Let Him Have It is a 1991 British film directed by Peter Medak and starring Christopher Eccleston, Paul Reynolds, and Tom Courtenay. The film tells the true story of Derek Bentley, a young man with severe learning disabilities who was wrongly convicted of murder and eventually hanged in 1953.
The film begins with Bentley's arrest and follows the events leading up to his trial and eventual execution. Bentley is portrayed as a gentle and naive young man who is easily influenced by others and doesn't fully understand the consequences of his actions. At the time of his arrest, Bentley was 19 years old and had an IQ of just 66.
The film also focuses on the relationship between Bentley and his friend, Christopher Craig, who was just 16 years old at the time of the crime. Craig was the one who actually fired the shots that killed the police officer, but Bentley was charged with murder due to the "joint enterprise" law, which held both men responsible for the crime.
Throughout the film, we see the injustice of Bentley's case as he is denied a fair trial and is ultimately sentenced to death despite having played no direct role in the murder. The film highlights the flaws in the justice system and the tragedy of Bentley's case, which has been described as one of the most controversial in British legal history.
Let Him Have It is a poignant and powerful film that tells a shocking true story of injustice and the consequences of a flawed legal system. It is a must-see for anyone interested in the criminal justice system and the fight for justice.
LET HIM HAVE IT
And so he goes to his death. He also apologised to the families of both PC Miles and Bentley for his actions, as well as his own family for the press intrusion they had suffered over the years. Christopher Craig, by then aged 62 born May 1936 , issued a statement welcoming the pardon for Bentley, stating that "his innocence has now been proved". Retrieved 3 April 2011. However, it is almost surprising that his father is unable to protect or control his son, although this element does give the story much of its power.
LET HIM HAVE IT says a lot about popular culture. His father realizes something is wrong when Derek gives out stolen Air Force cigarettes as a gift. If Movieguide® is useful to you, please take one minute to keep it online and growing. Derek Bentley was one of the most unfortunate men to suffer the death penalty in Britain. In many ways it jars with the bleeding heart attitude that makes up the rest of the film.
Gangland: the case of Bentley and Craig. Minutes later 16 year old Craig shot a policeman dead. On the linguistic investigation of authorship", in S. The campaign was initially led by Bentley's parents until their deaths in the 1970s, after which the drive to clear Bentley's name was led by his sister Iris. Did you think it was a fair sentence? New York: Bantam Books.
I did not expect to be emotionally involved but it was hard to keep from shouting at the TV screen that it's unfair. Two frightened boys are cornered on a rooftop by a policeman. He later made a number of statements to police officers sitting with him in hospital, displaying a hatred of the police and a total lack of remorse at what he had done. The play, with an introduction by Miller, was included in a 1980 book Theatre in Education — Four Secondary School Programmes. No matter what arguments can be made in its favor, if the law makes a mistake, an innocent life is lost. However I do have a problem with LET HIM HAVE IT and that is in the portrayal of Christopher Craig.
Let Him Have It movie review & film summary (1992)
Poor unfortunate Christopher , what chance did he have in life? To Encourage the Others. The system portrayed seemed almost hellbent on sending Derek to the gallows, guilty or not. Let Him Have It is equal parts legal drama and character study, and is led by an understated but thoughtful performance from Eccleston as Bentley, a murder suspect with diminished capabilities. Dad, Help Me Please: The Story of Derek Bentley. LET HIM HAVE IT is a smooth, cool presentation of Derek's life--a fascinating story that holds the audience's attention right up the very end. Handbook of Firearms and Ballistics: Examining and Interpreting Forensic Evidence. After the subsequent broadcast of the To Encourage the Others, directed by Contrary to Yallop's claims, none of the police officers present was armed at the moment when PC Miles was shot.
Not long before the rooftop shootout, Derek spies a beautiful blonde in a record store. This is where Bentley screams " Let him have it Chris " , hence the title. Over the years the conviction has grown that a harmless young man, mentally incapable of responsibility for his own actions, got into the wrong place at the wrong time and said tragically the wrong words. The Bentley case has stirred uneasily in the British psyche ever since, refusing to rest. A later Secondly, there was controversy over the existence and meaning of Bentley's alleged instruction to Craig, "let him have it, Chris". When Chris and Derek go to trial, the pressure is on to make an example out of them. The most glaring example of injustice is the case of Derek Bentley and Christopher Craig.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible. Seven years after the film was made and after numerous unsuccessful campaigns to get Derek Bentley a full pardon, his conviction was eventually overturned by the Court of Appeal on 30 July 1998, one year after Iris's death. Plot summary In 1950s England, slow-witted Derek Bentley falls in with a group of petty criminals led by Chris Craig, a teenager with a fondness for American gangster movies. Notwithstanding this, he was able to tell the first police officer who reached him that he wished he had "killed the fucking lot".
However, is Derek telling Chris to shoot the officer, or to hand over the gun? Craig's revolver was by now empty and he jumped or dived off the roof, suffering a fractured spine, breast bone and left forearm. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. What you listen to, watch, and read has power. One of the officers, A group of uniformed police officers arrived and were sent onto the roof. Further, Bentley's counsel argued that even if he had said the words, it could not be proven that Bentley had intended the words to mean the informal meaning of "shoot him, Chris" instead of the literal meaning of "give him the gun, Chris". Bentley and Craig were caught breaking into a warehouse in the 1950s.
He fired twice at Craig but missed, Craig having fired at him. We need your support. In keeping with the 1950s time period, a number of characters are seen smoking. Instead we see a revenge filled Fairfax growling at Craig with the heavy hint that the criminal was thrown off the roof by the detective. Is any crime deserving of a death sentence or should it be abolished like it now is in the U. They were tried by jury before the At the time of the burglary attempt and Miles's death, murder was a capital offence in England and Wales. In 1950s England, slow-witted Derek Bentley falls in with a group of petty criminals led by Chris Craig, a teenager with a fondness for American gangster movies.
The policeman, cool and collected, reaches out a hand and asks the boy to hand the gun over. What other movies have you seen that are based on true stories? His parents reported that in a childhood accident he had broken his nose and since then he had three :102 Bentley was sent to Kingswood Training School, Bristol on 27 October 1948. Evidently, the Derek Bentley case remains well-known in Great Britain, even 40 years later. Retrieved 19 July 2018. Thirdly, there was disagreement over whether Bentley was fit to stand trial in light of his mental capacity.
