Let Him Have It (1991)
"Let Him Have It". Four simple words, but put in different contexts can mean completely different actions and motivations. Does it mean, take the officer out or give the gun to the officer? That would be the statement that could make or break the freedom and life of a mentally deficient 19 year old on trial for the murder of a cop. Peter Medak's 1991 film with the very appropriate title of "Let Him Have It" chronicles one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in the English legal system and the weight that those four words have in the study of law and jurisprudence to this very day.
In 1953 England, 19 year old Derek Bentley (Christopher Eccleston) lives with his very supportive family that includes his parents William and Lillian (Tom Courtenay and Eileen Atkins) and sister Iris (Clare Holman). Derek has a history of petty crime which is caused by him being taken advantage of by local criminals. After being expelled from an Approved School, Derek is lonely and secludes himself from the outside world. That all changes when he crosses paths with the teenaged but more dominant Christopher Craig (Paul Reynolds). Christopher comes from a broken home that consists of a criminal older brother Nevin (Mark McGann). When Nevin is sent to prison for robbery, Christopher develops a hatred for all authority. That hatred culminates one night when Derek and Christopher break into private property and are confronted by police. Christopher kills one cop and wounds another while Derek utters the four words that becomes the center of the entire trial and sad aftermath.
"Let Him Have It" is a film where the viewer already knows the ending before the opening credits have rolled if they did research on the case before. Derek Bentley would be found guilty of murder, despite not being the one who fired the fatal shot, and would be sentenced to death by hanging. Christopher Craig, who was the actual murderer, was only 16 and therefore ineligible for the death penalty, instead receiving an indeterminate sentence. Craig was released after 10 years inside and by all accounts has since become a productive member of society. Bentley would sadly not live into old age and would die by hanging despite a huge campaign to free him.
Peter Medak's recreation of the era in which this crime occurred is impeccable. Everything from the working class atmosphere, to the organized crime underworlds and especially the rigidness of the Old Bailey courthouse. It's the latter of these three characteristics that is the most impressive. All the trial scenes are played straight, without the forced language or histrionics that one might find in a primetime show on one of the major networks. The performance by Michael Gough as the judge is one of natural authority, whose strict demeanor invokes tension one can cut with a knife. It's the smaller details like that which only heightens why "Let Him Have It" is a cut above the rest
Christopher Eccleston gives a breathtaking performance as Derek Bentley, completely filled with pathos and hubris. He does not ham up his character and finds the right underplayed tone. Tom Courtenay as William Bentley also finds that same tone to play a parent who is controlled and headstrong, while Eileen Atkins is the right counterpart as the more emotive parent. Clare Holman as Iris is a great combination of her parent's traits as she is the glue that holds the family together. The last scene when they huddle together and cry as the clock strikes to the minute of their son's execution is hauntingly scary and gives you goosebumps. Paul Reynolds as Christopher Craig is a standout and a once in a blue moon performance that hits all the right notes. He's a hoodlum that acts tough and fearless, but deep down is still a child with insecurities. To play those two types of people simultaneously is something that is underused in today's films. It's one of those performances that stays with you long after the film ends and especially one that the Academy Awards should have taken notice of at the time. It's a shame that he didn't become a bigger name in films and television like Eccleston, but he at least makes his mark in a great way.
"Let Him Have It" premiered at the 1991 Toronto Film Festival, the stepping stone of the Academy Awards season and unfortunately, that's as far as it got. My guess is that it was not promoted well like Medak's previous hit "The Krays" and possibly, audiences saw it as a carbon copy of that film. Awards aside, the best thing this film could have done was drum up more interest in the Derek Bentley case. The epilogue mentions how the fight to clear Derek's name was spearheaded by his parents until their deaths in the 1970s, in which Iris later took the reins. Her persistence paid off, albeit after her death, because in 1998, 45 years after his execution, the courts overturned Bentley's conviction, giving him the vindication that he should have gotten when he was alive. "Let Him Have It", is one the best true crime films about a miscarriage of justice and while it leave you angry that such damage could have been done, acknowledging these wrongs years later is better than sweeping it under the rug.
9/10
