Paul Temple Returns

The indefatigable Maclean Rogers directs John Bentley in their third movie about mystery writer and police consultant Paul Temple and his wife Steve, as played by Patricia Dainton. It's based on a radio play by series originator Francis Durdrige, Paul Temple Intervenes, broadcast in October and November of 1942. It seems some bad guy known as 'The Marquis' has been killing a bunch of people. Bentley and Dainton stick their noses in. Will they figure out who he is or will they get bumped off themselves? With both Valentine Dyall and Christopher Lee in the cast, there seems to be plenty of people to suspect.

It's a pretty good movie from Nettleford, with the leads looking like they're having fun. Longtime cameraman Geoffrey Failthfull does his usual competent job, demonstrating that despite short budgets, B movie producer Nettleford was capable of producing entertaining, if undemanding movies

This film, released in America as BOMBAY WATERFRONT, is the last of the four feature films made between 1946 and 1952 which were based upon the stories of Frances Durbridge and featured her character, the detective Paul Temple. Anthony Hulme played Temple in the first film (SEND FOR PAUL TEMPLE, 1946, see my review) and John Bentley played the character in the succeeding three films, including this one. Temple's wife 'Steve' was played in succession by Joy Shelton, Dinah Sheridan (twice), and Patricia Dainton here. The third film in the series, PAUL TEMPLE'S TRIUMPH (1950) is unavailable, having never been released on video or DVD. The other three are readily available on DVD in digitally remastered form. CALLING PAUL TEMPLE (1948, see my review) is a rather limp and unsatisfactory film. This one is much better. The atmosphere is mysterious and effective, despite the low budget. John Bentley is an engaging, if somewhat lightweight, hero. One of the finest performances in the film is by the seventy-something Peter Gawthorne, as Sir Graham Forbes, the head of Scotland Yard. The young Robert Urquhart, later a fine actor, is strangely ineffectual here. Christopher Lee, who had already appeared in many films, does well as usual. This story is based on Durbridge's radio serial PAUL TEMPLE INTERVENES, which was broadcast on the BBC in 1952. The story concerns a series of mysterious murders of people who appear to have no connection with one another. But eventually the common thread is discovered to be a secret papyrus recently excavated in Egypt by the character played by Lee, which contains the antidote for all narcotic drugs, and could destroy the world narcotics cartels if it became known. The unknown killer calls himself 'The Marquess', though the reason for the name is never given. There are many candidates for 'The Marquess', and it is made as difficult as possible for us to guess his or her identity. The film is very entertaining if you like this kind of thing. There are numerous interesting shots of the London streets as they were in 1952, particularly at night.

The fourth and final adaptation of the Paul Temple radio plays, PAUL TEMPLE RETURNS sees the vacationing sleuth living up the high life in New York, where he now makes a living from his work as a crime writer. However, the powers that be call him back to Britain after a sinister figure known only as the Marquis begins to carve his way through the upper ranks of society.

It's a well paced, Edgar Wallace-style storyline and one that's a lot more fun than the last Paul Temple film I watched, SEND FOR PAUL TEMPLE. The main character and his associate Steve remain a bit boring, but the supporting cast are better here, and overall the budget seems a bit bigger too. Certainly there are some strong moments in the murder scenes and an exciting rooftop atmosphere which is dripping with atmosphere.

The supporting cast also incorporates number of past and future horror greats, including the Man in Black himself, Valentine Dyall, as one of the policemen. Horror fans will be chiefly impressed by the inclusion of Christopher Lee in a sinister turn as one of the main suspects, a professor whose collection of Egyptian artifacts neatly precursors his later role as THE MUMMY. Robert Urquhart (THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN) is here too as yet another suspect, and the dependable Ronald Leight-Hunt plays a copper.

BBC radio made a serialize story, "Paul Temple Intervenes", and this film is based on this character. However, since only British audiences were familiar with it, the title "Paul Temple Returns" was changed to "Bombay Waterfront" for distribution in the United States.

Paul and his oddly named wife, Steve, are husband-wife crime fighters...sort of like a sober and less interesting version of Nick and Nora Charles. A person nicknamed 'The Marquise" is murdering people, and as that is rather nasty, the Temples decide to investigate.

There's nothing horrible about the film, though the end is weak. Otherwise, it's a typical B-sort of movie with the usual cliches. The worst cliches were at the end...where the killer is confronted by a group of folks...and they don't consider he might have a gun or might try to run. And, when Paul is battling the killer, his loyal wife just stands there and doesn't help. Perhaps the guy was heavily insured and Mrs. Temple was happy regardless who won the fight. All I know is that it's an agreeable time-passer, at best, and nothing more.

Dumb at end with gun and mrs. Temple then she just stands there.

I knew vaguely of British thriller writer Francis Durbridge, but was unaware that he had created a husband-and-wife team of sleuths obviously modeled on Nick and Nora Charles of "The Thin Man" fame and which had a similar run of 'vehicles' on the big screen; even so, the characters here (at least judging by this one film) lacked the foibles, the banter and the canine assistant – which is basically what had endeared the prototype to audiences – but, then, these were made within the framework of the then-prevalent "quota quickies".

Incidentally, I only came upon this as yet another early role for Christopher Lee: watching him in his few (albeit pivotal) scenes, it is evident that it was only a matter of time before his star quality was recognized – it would merely take the right set of circumstances and collaborators! Anyway, the film provides standard thrills, with the life-threatening devices in this case involving deliberate road accidents, electric fences and even a snake on the loose (not unlike the Edgar Wallace-derived "Krimis" Lee would himself add to his resume during the next decade – indeed, I should be checking two of those out presently!), not to mention numerous suspects (Lee as a suavely bearded, bespectacled and pipe-smoking archaeologist is one of them, of course…and another is Robert Urquhart, a fellow actor in the horror icon's breakthrough movie THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN {1957}!). That said, I was able to figure out the guilty party well before the end!

For the record, this was the fourth and final entry in the Paul Temple movie series (three had the same director and leading man – John Bentley, at times bearing a striking resemblance to the young Sean Connery!): he had originated on radio and would be resurrected on TV but, as I said, this particular figure has not stuck with the public consciousness simply because he exhibited no character traits to distinguish him from the flood of cops and private investigators that have populated the genre over the years (the fact that the central couple had a complacent Indian servant at their constant beck and call certainly did not help matters)! Finally, the U.S. retitling – BOMBAY WATERFRONT, despite its definite connection to the plot – only served to make the whole seem even less appetizing! In any case, I enjoy this entry well enough to acquire another one in the series soon after, SEND FOR PAUL TEMPLE (1946)