The World Ten Times Over
The World Ten Times Over is a 1963 British drama film written and directed by Wolf Rilla and starring Sylvia Syms, June Ritchie, Edward Judd and William Hartnell. Donald Sutherland makes a brief cameo appearance in a night club scene, one of his earliest roles. The film was retitled Pussycat Alley in the US. The British Film Institute has described it as the first British film to deal with an implicitly lesbian relationship. Premise. The film depicts the lives of two club hostesses Billa (Sylvia Syms) and Ginnie (June Ritchie), working in the Soho area  of London. Their friendship is challenged by jealousies arising when Ginnie becomes romantically involved with Bob (Edward Judd), a rich married businessman. Critical reception. In a contemporary review "Variety" wrote, "The result is overdramatic but provides opportunities for deft thesping. Nightclub and location sequences in London have a brisk authenticity," the reviewer went on to praise Sylvia Syms' performance, "Her scenes with her father (William Hartnell) are excellent. Hartnell, playing the unworldly, scholarly father, who has no contact with his daughter, also gives an observant study. The other two principals are more phonily drawn characters. Edward Judd seems strangely uneasy  in his role and Ritchie, despite many firstrate moments, sometimes appears as if she is simply jumping through paper hoops." "TV Guide" gave the film two out of four stars, concluding, "this is a somewhat stylized film, but the story is too depressing to make it work in the long run"; and the BFI praised Sym's "moving, melancholic performance."