Sapphire
Directed by Basil DeardenIn 1950s London, racial hostility toward Commonwealth immigrants is openly paraded. A pregnant girl, initially assumed to be white, is murdered. As two detectives start to investigate and discover her racial origins are much more mixed, public prejudices and those of the officers themselves are exposed.
Sapphire Ratings & Reviews
- Kevin WardJuly 1, 2025…based on the novel Pull by Precious Rather bold attempt to tackle racism, colorism, and prejudice as some Scotland Yard detectives attempt to track down the murderer of a biracial, white-passing woman named Sapphire. The detectives interview the various cross sections of Sapphire’s life—her boyfriend and his family, various jazz clubs where she frequenteda, the house where she rented a room—each interview providing a window into their own misconceptions and at times revealing the detectives own prejudice. Fascinating to see such an early film attempt to tackle this subject matter head on. Some of the representation isn’t great obviously, but I think the attempt is commendable and certainly ahead of its time. Solid noir mystery.
Sapphire Trivia
Sapphire was released on August 17, 1959.
Sapphire was directed by Basil Dearden.
Sapphire has a runtime of 87m.
Sapphire was produced by Michael Relph.
In 1950s London, racial hostility toward Commonwealth immigrants is openly paraded. A pregnant girl, initially assumed to be white, is murdered. As two detectives start to investigate and discover her racial origins are much more mixed, public prejudices and those of the officers themselves are exposed.
The key characters in Sapphire are Superintendent Robert Hazard (Nigel Patrick), Inspector Phil Learoyd (Michael Craig), Mildred (Yvonne Mitchell).
Sapphire is rated Not Rated.
Sapphire is a Crime, Drama, Mystery film.
Sapphire has an audience rating of 7.1 out of 10.