The Caretaker

A film by Clive Donner

The Caretaker was the play that made Harold Pinter’s name when it was first performed at the Arts Theatre, London in 1960, and it remains probably his most famous. Two years later, Clive Donner’s film version began shooting, after producer Michael Birkett had raised the finance from figures such as Noël Coward, Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Sellers, Peter Hall and Leslie Caron – all passionate admirers of the play.

For the film, two of the cast of that original production – Donald Pleasence as Davies and Alan Bates as Mick – are joined by Robert Shaw as Aston, allowing us to see on film three of the greatest stage interpretations of Pinter’s characters.

Donner’s sensitive film becomes a study of shared illusion, tragic dispossession and a fraternal bond of unspoken love, combining mesmerising performances and the magic of Pinter’s dialogue into a spellbinding film.