Dance With a Stranger

R

1985

1 hr. 42 min.

Drama

List

91%

11 Reviews

Tomatometer

70%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

This tale of murderous revenge focuses on Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be executed by the state in England. Ellis (Miranda Richardson), a former prostitute and single mom, falls for David Blakely (Rupert Everett) when she meets him in a club. Although Blakely comes from an aristocratic background, compared with Ellis's hardscrabble upbringing, the two start a torrid affair. But when David starts to pull away, Ruth is overwhelmed by jealousy and turns to extreme measure to get him back.

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Pebbles

Brilliant film, so sad. In this day and age she wouldn't of hanged, it would be called a crime of passion.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/27/24

Full Review

Dave S

To be honest, there's nothing inherently bad about Dance With a Stranger, but there is nothing in it that makes it rise above the level of decent but sort of forgettable. Ruth Ellis (Miranda Richardson), a promiscuous and manipulative London bar manager, falls for David (Rupert Everett), an abusive drunkard who is obsessed with Ruth. From there, things go rather poorly for both of them. On the positive side of things, Richardson is spectacular in the lead role and the movie effectively captures the atmosphere of 1950s London. However, as he has done for pretty much all of his career, director Mike Newell plays it painfully safe, never willing to take any directorial gambles to make things visually interesting. By the time the epilogue pops up on the screen, you're likely to respond with a resounding shrug.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/27/23

Full Review

isla s

This is an ok film. The story is a true story, about the last woman given the death sentence in Britain and I found it interesting in terms of getting a feel for the context in which the death happened. It's a bit like a long TV show I suppose but I enjoyed seeing the period details - cars of the 50s and so on. There is some good dialogue at times too, with Ruth saying some witty retorts. I thought it was interesting to see what happened when and so on. I certainly wouldn't say its a gripping or memorable watch but it's ok. I wouldn't especially recommend this film as such, no.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Joan P R

A very sad and remarkably moving film, it tells the story of Ruth Ellis and David Blakely with great economy, showing what needs to be shown and not more. All performances (including Ian Holm as the third wheel) are outstanding, and the atmosphere of London in the 1950s is perfectly captured. It would be a great movie even if it were not inspired by true events. In this respect, the decision not to address Ruth's trial is very smart, because this film is about human contradictions, motivations and circumstances, the tragedy leading to the murder rather than the secondary tragedy of the cruel and barbaric execution and its aftermath. With today's eyes, what was only suggested in the 1980s is now blatantly obvious, that Ruth Ellis, for all her flaws, had been a victim of serious abuse for many years, not least by the man whom she loved and killed.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/09/21

Full Review

Audience Member

Enjoyed it but thought more could have been added considering she was the last woman hanged in England.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Lurid and heavy handed but richardson's performance is mesmerizing.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/31/23

Full Review

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Mike Newell

Director

Miranda Richardson

Ruth Ellis

Rupert Everett

David Blakeley

Ian Holm

Desmond Cussen

Matthew Carroll

Andy

Tom Chadbon

Anthony Findlater

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Almar Haflidason

BBC.com

Rated: 4/5

May 13, 2001

Full Review

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

A film of astonishing performances and moody, atmospheric visuals.

Rated: 4/4

Jan 1, 2000

Full Review

Stephen Schiff

Vanity Fair

There's a very good reason to see this movie, and her name is Miranda Richardson. Dance with a Stranger is her first picture, and while her portrayal of Ruth stops just short of being great, it's undeniably virtuosic.

Jul 10, 2019

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Miranda Richardson gives a brilliant performance as Ruth Ellis in Mike Newell's gloomy and dowbeat film noir, based on the life of the last British femme to be hanged for murder.

Rated: B+

Jul 16, 2005

Full Review

Philip Martin

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Rated: 3/5

May 16, 2005

Full Review

Randy Shulman

Metro Weekly (Washington, DC)

Rated: 5/5

Mar 18, 2005

Full Review

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Synopsis

This tale of murderous revenge focuses on Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be executed by the state in England. Ellis (Miranda Richardson), a former prostitute and single mom, falls for David Blakely (Rupert Everett) when she meets him in a club. Although Blakely comes from an aristocratic background, compared with Ellis's hardscrabble upbringing, the two start a torrid affair. But when David starts to pull away, Ruth is overwhelmed by jealousy and turns to extreme measure to get him back.

Director: Mike Newell
Screenwriter: Shelagh Delaney
Production Co: Goldcrest Films International, Film Four International, National Film Finance Corporation
Rating: R
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.3M