#brefni o'rorke

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The Upturned Glass (1947) Lawrence Huntington

February 18th 2024

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The Missing Million (1942)

"Look 'ere Inspector, this ain't right. An Englishman's 'ome is his castle, even if it is one room and a gas ring. 'Ere am I, sitting, cooking me sausages, happy and peaceful like - and in come your fellas to tell me I'm wanted, what for? I ain't done nothing, I've been too busy. So I ask yer - what's it all about?"

"It's about opening a safe."

"But they acquitted me!"

The latest in my ongoing quest to watch as many Edgar Wallace potboilers as humanly possible, 1942's The Missing Million is a comforting return to form after the disappointment of Crossroads To Crime (1960, discussed elsewhere on this blog). All the classic EW tropes are in play - a mysterious blackmailer known only by an unusual pseudonym, petty criminals acting as comic relief, square-jawed policemen and plucky heroines. None of it is especially original, and if you've watched one EW adaptation it can often feel like you've seen them all - but it's cheerful and charming, and sometimes an obvious twist can be just as fun as an unexpected one.

Based on Wallace's 1923 novel of the same name, TMM is a fairly straight adaptation in terms of plot. The major characters are all present, as are the main set pieces, with only a few names changed here and there. Interestingly, the blackmailer is known here as The Panda - a typically outlandish Wallace name (his other books featuring such villains as The Ringer, The Terror, and The Frog), but this appears to be an invention of the film; in the novel, the blackmailer signs himself 'Kupie'. Another change is in dropping all reference to the two male leads' former heroics in WW1 - perhaps unsurprising, given that the film was produced during WW2.

The Panda - also known as The Prince of Blackmail - has set his sights on young Rex Walton, soon to be married to the beautiful Dora Coleman. Rex has inherited a fortune, and looks set to lose it all, until suddenly Rex - and a million of his fortune - disappear. Luckily for Rex, his feisty sister Joan and Scotland Yard man Inspector Dicker set about solving the case and bringing The Panda to justice - with a little help from safe-breaker Nobby Knowles. Cue much night-time creeping, a trio of murders, and some funny business about chicken broth.

Our cast is a mixed bunch, but all equip themselves well. The intrepid Inspector is played by John Stuart, a leading man of British silent film who managed to hold his own once the talkies took over. Helping him crack the case are the lovely Linden Travers, as Joan, and Charles Victor as Nobby. Travers gets a much better deal than many of the leading ladies in Wallace adaptations - Joan is feisty, independent, and refuses to be intimidated by the villains. The romantic aspect to her relationship with Dicker is both inevitable and inexplicable - it seems you couldn't make a film in the 40's without your leads ending up together, but although Stuart and Travers are both very good in their roles, there's nothing in their chemistry to suggest they'd be interested in one another.

Nobby is an altogether more complicated character. He's the classic Wallace comic-crook, a safe-breaker who ends up aiding the police and helping to save the day. And he is funny - he gets the best lines, some great physical moments, and a scene in which he breaks into a safe he once installed is a masterclass in smug, self confident villainy. However, he's also painfully misogynistic. I'm not applying a 2018 mindset to a 75 year old film here, either; when Nobby is first introduced, he's referred to by another character as "The woman-hater", and it doesn't really get any better from there. For every great line or eye-roll he delivers, there's an uncomfortable comment about the evils of women and a withering assessment of their 'weaknesses' and 'tricks'. It's unpleasant, and it detracts from the film - and it makes Nobby, who should be the most likeable element in the film, into a nauseating bore. (For a masterclass in how to play a Wallace comic-crook, see William Hartnell's perfect performance in the 1952 version of The Ringer).

Rounding out the cast are Patricia Hilliard as Dora, and John Warwick, Brefni O'Rorke and Valentine Dyall as a selection of suspects. Hilliard is very good, although this was her final film role - she retired soon after. Dora doesn't get to be quite as tough or as feisty as Joan, but Hilliard mixes vulnerability with stoicism to produce an endearing and sweet character. Dyall - soon to find fame with his treacley voice on BBC radio, as The Man In Black on the long running Appointment With Fear (and almost forty years before he stuck a crow on his head as the Black Guardian in Doctor Who) - plays against type as a snivelly, cowardly lawyer mixed up in The Panda's intrigues. He also gets the biggest (inadvertent) laugh in the film, as Rex admonishes him for his weakness and his dishonesty, all while Dyall tucks into a hearty breakfast.

It ends, as all Wallace projects must, quite happily. Wrongs are righted, the wicked are punished and love has been found. There are some twists along the way - and to be fair, a few of them were actually quite surprising - and then everyone goes home, presumably for tea. It's very British, and it's very comfortable - there's nothing to suggest the world was tearing itself apart as these characters variously charm, cheat and hoodwink one another. It might not be very challenging, and it might not be very original - but it's Wallace, and that's enough.

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For just $3.99 The Flemish Farm Released on September 6, 1943: Directed by: Jeffrey Dell Written by: Jill Craigie and Jeffrey Dell The Actors: Clive Brook Major Lessart, Clifford Evans Jean Duclos, Jane Baxter Tresha, Philip Friend Fernard Matagne, Brefni O'Rorke Minister, Wylie Watson farmer, Tresha's father, Ronald Squire Hardwicke, Mary Jerrold Mademoiselle Duclos, Charles Compton Ledoux, Richard George Scheldheimer, Lily Kann farm wife, Irene Handl Frau, John Boxer cyclist, Charles Rolfe German machine gunner, Johnnie Schofield road gang worker, Ben Williams German soldier, Adolf Hitler himself, archive film footage Runtime: 1h 22m *** This item will be supplied on a quality disc and will be sent in a sleeve that is designed for posting CD's DVDs *** This item will be sent by 1st class post for quick delivery. Should you not receive your item within 12 working days of making payment, please contact us as it is unusual for any item to take this long to be delivered. Note: All my products are either my own work, licensed to me directly or supplied to me under a GPL/GNU License. No Trademarks, copyrights or rules have been violated by this item. This product complies withs rules on compilations, international media and downloadable media. All items are supplied on CD or DVD.

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We’ll Meet Again (1943) Philip Brandon

April 12th 2020

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For just $3.99 The Root of All Evil Released on February 5, 1947: A young girl tossed out of house and home and forbidden to marry the man she loves becomes a wealthy businesswoman who can crush every man she meets . . . Except for Joe. Directed by: Brock Williams Written by: J.S. Fletcher with screenplay by Brock Williams The Actors: Phyllis Calvert Jeckie Farnish, Michael Rennie Charles Mortimer, John McCallum Joe Bartle, Brefni O'Rorke Dad James Farnish, Moore Marriott Scholes, Hazel Court Rushie Farnish, Arthur Young George Grice, Reginald Purdell Perkins, Hubert Gregg Albert Grice, Stewart Rome Sir George, George Carney Bowser, Pat Hicks Lucy, George Carney Bowser, Pat Hicks Lucy, George Merritt landlord, Rory MacDermot Overthwaite, Maureen Moore Mrs. Scholes, Bryan Herbert Stubley, Ellis Irving auctioneer, Diana Decker Pam, Michael Medwin unknown Runtime: 1h 50m *** This item will be supplied on a quality disc and will be sent in a sleeve that is designed for posting CD's DVDs *** This item will be sent by 1st class post for quick delivery. Should you not receive your item within 12 working days of making payment, please contact us as it is unusual for any item to take this long to be delivered. Note: All my products are either my own work, licensed to me directly or supplied to me under a GPL/GNU License. No Trademarks, copyrights or rules have been violated by this item. This product complies withs rules on compilations, international media and downloadable media. All items are supplied on CD or DVD.

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For just $3.99 Secret Mission Released on October 5, 1942: British spies infiltrate occupied France during World War II in search of enemy troop information. Directed by: Harold French Written by: Terence Young with screenplay by Basil Bartlett and Anatole de Grunwald The Actors: Hugh Williams Major Peter Garnett, James Mason Raoul de Carnot, Carla Lehmann Michele de Carnot, Michael Wilding Private Nobby Clark, Roland Culver Captain Red Gowan, Nancy Price housekeeper Violette, Karel Stepanek Major Lang, Fritz Wendhausen General von Reichman, Betty Warren Lulu Clark, Percy Walsh M. Fayolle, Anita Gombault Estelle Fayolle, Nicholas Stuart Captain Mackenzie, John Salew Hauptmann Gruening, Yvonne Andre Martine, money collector, David Page Rene de Carnot, boy, Brefni O'Rorke village priest, Beatrice Varley British cook Runtime: 1h 34m *** This item will be supplied on a quality disc and will be sent in a sleeve that is designed for posting CD's DVDs *** This item will be sent by 1st class post for quick delivery. Should you not receive your item within 12 working days of making payment, please contact us as it is unusual for any item to take this long to be delivered. Note: All my products are either my own work, licensed to me directly or supplied to me under a GPL/GNU License. No Trademarks, copyrights or rules have been violated by this item. This product complies withs rules on compilations, international media and downloadable media. All items are supplied on CD or DVD.

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For just $3.99 Cottage to Let Released September 6, 1941: The inventor of a new bombsight for the war effort is in danger when strangers move into the cottage next door. Directed by: Anthony Asquith Written by: Geoffrey Kerr with screenplay by Anatole de Grunwald and J.O.C. Orton. The Actors: Leslie Banks John Barrington, Alastair Sim Charles Dimble, John Mills Flight Lieutenant George Perry, Jeanne De Casalis Mrs. Marguerite Barrington, Carla Lehmann Helen Barrington, George Cole Ronald Mittsby, Michael Wilding Alan Trently, Frank Cellier Ernest Forest, Muriel Aked Miss Fernery, Wally Patch Evans the butler, Muriel George Mrs. Trimm, "Hay Petrie Dr. Truscott, Catherine Lacey Mrs. Stokes, Annie Esmond lady wrapping parcels for the bazaar, Peter Gawthorne Senior Royal Air Force Officer, Arthur Hambling Scotland Yard Inspector, Roddy Hughes German agent, Sydney King Ministry official, Brefni O'Rorke Scottish Police Inspector, Charles Rolfe German Agent, Sydney Tafler Royal Air Force Officer, Ben Williams Scottish fisherman. Runtime: 1h 30m *** This item will be supplied on a quality disc and will be sent in a sleeve that is designed for posting CD's DVDs *** This item will be sent by 1st class post for quick delivery. Should you not receive your item within 12 working days of making payment, please contact us as it is unusual for any item to take this long to be delivered. Note: All my products are either my own work, licensed to me directly or supplied to me under a GPL/GNU License. No Trademarks, copyrights or rules have been violated by this item This product complies withs rules on compilations, international media and downloadable media. All items are supplied on CD or DVD. On Dec-07-16 at 14:44:49 PST, seller added the following information: