Novelty Play Seen Through The Eyes Of The Condemned Man

I cannot lay claim to having seen this film, because it was made in 1939 and nothing was recorded by BBC Television in those days.

However, I do remember reading about it in a book about the History of Television in a "reference only" section of a municipal library many years ago. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find a copy of the book since - neither in any bookshop nor by way of an On Line service.

As the title implies, the story is centred around a prisoner who is condemned to be shot after a "show trial" in some Communist country, of which there would have been much criticism about during the 1930s.

The Justice System in such countries would have been very arbitrary. Juries, if such a body of 12 men "loyal, good and true" existed under the Law System in such countries, would probably have been afraid to declare a man as being innocent for fear of themselves being penalised by the authorities.

The novelty of the way the play was filmed, which has very rarely been seen in films and plays since, was that the condemned man was never seen in front of the camera. The television screen acted as the eyes and ears of the condemned man - right up to the time when he was forced to stand before the firing squad.

I cannot give a rating for this film because I was not born until 1951 and neither my parents nor grandparents would have owned a television in 1939.

The drama genre is a broad category that features stories portraying human experiences, emotions, conflicts, and relationships in a realistic and emotionally impactful way. Dramas delve into the complexities of human life, often exploring themes of love, loss, morality, societal issues, personal growth, with the aim to evoke an emotional response from the audience by presenting relatable and thought-provoking stories.

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The short form refers to creative works characterized by their brevity and concise storytelling. Unlike full-length feature films, short films have a running time of less than 45 minutes, while TV shorts have a running time of less than 22 minutes.

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Condemned to Be Shot

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