The House of the Arrow

'The House of the Arrow' was a successful murder mystery novel published in 1924 by the popular author A. E. W. Mason (1865-1948), and was the second of five novels written by Mason which featured his whimsical French detective named Hanaud. If you go into a secondhand bookshop in England, unless it is a very expensive one, you are liable to find many old novels by Mason, who was very widely read between the Wars. Of course, the secondhand bookshops are closing rapidly these days because of the high rents, largely finished off by a severe recession, so the days of finding piles of Mason novels for sale are coming to an end, and soon they will only be an abstraction for sale on the internet, where you cannot handle anything or smell the paper. This novel was filmed three times, in 1930, 1940, and finally in 1953. I don't know if the two earlier film versions survive. This one was directed by Michael Anderson, who was not one of the more inspired British directors in cinema history, and so I was frankly puzzled by the imaginative camera angles, framing and composition so evident in the cinematography for this film. One can only conclude that this was all due to the cinematographer, Erwin Hillier, who started in films by working for F. W. Murnau and Fritz Lang in Germany. Hillier, of mixed German and English parentage, was cinematographer on 51 films and only died in 2005 at the age of 94. Michael Anderson as director is best remembered for the huge hit 'Around the World in Eighty Days' (1956), 'The Wreck of the Mary Deare' (1959), and the highly successful 'The Quiller Memorandum' (1966). He directed this particular film very well, but as I hinted earlier, he was never one of the geniuses of his profession, and was often turned to as 'a safe pair of lenses' because everyone knew he could deliver, even if it lacked that 'something special'. I remember producers discussing him in these terms when trying to choose a 'safe' director for a large-scale film project. Oscar Homolka, a rascally and amusing actor with a face so ugly he makes the most of it by grimacing a lot with it, just to tease us, positively shines in a rare leading role as the detective Hanaud. When an actor who is not a handsome leading man gets the chance to play the lead in anything, he must grab it with both hands, or as in this case with both eyebrows. It all goes to show that character actors are often the best, given half a chance. (Bill Nighy proves this today.) Homolka, who was an Austrian born in Vienna, was nominated for an Oscar in 1948 for his performance in the film 'I Remember Mama'. He appeared in 98 films and died aged 79 in 1978 in England. He is generally remembered for playing Russian generals and spies when he was older. In this film, the handsome male love interest is Robert Urquhart, who plays a British solicitor (one of the rare occasions when the legal profession has been given such a romantic opportunity, as he gets to flirt with not one but two pretty women in the story). The two pretty women are Yvonne Furneaux and Josephine Griffin, one of them a villain and one of them an innocent, though I must not say which is which. This is a good sound murder mystery, well worth watching for that reason, and extremely amusing because of Homolka's impish and impudent portrayal of Hanaud the detective. There is an arrow in the story, hence the title.

This was screened several times, and no wonder, since the plot is a mystery that even transcends most of Agatha Christie's professional mysteries. Poisoning is supected, but no trace of any poison can be found. The sole heiress immediately becomes implicated and accused, but no proof can be found against her. A lovely maid is another suspect, but her innocence actually leads to solving the mystery in the end. A jealous cousin becomes seriously suspected by the police from the beginning, since he so vehemently accuses the heiress, but he has to take everything back. No one can guess the outcome, which will be a surprise. Oskar Homolka as the police investigator gloriously dominates the film and adds to its picturesque character of mystery veiled in enigmas, and it must be one of his best films. The music is also perfect, suits the mood exactly, like Anton Karas' cither in "The Third Man", and is actually a major enjoyment in the film. The cinematography is also interesting for its depth and fascinating treatment of the environment in spite of the settings being rather clastrophobic, but the film surmounts that temptation. In brief, a golden treat for lovers of criminal mysteries.

Oscar Hamolka was one of those actors who dominate films.He outacts everyone on the screen by virtue of his personality and his acting tricks.It is therefore strange that his performance in this film is so little known.The beginning of the film has certain linguistic difficulties.Chaeacters constantly start their speecehes in French and are then told to speak in English by Homolka,who clearly speaks excellent French.Homolka was Austrian but played many nationalities including as here ,French.This murder mystery is well developed with a number of hidden surprises revealed at the denouement.Certainly worthy of greater recognition.

Pretty good mystery movie from a pretty good writer in A.E.W. Mason ("The Four Feathers", "Fire Over England"). The big surprise here, though, is Oscar Homolka as Insp. Hanaud, a charismatic, urbane figure unlike any Homolka has ever played. He is cleaned up, shorn of bushy eyebrows, hair combed back and dressed like a fashion plate instead of his usual rumpled old self.

He carries the picture by himself and the producers probably spent most of their money on his salary, as the rest of the cast are unknowns and the whole production looks to have been made at the British equivalent of one of Hollywood's Poverty Row studios.

I didn't read the book but I think Mason shortchanged his story by leaving us with only three suspects to choose from. The plot is a good one and it keeps you guessing right to the end, which comes up on us rather abruptly. If you get a chance, see it, you will like it. And, like me, you can wonder what could have been if it were made at a bigger studio.

A French police inspector (Oscar Homolka) questions the heiress (Yvonne Furneaux) of a rich widow killed by a poison arrow, thanks to the heiress' jealous cousin who claims that his sister had been murdered and vehemently accuses the heiress. He himself becomes seriously suspected by the police ...

But then the autopsy proves that the lady wasn't poisoned, however, the inspector believes she was murdered and that by a rare arrow containing poison.

I found this quite enjoyable with its brilliant atmosphere, French organ music, its continental appeal and an eccentric inspector, but I was also left trailing with the mystery details. For example, the victim's autopsy was proven not to be poisoned, but an arrow poison killed her. Maybe a rare poison that does want show up in tests.