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No Trees in the Street (1958)

Director: J Lee Thompson

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From Time Out Film Guide

Released at a time when kitchen sink drama was all the rage, this is an unremarkable 'we had it tough' chronicle from another age (Ted Willis adapted his own play), set in the backstreets of 1938 London. Joan Miller's the desperate mum who tries to get sultry daughter Sylvia Syms married off to crooked turf accountant Lom, while young Melvyn Hayes - latterly remembered for his stint on TV's It Ain't Half Hot Mum - tries hard to convince as the ne'er-do-well son.

Author: TJ

Time Out Film Guide

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User reviews of this film

anthony sutcliffe said...

Posted on Nov 04 2007 06:16 This is an obvious remake of 'Dead End', with Lom reprising Bogart and Sylvia Sims as the recreation of Sylvia Sydney. As such, it is much better than its reputation. The title may refer back to 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn'. Direction and photography are good. Willis's play has produced a good script and the acting is fine, with Stanley Holloway making a welcome appearance. Picturesque (and picaresque) street scenes are not really 'neo-realist' - they date back rather more to 1930s treatments. The opening aerial shots are not unique for the period but they do look forward to a notorious soap. This neglected film deserves recognition as a link between 1930s Broadway and Hollywood, and the post=Blue Lamp era.

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