Back home

The Go-Between

149 votes

Producing House

British teenager Leo Colston spends a summer in the countryside, where he develops a crush on the beautiful young aristocrat Marian. Eager to impress her, Leo becomes the "go-between" for Marian, delivering secret romantic letters to Ted Burgess, a handsome neighboring farmer.

movie

Status: Released

Released Date: 1971-06-16

Runtime: 116 mins

Director: Joseph Losey

Spoken language: English

Genres: Drama, Romance

Original title: The Go-Between

Production Companies: EMI Films

Production Countries: United Kingdom

Reviews

G

Geronimo1967
Sadly, time has not been very kind to the potency of this film. In 2020s society, the overwhelming feeling of "so what?" is hard to shake off; despite some really strong performances. Dominic Guard is "Leo", just 13 when he is invited to summer at the Norfolk country home of one of his classmates. He quickly befriends his older sister "Marian" (Julie Christie) and is soon acting - innocently, at first - as her courier passing ostensibly harmless letters between herself, her fiancée "Hugh" (Edward Fox) and a swarthy tenant farmer "Ted" (Alan Bates). Guard is great as the young man who starts to put two and two together as he slowly gets caught up in this menage-à-trois whilst trying to accommodate his own sexual awakening. His own naive inquisitiveness gives his character an engaging and frustrating quality that we might all have related to, once upon a time. Losey's pace is off, though - it can be quite a slow burn at times and, unusually, I found the score from Michel Legrand quite distractingly repetitive. The cinematography showed off the locale to perfection and the dialogue from LP Hartley via Harold Pinter succinctly demonstrates class distinction and prejudice well.
2023-05-29

Recommendations

Clay
2.6

Clay

2008-03-30

Adaptation of the book by David Almond, set in 1960s Tyneside. Two 14-year-old boys team up against

Mr. Holmes
3.2

Mr. Holmes

2015-06-19

In 1947, long-retired and near the end of his life, Sherlock Holmes grapples with an unreliable memo

The Summer I Turned 15
2.7

The Summer I Turned 15

1976-03-04

The story Peter is telling the about a special summer, when he is invited over to summer holiday fro

Dutch II: Angel's Revenge
0

Dutch II: Angel's Revenge

2024-01-18

"Dutch II" seamlessly continues the success of its predecessor, "Dutch" (2020), delving into the com

He and She
0.5

He and She

1969-09-28

Mysterious romance involving an uninhibited woman and a photographer, shot in strange modernist inte

The Lost Bus
3.6

The Lost Bus

2025-09-19

A determined father risks everything to rescue a dedicated teacher and her students from a raging wi

The Girl Robinson Crusoe
2.9

The Girl Robinson Crusoe

1957-01-25

A thirteen-year-old girl whose mother suddenly dies during the birth of her second child is forced t

South
0.5

South

1959-11-24

A made-for-television play about an exiled Polish Army lieutenant faced with his darkest secret.

Jumalan myrsky
2.4

Jumalan myrsky

1940-11-23

Kilian Melker, heir to a trading house, becomes head of a large enterprise on which the entire futur

Koskenlaskijan morsian
3

Koskenlaskijan morsian

1937-03-28

Tornionjokilaakso at the end of the 19th century, Paloniemi's landlord Heikki tries to get out of hi

The Hunger
3.3

The Hunger

1983-04-29

Five-thousand-year-old vampire Miriam promises her lovers the gift of eternal life. When John, her c

Smiles of a Summer Night
3.7

Smiles of a Summer Night

1955-12-26

Early in the 20th century, middle-aged lawyer Fredrik Egerman and his young wife, Anne, have still n

Kiss of the Spider Woman
3.5

Kiss of the Spider Woman

1985-07-26

The story of two radically different men thrown together in a Latin American prison cell. One is Val

War and Peace
3.4

War and Peace

1956-08-21

The love story of young Countess Natasha Rostova and Count Pierre Bezukhov is interwoven with the Gr

Peter's Friends
3.3

Peter's Friends

1992-09-18

After inheriting a large country estate from his late father, Peter invites his friends from college

Confetti Harvest
3.2

Confetti Harvest

2014-09-18

The young Katelijne grows up in a strict Protestant peasant family. As the only girl between six bro

The Snow Walker
3.5

The Snow Walker

2003-09-11

A bush pilot in nothern Canada who with the aid of modernity thinks he can handle it all & knows it

Ugetsu
4

Ugetsu

1953-03-26

In 16th century Japan, peasants Genjuro and Tobei sell their earthenware pots to a group of soldiers

Boy A
3.6

Boy A

2008-07-23

Freed after a lengthy term in a juvenile detention center, convicted child killer Jack Burridge find

Silk
2.9

Silk

2007-09-14

French silkworm trader Hervé is married to the beautiful Hélène. When an outbreak of disease ravages