philiposlatinakis Review of The Birthday Party

The Birthday Party (1968)

Good story, keeps you on edge, but ultimately empty

[6/10 · 4 December 2020]

This is a well acted and reasonably staged film production of Harold Pinter's play. The story seems to be that the IRA have been searching for and finally found a British member who left the organization and went into hiding. He's spent a year living at a run-down boarding house in a coastal town. His cover story is that he's an out of work musician with funds available to support himself. His two pursuers pose as lodgers on a few days break. The three of them beat around the bush a bit but finally everyone puts their cards on the table. There's an interrogation while no one's around, then there's a birthday party where tensions are on edge and finally the man on the run has a nervous breakdown. It ends with him being taken away by his pursuers to be killed. That's the main thrust of the story, but there's also a lot of "comic" business with the landlady, who's a bit mentally impaired. It's all played out in an implied way, with very little direct explanation for what's going on. I saw the BBC version of this play many years ago, but this was better. Robert Shaw was good casting. William Freidkin keeps it cinematic. As a drama it works, and holds the interest. However, it should be stated, there is very little purpose or point to this film. It's not a political commentary in any way.