IMDb RATING
6.5/10
1.1K
YOUR RATING
In the 1950s, an American comes to Britain to investigate the murky circumstances of his brother's death that occurred during a WW2 commando raid in Nazi-occupied France.In the 1950s, an American comes to Britain to investigate the murky circumstances of his brother's death that occurred during a WW2 commando raid in Nazi-occupied France.In the 1950s, an American comes to Britain to investigate the murky circumstances of his brother's death that occurred during a WW2 commando raid in Nazi-occupied France.
Chris Adcock
- Covent Garden Market Worker
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis British film was distributed in the US by the ailing Eagle Lion Classics, which cut ten minutes from it. It is this shortened version which has played on British television on the Talking Pictures channel in 2018.
- GoofsWhen Clay first meets Elspeth he offers her a cigarette and lights it. But the cigarette he is holding as he does so does not get lit and disappears as he takes his coat of.
- Quotes
Clay Douglas: Thanks again, and I appreciate all you've done for me - especially after the way I behaved.
Col. Fairbairn: Oh no - my fault entirely. I expect I rather seemed what you fellows call a stuffed shirt, I believe...?
- Alternate versionsThe original US release of the film was cut by ten minutes.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Talkies: Remembering Dora Bryan/Our Dora (2019)
Featured review
Sandwiched between two Technicolour swashbucklers comes this modest, understated and absorbing black and white whodunnit from the stylish Jacques Tourneur, now working freelance.
In the course of trying to discover how his younger brother died during a commando raid in occupied France, the Clay Douglas of dapper Ray Milland travels the length and breadth of the British Isles and comes across a varied assortment of characters who supply him with snippets of information. He thinks he has pinpointed his brother's killer but he is in for a surprise..........
The casting here is spot on and there is a marvellous turn by Marius Goring as a 'camp' choreographer named Sholto whilst Naunton Wayne, this time without Basil Radford, is superlative as a car salesman named, naturally enough, Reggie Sinclair. The female interest here is supplied by the enchanting Patricia Roc whose chemistry with Milland is palpable. The only piece of bizarre casting is that of Dora Bryan as a cabaret artiste who sings with an obviously dubbed American accent the splendidly suggestive 'I've got a buttonhole for my baby'!
The cast is lucky enough to have the dialogue to speak of Philip MacDonald whilst the cinematography and editing are by two of the finest in their respective fields, Oswald Morris and Alan Osbiston.
The scene that lingers longest in the memory is that in which Milland confronts Goring and Hugh Sinclair in a bleak Scottish landscape and finally learns the truth. Masterful direction here by Tourneur.
I was gripped by this piece from the outset and what I was fully expecting to be a grevious disappointment turned out to be a jubilant surprise.
In case anyone's interested the fabulous motor that Milland gets to drive is a 1920 Mercedes Benz. They certainly don't make cars, or indeed films, like that any more.
In the course of trying to discover how his younger brother died during a commando raid in occupied France, the Clay Douglas of dapper Ray Milland travels the length and breadth of the British Isles and comes across a varied assortment of characters who supply him with snippets of information. He thinks he has pinpointed his brother's killer but he is in for a surprise..........
The casting here is spot on and there is a marvellous turn by Marius Goring as a 'camp' choreographer named Sholto whilst Naunton Wayne, this time without Basil Radford, is superlative as a car salesman named, naturally enough, Reggie Sinclair. The female interest here is supplied by the enchanting Patricia Roc whose chemistry with Milland is palpable. The only piece of bizarre casting is that of Dora Bryan as a cabaret artiste who sings with an obviously dubbed American accent the splendidly suggestive 'I've got a buttonhole for my baby'!
The cast is lucky enough to have the dialogue to speak of Philip MacDonald whilst the cinematography and editing are by two of the finest in their respective fields, Oswald Morris and Alan Osbiston.
The scene that lingers longest in the memory is that in which Milland confronts Goring and Hugh Sinclair in a bleak Scottish landscape and finally learns the truth. Masterful direction here by Tourneur.
I was gripped by this piece from the outset and what I was fully expecting to be a grevious disappointment turned out to be a jubilant surprise.
In case anyone's interested the fabulous motor that Milland gets to drive is a 1920 Mercedes Benz. They certainly don't make cars, or indeed films, like that any more.
- brogmiller
- Dec 8, 2020
- Permalink
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Details
- Runtime1 hour 26 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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