The Man Who Haunted Himself (1970)

Harold Pelham encounters a duplicate of himself in the aftermath of a car crash. After that moment, his life is upset.

Director:

Basil Dearden

Writers:

Anthony Armstrong (based on "The Case of Mr. Pelham" by), Basil Dearden (screenplay)

Stars:

Roger Moore, Hildegard Neil, Alastair Mackenzie

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Roger Moore	...	Pelham
Hildegard Neil	...	Eve
Alastair Mackenzie	...	Michael
Hugh Mackenzie	...	James
Kevork Malikyan	...	Luigi
Thorley Walters	...	Bellamy
Anton Rodgers	...	Alexander
Olga Georges-Picot	...	Julie
Freddie Jones	...	Psychiatrist
John Welsh	...	Sir Charles Freeman
Edward Chapman	...	Barton
Laurence Hardy	...	Mason
Charles Lloyd Pack	...	Jameson
Gerald Sim	...	Morrison
Ruth Trouncer	...	Pelham's Secretary

Storyline

While driving one evening, Harold Pelham appears possessed and has a car accident. While on the operating table, there even appears to be two heartbeats on the monitor. When he awakens, Pelham finds his life has been turned upside-down. He learns that he now supports a merger that he once opposed, and that he apparently is having an affair. People claim they have seen him in places that he has never been. Does Pelham have a doppelganger, or is he going insane?

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | car | car accident | accident | doppelganger | 

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Taglines:

You will live every shattering moment of terror with... The Man Who Haunted Himself.

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Genres:

Thriller

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Certificate:

GP

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sir Roger Moore said that this role was his favorite, and the best ever of his screen performances.

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Goofs

In the opening sequence where Pelham drives at speeds up to 110 mph, he overtakes vehicles going only a bit slower, though the motorway speed limit is 70 mph.

But the 70mph speed limit despite being law is hardly universally abided by on British motorways - especially as the movie was made before speed cameras. So a car travelling at 110mph would typically pass very many cars moving at say or 80mph or 90mph and some would be even faster than that.

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Quotes

Harold Pelham: Espionage isn't all James Bond on Her Majesty's Secret Service. Industry goes in for it too, you know.

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Crazy Credits

"(By permission of The Royal Shakespeare Co.)" underneath Hildegard Neil's name in the end credits.

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Connections

Featured in Talking Pictures: Roger Moore (2017)

User Reviews

A truly hilarious semi-psychedelic thriller

A collector's item this one - you very rarely see a film as absurd yet enthralling as this. The plot is fabulously illogical, but it provides an opportunity to see Roger Moore in a role far more interesting than James Bond, as pin-striped executive Harold Pelham. Except that he plays TWO Harold Pelham's - one nice, dull, and sexually inadequate; the other a cavalier and sinister Romeo. This means a lot of Moore chasing round London insisting "I'm Harold Pelham!", and a climactic and weirdly psychedelic car-chase involving nice Pelham and nasty Pelham. If this hasn't yet acquired a cult following, it ought to.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

1970 (Argentina)

Also Known As:

Ein Mann jagt sich selbst

Filming Locations:

Monument to the Great Fire of London, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP400,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

EMI Films, Associated British Productions (ABP), Excalibur Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1