Mantrap

This has happened frequently in the movies, and it always happens again. The chief attraction here though is the ladies. Lois Maxwell is perfect as the professional woman who is scared to death of the return of her former husband, who has escaped from prison, after having been sentenced for a number of years for a stipulated murder, of which he has no memory, since the shock of it brought him amnesia. The other lady is Kay Kendall in an early role as the becoming wife of Paul Henreid, who is a lawyer who is asked to assist the fugitive, an artist, by a colleague of his, another artist, who believes he is innocent, and they both find it plausible that he has escaped from prison only to search out the real murderer. All they have as a lead is a few sketches by the fugitive, who never forgot the face of the murderer and made quite a number of sketches of his face. It is a small but highly efficient thriller, as the suspense keeps towering up throughout the film, culminating in a party towrds the end with everyone there, also both Lois Maxwell and Kay Kendall. Paul Henreid makes a good gentlemanly performance as always, but the chief attraction is the two ladies. Lois Maxwell was quite an actress, and Kay Kendall, soon the wife of Rex Harrison, would crown her career as the greatest comedienne British cinema has ever seen.

Paul Henreid stars in this Hammer B mystery as a private detective, Hugo Bishop. He is hired to find an escaped prisoner who had been convicted of a motiveless murder. They meet up at night at the scene of the murder with the silhouetted dome of St Paul's Cathedral as a backdrop. The rubble-strewn scenes of post-Blitz London are good. Lois Maxwell plays the escaped prisoner's frightened wife. She has found a new life surrounded by influential people. I reckon her best scene is when she awakens in panic in a beauty parlor. Bishop is determined to find the reason the escapee has returned to the scene of the murder. I think this would have made a good series with Henreid as the private detective. He plays it right. The character reminds me of The Falcon of the 1940s mystery series.

Paul Henried is uncharacteristically jaunty in this early Hammer thriller set in a postwar London of bombsites, trenchcoats and impossibly glamorous females. Before she found her niche as Miss Moneypenny Lois Maxwell plays a damsel in distress, the role of sexy secretary instead going to an up and coming young Kay Kendall.

I only rated this 1953 film 5/10 as average.It has rather poor continuity, editing and to be frank is rather dull for what purports to be a thriller.The highlight for me was to see an early Kay Kendall performance however I did not recognise "Miss Moneypenny" (Lois Maxwell from early James Bond films) who played the female lead.The other user review above succinctly outlines the basic plot, such as it was, so I won't repeat it.Casting Paul Henreid in the male lead role as an investigative lawyer was a mistake as the producer should have cast a British actor for more verisimilitude in the role.Normally I like what I call "Cholomdley-Warner" (apologies to Harry Enfield) films but this was not one of them.

With an opening sequence bearing a striking resemblance to Bogart's 'Dark Passage', convicted murderer, Kieron Moore escapes prison aboard a truck in a determined bid to prove his innocence. From this point, similarities between the two movies rapidly blur. There is no plastic surgery and Paul Henreid is a far less glamorous confidante than Lauren Bacall! More crucially, 'Mantrap' is a significantly inferior piece of work.

News that Moore is on the run, seriously ruffles the feathers of ex-wife Lois Maxwell, now a successful writer, whilst senior detective, Lloyd Lamble creates an elaborate board game from shunting police cars around the capital in an attempt to snare the convict. Meanwhile, astute lawyer, turned investigator, Henreid has rooted himself at the derelict, bomb site crime scene, where his prolonged patience is rewarded, when Moore finally returns.

Going forward, 'Mantrap' is essentially a talking picture, rather than a moving picture. Just revealing the filling in the sandwich which Henreid offers to the ravenous Moore would have boosted the interest level. The belated chase sequence looks like it was tacked on as an afterthought. The bad guy almost having to be persuaded to make a break for it, whilst everyone's attention is diverted elsewhere.

A second viewing, reveals a few previously unappreciated subtleties and nuances, at least partially lifting the movie out of the miasma of mediocrity, but it's fine margins. For real punch and potency, delivered with panache and pizzazz, check out the aforementioned 'Dark Passage'.