Diagonaldi Very well executed

Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Kaelan Mccaffrey Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

MartinHafer "Turn the Key Softly" is an interesting film and well worth your time. It's the story about three women who are released from prison on the same day. It follows each through their first day out and is a very melancholy story...one that will NOT be leaving you happy! There...you've been warned.The three ladies (one of which is a very young Joan Collins) all leave prison and the story clearly illustrates that you just can't go back to your old life. In one case, it's because family no longer want anything to do with one of the women. And, in another case, one returns to her crook boyfriend...something which clearly is NOT in her best interests. As for the final one, her story is a bit hard to categorize other than she likes nice things.Overall, this is a very good film for three reasons. It's best quality is that it's unique in so many ways...a major plus. It also has some terrific acting as well as brilliant cinematography--particularly late in the film during a chase sequence. Overall, not a lot to complain about apart from the depressing nature of some of the stories.

a.lampert What an entertaining film! Glamour, thrills, romance, sentimentality. This is a British black and white film noir, if that's the correct description to give it, but it give a clue in the night time robbery scene, the stark prison scenes at the beginning, the clandestine meetings the leading players have in alleyways, etc. The stars all act well, particularly Kathleen Harrison as an old lag who on her release in reunited with Johnny, her little dog, who plays as leading a part as the humans here. Joan Collins in an early glamour role is as striking then as she is now over sixty years later. The leading actress is Yvonne Mitchell and her lover is the villainous Terence Morgan, a part he was adept at playing in the 1950's. I didn't want it to end, and maybe, that's the secret of a great movie, leave 'em wanting more. Films today are often too long and that's why they are rarely great any more. There is a scene where a woman very briefly walks down the stairs past Yvonne Mitchell, and I could swear it was Prunella Scales (from Fawlty Towers) but it was so brief and she's not listed.

howardmorley I awarded this film 7/10 and am sad that none of the heritage vintage film TV channels have not seen fit to transmit this superb b&w film.For someone like me born in 1946 the scenes of early 1950s London have a resonance as I can remember the old cars Britain used to manufacture like the "Riley", tube trains with air vents at the side, police officers with helmets standing on street corners and of course the prices of commodities pre-inflation.The users above have satisfactorily described the plot.Each of the gaol-birds are tempted upon their release to re-offend and part of the interest is seeing how they deal with temptation as it comes their way, whether to take up again with her criminal boyfriend (Yvonne Mitchell), whether to carry on being a Soho prostitute (Joan Collins) or hope to establish normal family relations and curtail her shoplifting habit (Kathleen Harrison).The most poignant scene for me was when Kathleen Harrison is run over and killed while her beloved dog "Johnie" then walks the streets alone and owner-less.Yvonne Mitchell her gaol-bird colleague then becomes "Johnie's" new owner after her worthless ex-boyfriend (Terence Morgan) gets his just deserts.This was a well produced and directed film which should be seen more often on t.v.Do today's film t.v.channels think it would not attract remunerative advertising revenue to air gems like this?I am obviously not in the target socio-economic advertising group at 69 years of age!

malcolmgsw This was one of a number of films made at this time arising out of shared experiences of institutions.There were films about Borstal s,Prisons,schools,department stores and police station.In this film we follow the lives of 3 ex women prisoners on the day of their release.The main story is that of Yvonne Mitchell and Terrance Morgan,then there is Joan Collins and finally Kathleen Harrison.The first story is far and away the best and supplies the main climax to the film.Mitchell wants to go straight but is inveigled into a robbery by Morgan.She manages to escape and leave him to his fate.Collins is a good time girl who is enticed into her old ways,probably prostitution,by her old friends.She is going to marry a bus conductor would you believe.Her acting is absolutely awful,and her attempt to speak with a cockney accent is laughable.Can anyone believe a Joan Collins character happily married to a bus conductor.the third story concerns the reliable Kathleen Harrison and her dog Johnny.This is a real shaggy dog story and really the worst of the bunch and which leads to a very contrived finale. The most interesting part of this film is the location work and to be reminded of the way London was in the 50s.Incidentally Collins is shown outside the Leicester Square Theatre,now the Odeon West End.On Tuesday the vandals at Westminster agreed to its demolition so that yet another hotel could be built there.Shame on them.