The Wild and the Willing (1962)
3.2 of 5 from 46 ratings
1h 50min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
A group of young men at university go through the students' life - dancing, drinking, meeting girls. Harry (Ian McShane) is a rather rebellious young man, going out with Josie (Samantha Eggar). His room mate is Phil (John Hurt), a quiet outsider. Harry feels very protective of Phil for some reason. Phil loves Sarah (Katherine Woodville), who jilted him for another more suitable boyfriend. Harry gets involved with Professor Chown's (Paul Rogers)'s unhappy wife, Virginia (Virginia Maskell). The professor acts very aloof towards her and doesn't want to divorce her because he is expecting to be knighted. Harry wants Virginia to come away with him, but she is too worried about her future and turns him down. For frustration Harry wants to pull a stunt, climb the campus tower and raise a flag atop. He needs help to pull this off but all the other young men opt out for various reasons. Phil offers Harry to join him, as he feels that Harry has done a lot to involve him into campus life, rather than living on the fringes. Gilby (Jeremy Brett), a smart striver is jealous of Harry, as he used to see Virginia before she rejected him. He notices the activities around the tower and reports Harry and Phil to the school authorities. The teachers are more annoyed than worried and call the fire brigade. The spectacle draws a crowd. Although Phil is a bad climber and is slipping several times, the two young men manage to hoist their flag. On the way down Phil loses his footing and falls to his death. Harry is expelled from university. He makes one more visit with Professor Chow and Virginia where the Professor admits that Harry's paper was brilliant and that with his stunt, he forfeited a scholarship and an academic career. Josie meets Harry at the bus and realises that she doesn't mean much to him. Yet she asks him to take her along, but he refuses, as he doesn't want to go on hurting people. The film ends with Reggie (Johnny Sekka), an African friend, singing a ballad of Harry and Josie's life. - Actors:
- Virginia Maskell, Paul Rogers, Ian McShane, Samantha Eggar, Katherine Woodville, David Sumner, John Hurt, John Standing, Johnny Briggs, Johnny Sekka, Jeremy Brett, Charles Kay, John Barrie, Megs Jenkins, Victor Brooks
- Directors:
- Ralph Thomas
- Writers:
- Laurence Doble, Nicholas Phipps
- Others:
- Virginia Maskell
- Aka:
- Young and Willing
- Genres:
- Classics, Drama, Romance
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