An American journalist solves the mystery of an unpleasant columnist's murder and clears his own wife, one of the many suspects.An American journalist solves the mystery of an unpleasant columnist's murder and clears his own wife, one of the many suspects.An American journalist solves the mystery of an unpleasant columnist's murder and clears his own wife, one of the many suspects.
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- Quotes
Tony Pendleton: Mr Gary Bax was immoral, disloyal and thoroughly selfish. I calculate there are at least a dozen other men who feel the way I do, and any one of them who's half-way decent would consider that killing Gary Bax was a public service - like clearing a blocked drain.
- Crazy creditsIn the end credits Arthur Lowe's part is misspelled "Caligraphy Expert".
Featured review
An Inspector with shades of Morse
This whodunit gets off to a good start in Lionel Jeffries' nightclub as we're introduced to slippery, philandering, gossip columnist Gary Bax - Anthony Dawson, every bit as convincingly disreputable as he was in DIAL M FOR MURDER. He staggers out poisoned, and reporter Joe Saunders (Jeff Morrow) assists the police to track down the killer, knowing that their chief suspect is his wife Peggy (Hazel Court) who was being blackmailed by Bax over an earlier affair she'd had with him.
Strangely, chances are ignored to build much suspense around Peggy's predicament and the middle section falls rather flat as Joe and Carl Bernard's authoritative Inspector Gower interview a variety of suspects. The latter is one of the more interesting characters. "My parents had a twisted sense of humour, you won't get my first name out of me" he dryly remarks at one point. Shades of Morse. The plodding investigation and a singularly unconvincing denouement results in the film failing to fulfil its early promise. It's all put together with a certain style and sophistication however and will be enjoyed by those who appreciate British mystery films of the period, especially if they're fans of the glamorous Hazel Court.
Strangely, chances are ignored to build much suspense around Peggy's predicament and the middle section falls rather flat as Joe and Carl Bernard's authoritative Inspector Gower interview a variety of suspects. The latter is one of the more interesting characters. "My parents had a twisted sense of humour, you won't get my first name out of me" he dryly remarks at one point. Shades of Morse. The plodding investigation and a singularly unconvincing denouement results in the film failing to fulfil its early promise. It's all put together with a certain style and sophistication however and will be enjoyed by those who appreciate British mystery films of the period, especially if they're fans of the glamorous Hazel Court.
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- Piccadilly Circus, Piccadilly, London, England, UK(establishing shot of London's clubland)
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- Runtime1 hour 21 minutes
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