La maison des sept faucons

"The House of Seven Hawks" would have been much better had it been produced by Robert Taylor's old employer, MGM.

Instead, the film turned out to be quite a disappointment for Taylor, a man who had been a major star for two decades. I will say this; the opening is quite intriguing. Taylor's character agrees to transport a man from England to the Continent by boat, and does so. After arrival, however, he soon discovers that this simple business deal is quite a bit more complicated than what he expected.

Sadly, the film does not take advantage of this clever opening. From that point on, it is rather routine.

As others have suggested, this ends up being a rather lackluster B effort not close to the level of the films Taylor made for MGM. In that regard, this movie is similar to the 1959 efforts of Alan Ladd, a man whose great success in the 1940s and early 1950s was followed by some very mediocre productions. (In Ladd's case, the actor himself was largely to blame due to very poor judgment regarding choice of film projects.)

My admiration for Robert Taylor has grown over time. He was a better actor than many gave him credit for. (I recommend his performances in "Bataan" and "Johnny Eager.") Sadly, this particular movie, though watchable, did nothing to enhance his reputation.

John Nordley (Robert Taylor) sails his boat out of the British port of Baymouth. The authorities suspects him of smuggling to foreign ports. He is hired by older Dutch gentleman Anselm. Anselm surprises him with the destination of Holland without the authorities' knowledge but with a large payment. Anselm dies in his sleep. Upon arriving in Holland, Nordley is met by Anselm's daughter who quickly rummages through the dead body. Nordley had already hidden away the money and other stuff and she finds nothing. At the port, he is met by the police who takes him into custody. The dead man turns out to be police inspector Sluiter and his daughter Constanta was not the one who got on his boat.

This is a B-movie trying to be a cheap Hitchcock thriller. Taylor is treating the situation too lightly. The humor is too slight. I do like the starting premise but the story doesn't build tension. Taylor never lets on that he's in danger. The characters are mostly one dimensional. I would like for the two women to look a lot different. This is an easy thriller and it needs more tension.

This is a good 'rainy afternoon film'. It is harmless, entertaining and well made. It was directed by old pro Richard Thorpe. Robert Taylor plays an independent sailboat owner based on the southern coast of England (with the script explaining why he is an American) who 'takes people where they want to go'. One day a mysterious man with a briefcase who calls himself Mr. Anselm books his boat for a coastal tour. After setting out, he says he wants instead to go to a port in the Netherlands. Taylor is not supposed to do foreign trips without permission from his harbour master, but as he is offered a substantial amount of money by the man (whose briefcase is stuffed with cash), he agrees. The man says he is Dutch and hence does not normally get seasick, but on this occasion he says he does not feel well at all, and goes to lie down in his cabin. Later when Taylor takes him a cup of tea, he finds the man lying dead on his bed. We later discover that he has been murdered by someone tampering with his insulin supply before boarding, as he was a diabetic. Taylor uses the little key hanging round the man's neck on a chain to open the briefcase, and takes the cash owing to him, leaving the rest intact and shutting the briefcase. In using the key, he accidentally discovers that the man has taped to his chest, under his shirt, a small envelope containing a little hand-drawn map. He puts it back and goes back on deck, to steer into the Dutch harbour. Before he can get there, however, a pretty girl comes up in a small motorboat saying that she is the dead man's daughter. Taylor breaks the news to her and she says she wants to look at her father, and goes down below. Taylor follows her after a while and finds her ransacking the cabin, looking urgently for something. She has pried open the briefcase and is searching everywhere. She runs away, gets back in her boat and goes back into the harbour. Taylor looks and sees that the map is still taped to the man's chest, and that she has missed it. He takes it and hides it in his private stowaway with his gun. He later discovers that the girl was an impostor and was not the dead man's daughter at all. The intrigue deepens as Taylor is taken into custody by the Dutch police and removed to the Hague, where a senior Dutch police inspector is played by a gruff Donald Wolfit. He informs Taylor that the dead man was really a Mr Sluiter, who was head of the Hague Police Force. He had made a secret trip to England as part of a confidential investigation. The plot thickens and thickens and thickens, with villains turning up, some unctuous and rich, some thuggish. The fake daughter gets murdered, and there is menace all around. David Kossof is particularly brilliant as a supporting actor, playing a character named Willem Dekker. He adds a great deal of liveliness to the film. This is all good fun and well recommended.

This is not exactly an excellent drama but it sure is very entertaining. It has elements that remind me of Bogart and features a well written plot and believable characters. I'd happily watch this one every couple of years as, although the plot-line is fairly simple,. it's also quite good. All in all a very entertaining drama definitely upscale from it's B-movie moniker.

A somewhat muddled affair , but its numerous sudden new developments , and the filming on location in the Netherlands make up for it .Aging Robert Taylor had still plenty of go ,and the lines ,sometimes tongue in chick ,doesn't lack in humor : his passenger's famous last words for instance ! The rapport he has with his pal (or is he ?) Charlie is much fun to watch ;the line about the revolver on the boat is irresistible .Towards the end ,with the appearance of the old couple,who lived through WW2 (like the principal) ,the screenplay displays a more human side , when they talk about the wounded soldiers ; the clock is a good trick and justifies the title (one expects the action to take place in this strange place whereas it only appears in the last fifteen minutes )

French Nicole Maurey never became a big star in her native land ;her comings and goings between Paris and Hollywood may explain it.