Pit of Darkness (1961)

When Richard Logan, the partner in a safe making firm, is found unconscious, on an old deserted bomb site, he finds that he has no recollection of the last three weeks. Then he discovers ... See full summary »

Director:

Lance Comfort

Writers:

Lance Comfort, Hugh McCutcheon (novel)

Stars:

William Franklyn, Moira Redmond, Bruno Barnabe

Cast

Cast overview:
William Franklyn	...	Richard Logan
Moira Redmond	...	Julie Logan
Bruno Barnabe	...	Bruno
Leonard Sachs	...	Clifton Conrad
Nigel Green	...	Jonathan
Bruce Beeby	...	Peter Mayhew
Humphrey Lestocq	...	Bill Underwood
Anthony Booth	...	Ted Mellis
Nanette Newman	...	Mary
Michael Balfour	...	Fisher
Jacqueline Jones	...	Mavis
Ronnie Hall	...	Singer

Storyline

When Richard Logan, the partner in a safe making firm, is found unconscious, on an old deserted bomb site, he finds that he has no recollection of the last three weeks. Then he discovers that the private detective, hired by his wife, has been found murdered, and a safe that his firm installed in a large country house, has been cleverly opened, and the contents are missing. So with the help of his wife, he sets out to uncover the truth.

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Plot Keywords:

independent film | based on novel

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

October 1961 (UK)

Also Known As:

Der Mann, der einen Mord vergaß

Filming Locations:

Twickenham Film Studios, St Margarets, Twickenham, Middlesex, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Butcher's Film Service

Technical Specs

Runtime:

76 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"My Heart is the Lover"
Music by Martin Slavin
Lyrics by Abbe Gail
Sung by Ronnie Hall

User Reviews

Fairly inept amnesia noir

Amnesia is a staple of film noir and has been dealt with memorably, if you'll pardon the pun, in dozens of films such as Street of Chance (1942), Somewhere in the Night (1946), Home at Seven (1952) and Spellbound (1945). More recently, Colin Farrell lost his memory in Total Recall (2012) which some will no doubt label as a techno-noir. This film, however, is easily forgotten. Lance Comfort was a prolific director. Looking at the list of films I've seen this year I come across Tomorrow at Ten (1962), Bedelia (1946), Hatter's Castle (1941,) Breaking Point (1961), The Painted Smile (1962), Rag Doll(1962), and Hotel Reserve (1944), all directed by Comfort, and all superior to this absurdly plotted, oddly photographed (there are several pointless, lingering close-ups of William Franklyn, Bruno Barnabe, Nanette Newman et al) and poorly acted (especially by Franklyn, who gives underacting a bad name) programmer that would have been more effective at the 50-60 minutes mark rather the thrill-less 77 I sat through. Still, this time tomorrow I won't remember a thing about this dud.