Prison Without Bars

Prison Without Bars is a 1938 British black-and-white crime film directed by Brian Desmond Hurst and starring Corinne Luchaire, Edna Best and Barry K. Barnes.^[1] It is set in a girl's reform school, and was based on a play by Gina Kaus, previously filmed in France as Prison sans Barreaux (1938).^[2] Corinne Luchaire starred in both versions.^[3]

Prison Without Bars
Directed by	Brian Desmond Hurst
Written by	Arthur Wimperis Margaret Kennedy (dialogue)
Based on	play by Egon Eis Otto Eis Gina Kaus Hans Wilhelm
Produced by	Alexander Korda
Starring	Corinne Luchaire Edna Best Barry K. Barnes
Cinematography	Georges Périnal Bernard Browne
Edited by	William Hornbeck Charles Crichton
Music by	John Greenwood
Production company	London Film Productions
Distributed by	United Artists Corporation (UK)
Release dates	21 September 1938 (1938-09-21) (London, UK) 9 April 1939 (1939-04-09) (US)
Running time	72 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Synopsis

A young progressive thinking woman becomes superintendent at a French girl's reformatory dominated by the harsh previous head. A young girl is blackmailed by her acquaintance over her love for the superintendent's fiancé, but is released to join him in the end, when all is revealed.^[4]

Cast

• Suzanne Duplat - Corinne Luchaire
• Yvonne Chanel - Edna Best
• Dr George Marechal - Barry K. Barnes
• Renee - Mary Morris
• Alice - Lorraine Clewes
• Julie Picard - Sally Wisher
• Mme Appel - Martita Hunt
• Mlle Arthemise - Margaret Yarde
• Mme Remy - Elsie Shelton
• Nina - Glynis Johns
• Mlle Renard - Enid Lindsey
• Mlle Pauline - Phyllis Morris
• Mlle Dupont - Nancy Roberts

Critical reception

In The New York Times, Frank S. Nugent dismissed the film as "another prison picture, and while we would not want to pass too harsh a sentence upon it, neither can we fairly pretend that it is innocent":^[5] whereas, in December 1938, The Daily Telegraph selected it as one of their ten best films of the year.^[6]