It's Never Too Late to Mend

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Trailer—It's Never Too Late to Mend

source: It's Never Too Late to Mend

The prisons in England during Queen Victoria's time went through some major overhauls, and if this movie is any indication, they definitely needed it! The madness of King George was minor when compared to Tod Slaughter's Squire Matthews, a lecherous, power-obsessed tyrant who considers the prisoners under his thumb as his children whom he must fix no matter what tortures it takes. This includes a room known as the black hole (which is exactly what it sounds like) and a machine where he makes the prisoners push a crank over and over close to 2000 times before even considering giving them a rest period. Of course, where there's Slaughter, there's a pretty young wench whom he lusts after to the dismay of a handsome hero whom he intends to destroy in order to get her. The hero is almost convicted of poaching on Slaugher's enormous estate, but a local rebel steps in to take the blame so the hero can go off to Australia to amass his fortune to claim his bride. This gives Slaughter two years to put the makes on the lovely heroine, but with the rebel about to be released from prison just as the hero returns, his evil intentions are threatened. This is Slaughter at his most vile, not a killer in the sense of Sweeney Todd or Percivil Glyde, but just as cunning and every bit as evil. When a fifteen year old prisoner is brought before Slaughter and his fellow noblemen and makes a slight complaint about mistreatment, he is put in a metal cage as a part of his punishment which leads to serious consequences. Probably the only false note comes at this moment where the boy, seemingly healthy, slowly fades towards death. It is supposed to be a sad moment to reflect the extent of Slaughter's cruelty but is so poorly directed that the young actor playing the part seems more like he's rehearsing than acting. As for Slaughter, no film starring him would be complete without his mad scene, and he goes overtime here in giving the audience a real show of his hamminess. Throughout 90 percent of the film, Slaugher is evil but subtle, and all of a sudden, he lets it go with both barrels, giving it the old Snidely Whiplash college try. However, unlike other Slaughter ham-fests, there's a different style ending than normal, one ironic yet believable.

A bit heavy on the sentimentality, and laying on the sadism pretty thick, Tod Slaughter plays the grotesquely inhumane Justice who treats the prisoners of his local gaol as his "naughty children", taking pleasure in exacerbating their misery and humiliation. His nemesis played by Jack Livesey pledges to return the favour in spades having come in for some rough treatment after taking the rap for his friend (Ian Colin) with whom Slaughter is competing for the affections of the nubile Susan (Taylor). There's some moments of the depravity and malevolence with which Slaughter's characters are synonymous (the rough justice meted out to poor little Matty Josephs is primed to tug at the heart strings), but director MacDonald has avoided the sexual deviancy that is present in the George King pictures. As a consequence, Slaughter's character is brutal and morally corrupt as always, but not so dastardly that he would burn at the stake for his crimes. Livesey is pretty good as the knock-about farmer, willing to take a bullet for his friend as a square-up for having once saved his life, and Taylor is suitably torn in her chastity for her poor boyfriend abroad, and the apparent munificence and adulation poured over her family by the scheming Slaughter; her facial expressions whenever Slaughter makes veiled sexual undertones are perhaps exactly what you'd expect when a creepy, corpulent walrus-like aristocrat seeks to charm the brassiere of a virgin some thirty years his junior. Solid 66 minute citizen, but nothing remarkable.

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO MEND is a melodrama based on the treatment of inmates in the Victorian era prison system, which was more like an organized torture chamber run by sadistic psychopaths. Tod Slaughter plays Squire John Meadows, a seemingly benign, yet malignant and manipulative public official. He's utterly corrupt, and will stop at nothing to have the daughter (Marjorie Taylor) of a local farmer. Mr. Slaughter plunges into his fiendish role with abandon. Squire Meadows is also a head honcho at the prison, where he likes to send his enemies. He calls them his "children" and "wayward charges", and loves to "discipline them" with "the cat". It's clear that the Squire views these people as little more than insects to be tormented, and he REALLY enjoys his work! Uh oh! A nosey preacher has arrived to fill the open chaplain position! He could give Meadows no end of trouble! He might even spoil everything! Tod Slaughter fans rejoice! This is one of his best films...

The horror films of Tod Slaughter were definitely quite different than Universal's stellar horror cycle. Universal's horror movies were moody and atmospheric and even now have not lost their power to chill. Tod Slaughter's films are in the old music hall, melodramatic tradition. Audiences of the time were encouraged to laugh along with the larger than life portrayals of Tod Slaughter's villains. "It's Never Too Late to Mend" is probably one of the tamest of his films as it is taken from a classic Victorian novel by Charles Reade. The book bought about sweeping changes in prison reform. If you want to see Tod Slaughter at his best I would recommend "The Face at the Window" (1939). Squire Meadows (Tod Slaughter) is highly thought of in the village - his benevolence and kindness are known far and wide. He loves Susan and plots to make her his wife. Alas, she loves George Fielding but he has no money and her father does not want him for a son-in-law. Late one night the game keepers come to Squire Meadows property to tell him someone has been seen poaching on his grounds. He bribes them to change the name to George Fielding. When the police come to arrest George, Tom, George's friend takes the blame. George once saved Tom's life and he thinks he will repay it . George decides to try his luck in Australia for a couple of years to earn his fortune. Squire Meadows is head of the board of Governors at the local prison. He dishes out punishments such as cat 'o nine tails, the treadmill, solitary confinement, straitjackets, being used as target practice and the black hole with sadistic relish. The prison chaplain goes on a tour of inspection and is appalled at the inhumane conditions. Meanwhile Squire Meadows is intercepting the mail that George is sending to Susan. He then spreads a story that George has married a young lady in Sydney to free the way for his marrying Susan. Tom serves his jail sentence but when he gets out he finds that Susan is just about to marry Squire Meadows. Tom saves the day by denouncing the Squire and giving the money back to George that one of the Squire's henchmen had stolen. "He's Mad!!!" "Yes, I'm Mad - Mad with Power and Revenge hahahaaha" says Squire Meadows at the end of the movie with a maniacal laugh as he is taken away to serve his time in prison!!!! Recommended.

Not surprisingly, this is a very good Tod Slaughter film. Much better than I anticipated. Slaughter does not disappoint - nor does the rest of the cast, directing and story. Slaughter plays Squire John Meadows, a cruel man that is head of the prison (justice of the peace)and provides plenty of creative punishments for the inmates: straight-jackets, near starvation, whips and more. What's worse he's found a way to try to imprison an innocent man in order to pursue the man's lady friend. Lovely use of shadows as only B&W films can capture, wonderful cinematography, a cruel story, excellent performances by the cast. This is a worthwhile drama - it's no masterpiece but it is good. 8/10

In It's Never Too Late to Mend, Tod Slaughter plays yet another despicable villain, Squire John Meadows, who doesn't exactly twirl his moustache, but does stroke it quite a bit. The squire has his beady eyes set on pretty Susan Merton (Slaughter's regular co-star Marjorie Taylor), but she is in love with penniless farmer George Fielding (Ian Colin). Not one to give up, the squire tries to have Fielding (wrongly) arrested for poaching, but the farmer's best friend Tom (Jack Livesey), who George once rescued from a frozen lake, owns up to the crime to repay his debt. Before the squire can come up with another dastardly scheme, George sets sail to Australia to make his fortune, promising Susan that he will return to marry her in two years. While George is away, the squire, who is justice of the peace and runs the local prison with an iron rod, makes life a misery for poor Tom; he also intercepts and destroys letters between George and Susan, and spreads rumours that George has found a wife in Australia. With Susan's father's approval, the wicked man proposes marriage to Susan, but is shocked to learn that George has returned from Oz and is now a wealthy man... Once again, it is Slaughter's pantomime performance that makes this film so watchable: he is the epitome of slimy Victorian villainy, rubbing his hands with glee and chuckling with laughter as he treats other humans with utter disdain. In the prison, he delights in punishing 15-year-old Matty Josephs, imprisoned for stealing bread to feed his starving mother, and insists on personally lashing inmates with the 'cat'. Those who complain are thrown in 'the hole', a windowless cell where the occupant slowly loses their mind. If he were alive today, Tod would be perfect to play Dick Dastardly in a live-action Wacky Racers. Based on a book by Charles Reade, which exposed the dreadful conditions in Victorian prisons and prompted reform, It's Never Too Late to Mend is a condemnation of corporal punishment, and a morality play with religious overtones, Tom helped through his darkest hour by the prison chaplain, and the sadistic squire winding up as an inmate in his own hell-hole (you reap what you sow). Ultimately, though, it's another opportunity to witness one of cinema's greatest unsung actors, the wonderfully wicked Tod Slaughter, at his very best. 6.5/10, rounded up to 7 for IMDb.

Never Too Late (1937) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Insane, over the top and sometimes hilarious Tod Slaughter movie. Slaughter plays a psychotic Justice of the Peace who falls in love with a farmer's daughter but she wants nothing to do with him. She's in love with another guy but Slaughter will go to all ends to make sure they don't marry. Slaughter has the nickname "The British Bela Lugosi" due to his over the top performances but I personally find this an insult to Lugosi and American horror films. Lugosi went over the top quite a bit but never in the way Slaughter does, which makes his films watchable but also hurts them. His over the top style kills the melodrama in the film but it helps the campy horror side. The highlight of the film has to be the prison torture stuff because it's just so damn funny due to Slaughter's wildness.