The Go-Between

I think I'm down to one last movie that I recorded during the spring airings of Two for One on TCM that's getting its second showing during the autum re-run of the series. This time, the guest co-host is director Todd Haynes, and the first movie he selected is The Go-Between, airing tonight at 8:00 PM.

The movie flashes back and forth between time periods, which I found rather confusing as there were cars that looked like they were from at least the 1930s if not later, while other scenes had what looked like Edwardian fashion and a relatively young character who had a visible war wound from the Boer War. In fact, a reading of the synopsis suggests that the main action takes place around 1900, while the "50 years later" portions are presumably set in the early 1950s as the film is based on a book first published in 1953.

Leo Colston (Dominic Guard), is an adolescent boy who is being raised by a single mother after the death of his father. She's apparently been scrimping and saving, as Leo is able to go to a boarding school together with a much wealthier kid, Marcus Maudsley. Indeed, Marcus has invited Leo to visit his family over the summer as they live in one of those great country houses in Norfolk. Marcus has a sister of marriageable age, Marian (Julie Christie), and the hope is that she'll marry the class-suitable Viscount Trimingham (Edward Fox). Leo sees Marian, and as he's just entering puberty and is beginning to think of girls in a way he doesn't quite understand, he naturally develops a crush on Marian.

For Leo and Marcus, the summer is setting up to be a series of adventures, such as going for a swim in the lake and finding that Ted Burgess (Alan Bates), the farmer who lives across the lake, is already swimming. Apparently they can't swim together because of those class differences, and Marcus is almost snotty about making certain the proper class relationships are upheld. In any case, the adventures come to a screeching halt when Marcus comes down with a case of the measles, forcing him to be quarantined.

Leo, being left by himself, tries to make his own adventures, with one being jumping down a haystack on Burgess' farm. Unfortunately, Leo hits an axe at the base of the haystack, cutting himself badly enough to need first aid. Ted treats Leo, in exchange for Leo's taking a letter back to Marian for her eyes only. Leo would also like Ted to teach him about sex, although this being the early 20th century, it's not phrased quite so directly.

Leo gives Marian Ted's letter, and she actually writes back to Ted, having Leo deliver the letter thanks to those class differences and Marian not being able to be seen having any business with Ted. That, and the fact that she eventually gets officially engaged to Trimingham. Leo discovers that Marian and Ted are writing love letters to each other, and that only makes things worse.

The Go-Between has an interesting premise, although I have to say that I felt the movie was extremely slowly paced. It also doesn't help how the action from time to time comes to the present day. The cinematography is well done and the Norfolk locations scenes are lovely to look at. Also, the cast does a good acting job. But overall, the script (ah, it's Harold Pinter again, back after having made a royal mess of Accident) makes The Go-Between an aggravating movie to watch.