited with Bogarde in her next film, Joseph Losey's "The Servant" (1963), already playing on itv gold 1. And if you're a fan of the director's work, you'll be pleased to hear that we shall be featuring more of it in the coming weeks, particularly the film which also stars Bogarde and Stanley Baker, "Accident" from 1967.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• The
• Mind
• Benders
• Thriller
• Drama
• Dirk
• Bogarde
• Mary
• Ure
• John
• Clements
• Wendy
• Craig
• Experiment
• Sensory
• Deprivation
• Brainwashing
• Spy
• Psychology

[itvnow]

OK, @wwwonderful - typographical error, which we hadn't noticed in 9 months! We'll amend! In the meantime, those of us who upload are so pleased that so many enjoyed this fairly rare Dirk Bogarde movie. Thanks for all the comments.

[pumblechook7]

Those of you who are observant will have noticed that at the beginning of the film, the guy with the beard jumps out of the right hand side of the train. When the train has stopped, everybody else jumps out of the left hand side of the train, and finds the body on the left hand side of the track.

[Andy34HN]

From 1:03:15 to 1:03:23; could one of those houseboats be 'The Astoria', David Gilmour's floating studio?

[Londonfogey]

Thank you SO much...great to see old luvvie Dirk at his hysterical best! I think the early 60s was one of the best periods for British films - crisp black and white widescreen films with lots of location work, great actors and good writing - before the flower power brigade took over in the late sixties.

[Fingalful]

Excellent drama. Those films film me with nostagia for the Britain that was. In spite of the films theme it reminds me of happy days when I was a young schoolboy. Thanks.

[crzxr]

Thank you. The Bestt of Brittish - certtainly! Wasn'tt Dirk Bogarde in a film simply ttitled 'The Benders'? I tthink itt may have been called 'Victtim', acttually.

[wwwonderful]

why the TT in British?

[valtojos]

great find, thank you.

[Grifiki]

"Another post-murder conclusion?"

[cathain7]

good drama, thank-you for posting this.