In 1950s England, sailor Harold Guppy arrives in a small seaside town looking for his estranged brother. After a brief reunion, Harold finds a room for rent in the house of Mrs. Beasley, her meek husband and their teenage daughter, Joyce. It's clear that Harold has a troubled past, but his future is about to get more perilous yet. Despite the rosy surface, Harold soon finds himself in a tawdry sexual tug-of-war that won't end well.
Acting
Julie Walters transforms maternal warmth into something skin-crawling.
Direction
Goodhew weaponizes British politeness until it snaps.
Director
Philip Goodhew
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on a real 1950s tabloid scandal that scandalized repressed Britain.
Rupert Graves reportedly needed extensive downtime between takes—Walters' intensity was genuinely destabilizing.
CA
US
