Murder Can Be Deadly (1962)

Jo Lake and Mark Davies, working the "outraged husband" racket, fall foul of the sinister Kleinie. Jo, all for quitting, is persuaded by Mark to find one more victim before they leave and ... See full summary »

Director:

Lance Comfort

Writers:

Pip Baker (story), Jane Baker (story)

Stars:

Liz Fraser, Kenneth Griffith, Peter Reynolds

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Liz Fraser	...	Jo Lake
Kenneth Griffith	...	Kleinie
Peter Reynolds	...	Mark
Tony Wickert	...	Tom
Craig Douglas	...	Nightclub singer
Nanette Newman	...	Mary
Ray Smith	...	Glynn
David Hemmings	...	Roy
Harold Berens	...	Mikhala
Grazina Frame	...	Lucy
Richard McNeff	...	Police Inspector
Gerald Sim	...	Plain Clothes Policeman
Rosemary Chalmers	...	Gloria
Mia Karam	...	Dawn
Terence Maidment	...	1st Henchman

Storyline

Jo Lake and Mark Davies, working the "outraged husband" racket, fall foul of the sinister Kleinie. Jo, all for quitting, is persuaded by Mark to find one more victim before they leave and quit. She goes to the club where she operates and persuades a very-drunk young student, Tom, who has just won a hundred pounds, to go back to her flat. Mark, hiding there, hears footsteps mounting the stairs, but instead of Jo, the ugly, crippled Kleinie appears and coldly and callousy stabs Mark, leaving the body in Jo's bedroom. When she arrives with Tom, Kleinie phones and tells her to look in her bedroom. Jo tells Tom that the police will blame him and she persuades him to get his car and dispose of the body. Still somewhat drunk, his erratic driving causes him to be stopped by the police. Tom escapes. His friends, Glynn and Roy call on his fiancée, Mary, after reading in the paper about the body found in his car and that the police are after him. Tom arrives and his two friends set out to find ...

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Plot Keywords:

lingerie slip | british noir | independent film | 

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Genres:

Thriller

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 April 1965 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

Murder Can Be Deadly

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Blakeley's Films (M/C) Ltd., Colorama Features, Mancunian Film

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The role of nightclub singer, played by Craig Douglas, was originally offered to The Beatles, but they were rejected by the producer, who thought they were too young.

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Soundtracks

Another You
Sung by Craig Douglas
Composed by Norrie Paramor
Lyrics by Bunny Lewis & Michael Carr

User Reviews

good British B-picture

There is something engaging about these B-movies and usually one or two points of interest. In this instance that comes from seeing Liz Fraser in a leading role. It would be labouring the point to say she is required to stretch her acting muscles here, and in fact she is required more to squeeze her gargantuan bosom into tight negligees, but I always welcome the chance to see one of Britain's comedy stalwarts in a straight role. In fact the film has a few faces who went on to better things, including an almost unrecognisable Griffith as the cheif villain and a fresh-faced Hemmings before he turned into the corpulent Ken Russell-lookalike he is today. There is also a chance to see Nanette Newman doing what in an early 1960s B-movie passed for acting; she is beautiful though.

As far as being an entry in the British crime genre is concerned the film is rather disappointing. The synopsis I had led me to believe the plot concerned rival gang bosses fighting over a girl. The truth is that gangsterism is used purely as a backdrop for a series of events which befall the student. In fact, despite Fraser's top billing, the film shifts its focus away from Jo Lake and settles on Tom, as soon as he gets the corpse into his car. In that way the film resembles not so much a gangster film, or even an underworld film, as what was called in the 1980s a 'yuppie nightmare' movie, in the manner of AFTER HOURS or SOMETHING WILD.

Despite the strides towards realism which had been made in the genre this film insists on using a very dated portrayal of crimelords. Kleinie is coded as anything but a macho figure: he has a club foot, has an effeminacy about him, is clearly not from the working classes, and conducts operations (about which we learn nothing) from an oak-panelled office lined with books. Furthermore he is played by Kenneth Griffith, not an actor noted for his physical presence or menace.

Having said all that the film does have its own charm and it is remarkable to think, at a time when film production here has slumped, that Britain once had such a thriving industry and produced second features, such as this, to support the main film.