As I recently watched a very good making of on the DVD for the fun Hammer Horror title The Mummy's Shroud,I was shocked to discover that actress Elizabeth Sellars holds the honour of starring in the last movie that Hammer filmed at Bray studios, (Shroud) and the first film that Hammer shot at the studio,which appeared to be a completely forgotten Film Noir.
Mentioning the movie on IMDb,I was happily caught by surprise,when a very kind IMDb'er gave me the chance to take a look at the title,which led to me looking up at the sky,so that I could at last see the cloud burst.
The plot:
1946-
Haunted by their memories of getting tortured by the Nazis, John and Carol Graham attempt to numb their pain by working as code breakers for the British government,whilst also saving up for a beautiful plot of land,which they can call their own.Attempting to find an enchanting route in their lives,Carol gives John the news that she is pregnant,which leads to John beginning to plan the family life which he has always desired.
Visiting their future plot of land as they start to look forward to becoming a family,a car suddenly speeds past and runs over Carol,Gripping onto the car,John is able to catch a glimpse of the man and woman inside the car,before he is knocked out.
Woken up by a police officer,John discovers that the car has killed Carol and their unborn child.Feeling his entire world breaking apart,John keeps the description of the man and the woman in the car close to his chest,as the officer attempts to interview him.Patiently waiting until the officer has disappeared from view,John begins to make plans on how he can track down Carol's killer's,so that he can show them the life that they have burst.
View on the film:
For the first half of the movie,writers Leo Marks and Francis Searle smartly keep away from jumping 'straight to the action' by instead allowing the relationship between John and Carol to blossom across the screen,with the couple's dream patch of land giving the title a hauntingly melancholy mood.Wrapping the ghosts from the torture delivered by the Nazis with the soul-destroying death of Carol tightly around John,the writer's cast an unflinchingly brutal Film Noir backdrop,with John being unable to escape from his deadly survival instincts of the past,as he begins to step into a decaying gutter,on the search for Carol and their (unborn) child killer's.
Perfectly expressing the melancholy and furious grief contained in the screenplay,director Francis Searle gives Carol and John's romance a sleek Gothic hue,with the low-lit lighting used for the couple taking a peak at their plot of land,showing the dream which they imagine,whilst also subtly hinting at the darkness which lays ahead for them.Sending John out into the Film Noir world,Searle brilliantly uses real cramp houses as locations to show how the pain & fury inside of John is consuming him,with Searle also giving the movie a harsh,gritty appearance,as John casts his first strikes of revenge.
Despite featuring in only half of the movie, Elizabeth Sellars gives a tremendous shadow which cast a long shadow across the entire film,thanks to Sellars giving Carol a real sincerity in her hopes that she and John will be able to leave their Nazi horror behind.Frantically using all of his past skills as he searches for the driver & the passenger of the car, Robert Preston gives an excellent performance as John,with Preston showing John's soft eyes gradually transform into an unforgiving fire,as John sees the silver lining on his cloud burst.
Mentioning the movie on IMDb,I was happily caught by surprise,when a very kind IMDb'er gave me the chance to take a look at the title,which led to me looking up at the sky,so that I could at last see the cloud burst.
The plot:
1946-
Haunted by their memories of getting tortured by the Nazis, John and Carol Graham attempt to numb their pain by working as code breakers for the British government,whilst also saving up for a beautiful plot of land,which they can call their own.Attempting to find an enchanting route in their lives,Carol gives John the news that she is pregnant,which leads to John beginning to plan the family life which he has always desired.
Visiting their future plot of land as they start to look forward to becoming a family,a car suddenly speeds past and runs over Carol,Gripping onto the car,John is able to catch a glimpse of the man and woman inside the car,before he is knocked out.
Woken up by a police officer,John discovers that the car has killed Carol and their unborn child.Feeling his entire world breaking apart,John keeps the description of the man and the woman in the car close to his chest,as the officer attempts to interview him.Patiently waiting until the officer has disappeared from view,John begins to make plans on how he can track down Carol's killer's,so that he can show them the life that they have burst.
View on the film:
For the first half of the movie,writers Leo Marks and Francis Searle smartly keep away from jumping 'straight to the action' by instead allowing the relationship between John and Carol to blossom across the screen,with the couple's dream patch of land giving the title a hauntingly melancholy mood.Wrapping the ghosts from the torture delivered by the Nazis with the soul-destroying death of Carol tightly around John,the writer's cast an unflinchingly brutal Film Noir backdrop,with John being unable to escape from his deadly survival instincts of the past,as he begins to step into a decaying gutter,on the search for Carol and their (unborn) child killer's.
Perfectly expressing the melancholy and furious grief contained in the screenplay,director Francis Searle gives Carol and John's romance a sleek Gothic hue,with the low-lit lighting used for the couple taking a peak at their plot of land,showing the dream which they imagine,whilst also subtly hinting at the darkness which lays ahead for them.Sending John out into the Film Noir world,Searle brilliantly uses real cramp houses as locations to show how the pain & fury inside of John is consuming him,with Searle also giving the movie a harsh,gritty appearance,as John casts his first strikes of revenge.
Despite featuring in only half of the movie, Elizabeth Sellars gives a tremendous shadow which cast a long shadow across the entire film,thanks to Sellars giving Carol a real sincerity in her hopes that she and John will be able to leave their Nazi horror behind.Frantically using all of his past skills as he searches for the driver & the passenger of the car, Robert Preston gives an excellent performance as John,with Preston showing John's soft eyes gradually transform into an unforgiving fire,as John sees the silver lining on his cloud burst.