Victim (film) - Definition and Overview

Victim was the title of a British film made in 1961, directed by Basil Deardon and starring Dirk Bogarde and Sylvia Simms.

The film tells the story of a homosexual barrister who is being blackmailed. Despite the risks to himself (the film was made at a time when to be homosexual was a criminal offense in the UK), he tracks the blackmailers down and brings them to justice.

Victim was a highly significant film in social terms, for it is widely held to have been influential in liberalising cultural attitudes, as well as the British law, regarding homosexuality. It was also the first film to use the word "homosexual."

See also: Wolfenden report, List of gay movies