The Last Days of Dolwyn

The Last Days of Dolwyn
The Last Days of Dolwyn
Directed by	Emlyn Williams
Written by	Emlyn Williams
Produced by	Anatole de Grunwald
Starring	Edith Evans; Emlyn Williams; Richard Burton; Anthony James
Cinematography	Otto Heller
Edited by	Russell Lloyd; Maurice Rootes
Music by	John DH Greenwood
Distributed by	British Lion Films
Release date	13 April 1949;
Country	United Kingdom
Languages	English, Welsh
Box office	£96,772 (UK)

The Last Days of Dolwyn (renamed Woman of Dolwyn for the American market)^[3] is a 1949 British drama film directed by Emlyn Williams and starring Edith Evans, Emlyn Williams, Richard Burton and Anthony James.^[4] The screenplay focuses on an impoverished Welsh village which becomes the site of a bitter power struggle between a callous developer and a stubborn widow.

The film marked the first film appearance of Burton, the first film appearance of Edith Evans since 1916, and the sole film to be directed by Emlyn Williams, who also wrote the screenplay.

Plot

The story is set in 1892 in and around the peaceful (fictional) village of Dolwyn in Mid-Wales. A short prelude shows a plaque marking a flood and the deaths of two people, only one of whose bodies was recovered.

A consortium led by Lord Lancashire is constructing a massive dam at the head of the valley above Dolwyn, to create a reservoir to supply water to Liverpool. Construction stops when the rock, thought to be limestone, turns out to be granite. Realising it will be cheaper and easier to flood the land which includes the village (but unaware it is inhabited), Lord Lancashire dispatches his agent, Rob, to buy the land. Heavily in debt, Lady Dolwyn agrees to sell. Leaseholders are offered large sums for their leases, along with new houses in Liverpool and jobs in a cotton mill for those who want them. The villagers do not recognise Rob, but he has his own reason for wanting the village flooded; he was born and grew up there, but was forced out of the village twenty years before for thievery.

Of all the villagers, old widow Merri is the most reluctant to leave. Her son is buried in the graveyard and she hates the idea of the grave being flooded, as his father died by drowning.

Whilst packing up to leave, Merri's foster-child Gareth, who has lived in England and speaks the language, discovers documents that prove Merri (who speaks very little English) has a right to own her land in perpetuity. A solicitor confirms the title. Lord Lancashire visits Merri, but soon realises she cannot be bought off or cajoled. To top it all, she cures his rheumatic shoulder with manipulation. He decides to use the more expensive method of construction instead, preserving the village. Rob is furious and decides to open the dam's spillway valves to flood the valley. He fails, and instead he sets fire to Merri's cottage.

Gareth catches Rob in the act, knocking him into the fire. Though Gareth tries to beat out the flames, Rob dies. Merri has witnessed the events: to protect Gareth, she conceals the body, then makes her way to the dam's valve room and opens the valves. The villagers watch sadly from nearby safe ground as their village is drowned. One young shepherd refuses to flee the flood and his defiant, lilting tenor voice is suddenly silenced as the tide consumes him.

Cast

Edith Evans – Merri
Emlyn Williams – Rob
Richard Burton – Gareth
Anthony James – Dafydd
Allan Aynesworth – Lord Lancashire
Barbara Couper – Lady Dolwyn
Andrea Lea – Margaret
Hugh Griffith – The Minister
Maurice Browning – Huw
Rita Crailey – Hen Ann
Eileen Dale – Mrs. Ellis
David Davies – Septimus
Frank Dunlop – Ephrain
Kenneth Evans – Jabbez
Patricia Glyn – Dorcas
Joan Griffiths – Eira
Sam Hinton – Idris
Dafydd Havard – Will
Roddy Hughes – Caradoc
Madoline Thomas – Mrs. Thomas
Sybil Williams
Tom Jones – John Henry
Linda Hughes - little girl

Historical parallels

The film's setting parallels the drowning in the 1880s of the village of Llanwddyn in Lake Vyrnwy to provide water for Liverpool. It may also be based on the construction of the Elan Valley Reservoirs, designed to supply water to Birmingham, and the tragic flooding of the beautiful neighbourhood of Nantgwyllt, beloved of the poet Shelley.^[5]

In the 1960s, Llyn Celyn was built to provide further water to Liverpool, flooding the village of Capel Celyn.

Reception

The film performed disappointingly at the box office despite good reviews.^[6]

References

^ The Last Days of Dolwyn (1949) at IMDb
^ Vincent Porter, 'The Robert Clark Account', Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol 20 No 4, 2000 p489
^ 'The Last Days Of Dolwyn' 1949 at The Richard Burton Museum
^ The Last Days of Dolwyn (1949) at British Film Institute website
^ Abandoned Communities...Reservoirs of Wales at abandonedcommunities.co.uk
^ John Healey (6 December 1952). "A reject worth waiting for". The Mail. Adelaide. p. 6. Retrieved 30 June 2012. At Trove

External links

The Last Days of Dolwyn at IMDb

[1] The Last Days of Dolwyn (1949) at IMDb

[2] Vincent Porter, 'The Robert Clark Account', Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, Vol 20 No 4, 2000 p489

[3] 'The Last Days Of Dolwyn' 1949 at The Richard Burton Museum

[4] The Last Days of Dolwyn (1949) at British Film Institute website

[5] Abandoned Communities...Reservoirs of Wales at abandonedcommunities.co.uk

[6] John Healey (6 December 1952). "A reject worth waiting for". The Mail. Adelaide. p. 6. Retrieved 30 June 2012. At Trove

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