Circle of Danger

Sandwiched between two Technicolour swashbucklers comes this modest, understated and absorbing black and white whodunnit from the stylish Jacques Tourneur, now working freelance.

In the course of trying to discover how his younger brother died during a commando raid in occupied France, the Clay Douglas of dapper Ray Milland travels the length and breadth of the British Isles and comes across a varied assortment of characters who supply him with snippets of information. He thinks he has pinpointed his brother's killer but he is in for a surprise..........

The casting here is spot on and there is a marvellous turn by Marius Goring as a 'camp' choreographer named Sholto whilst Naunton Wayne, this time without Basil Radford, is superlative as a car salesman named, naturally enough, Reggie Sinclair. The female interest here is supplied by the enchanting Patricia Roc whose chemistry with Milland is palpable. The only piece of bizarre casting is that of Dora Bryan as a cabaret artiste who sings with an obviously dubbed American accent the splendidly suggestive 'I've got a buttonhole for my baby'!

The cast is lucky enough to have the dialogue to speak of Philip MacDonald whilst the cinematography and editing are by two of the finest in their respective fields, Oswald Morris and Alan Osbiston.

The scene that lingers longest in the memory is that in which Milland confronts Goring and Hugh Sinclair in a bleak Scottish landscape and finally learns the truth. Masterful direction here by Tourneur.

I was gripped by this piece from the outset and what I was fully expecting to be a grevious disappointment turned out to be a jubilant surprise.

In case anyone's interested the fabulous motor that Milland gets to drive is a 1920 Mercedes Benz. They certainly don't make cars, or indeed films, like that any more.

This is a tricky post war drama, when an American comes to England to investigate how his brother really died in the war, being a single casualty at an incident. His family has Scottish roots, his name being Douglas, so there is a great deal of Scotland in this, and although it's all about the second world war, the entire drama takes place in Britain, especially Scotland. The last scene on the Scottish moors is extremely sharp in its concentration on an extreme moral dilemma that the soldiers of the relevant company found themselves in and had to resolve in a painful way. The script is brilliant and extremely interesting, as the investigation goes on probing deeper and deeper into a mystery that refuses to be unfolded, until Marius Goring intervenes and provides the releasing contribution. It's actually a chamber drama, it's all dialogue and discussions, and the romance seems beside the point, although it is well captured and plays some important part, especially by constantly encountering new crises. Ray Milland is always good, Hugh Sinclair plays a difficult part but is the right man for the job, while Patricia Roc contrasts well to the austerity of the drama by her beauty and obstinacy to Ray Milland's devious manoeuvres. It's an unusual film more made for thought and consideration than for enjoyment.

Ray Milland (born in Neath, Glamorgan, Wales) keeps his transatlantic accent playing an American searching for the reason for his brother's death during a commando raid attached to the British army in 1940 (before America entered the war) in Brittany, France.Ray leaves his diving team searching for precious metal off the coast of Tampa, Florida, takes his share of the profits to date and travels to the UK in his aforementioned quest.Along the way he meets up with the few surviving members of the commando team travelling to Covent Garden, London; Teddington Lock on the Thames; Hammersmith west London; and up into the Scottish Highlands where he meets Patricia Roc a children's book authoress and illustrator.Her character seems to blow hot and cold with Ray but at least she does not have to compete for Ray's attention with Margaret Lockwood (who was busy filming elsewhere).Also there, is Hamish (Hugh Sinclar) who was the commanding officer in the raid and who loves Patricia Roc's character (although she only likes him).Ray even buys a used car off wide boy Naunton Wayne (who for once is without his screen companion Basil Radford) in return for information - at least it saves Ray having to "cadge" lifts.

Marius Goring plays a sinister character who since the war end has gone into producing ballet (and I am sure he got the role after playing the composer in Powell & Pressburger's acclaimed " The Red Shoes" (1948).The director, Jacques Tourneur is most notable in my collection for "Out of the Past"(1947) and "Experiment Perilous" (1944) and here directs an exciting "whodunnit" which takes Ray back & forth as he gradually unravels the truth.As another reviewer has stated we get to see some good locational shots which makes a change from hidebound studio interiors.Another curious thing is there is no noticeable mood music in the film.The final scene is unexpected and you are led down several blind alleys first.Enjoyable, I rated it 7/10.

Jacques Tourneur directed this postwar British mystery film very well, and the cinematography by Ossie Morris and camera operating by Arthur Ibbetson were superior, and added to the film's atmosphere considerably. Ray Milland is the lead actor, playing an American who visits England and wants to find out how and why his younger brother had died during the War. The brother (not seen in the film) had joined up as a British commando in 1940 and was mysteriously killed on a commando raid 'with not a German in sight'. Was he murdered by a comrade? Milland sets about visiting in turn all of the 12 men of the commando unit, only to discover that many of them are dead and one died only two weeks before his arrival in England after suggesting that the brother had been a murder victim. One of the surviving men is an East End wide boy played by Naunton Wayne, who is usually a bumbling gent but on this occasion is a convincing used car salesman. His girl friend 'Bubbles' who even does a singing number is played by the ever-effervescent Dora Bryan. A deeply sinister performance is contributed by Marius Goring, as a gay ballet dancer who knows how to handle a gun and whose role in the story only becomes clear at the end. Patricia Roc is the love interest, who alternates between being bouncy and adorable and being the most horrible spoilt brat who pouts if kept waiting for a few minutes and accuses Milland of not being dressed properly when he is in a mere suit and tie (she snottily points out that he has 'ruined her evening' because he hasn't had time to change into black tie). She really needed several good spankings, but does not get one, unfortunately. Milland is very effective in this mysterious tale, exerting extraordinary self-control in the face of extreme provocation from the uncommunicative and rude former comrades of his brother. There are some fine shots of the Scottish highlands as Milland pursues the truth north of the border, where the whistling of a folk tune called 'White Heather' takes on significance in terms of identifying the killer. This is a fine film without pretensions, where the intrigue is unravelled like a thread and leads Milland to strange discoveries about what really happened.

Although I had not intended this current noir marathon to be a tribute to any one particular actor, this will be my fourth Ray Milland movie in a row! Originally hailing from Wales, this sees the Hollywood star making a welcome return to his homeland (and its environs) – albeit playing an American! – for a rather unusual Hitchcockian post-war thriller. The story deals with a salvage captain leaving Florida to go all over the United Kingdom (Wales, Scotland and London) – the roundabout nature of the route anticipating the Hitchcock classic NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959) – to seek out the surviving members of a commando team who operated in France during WWII and unravel the mysterious events surrounding his younger brother's death.

This largely reticent and unhelpful bunch includes a wonderful turn by Marius Goring (who has now become a celebrated ballet choreographer), Hugh Sinclair (the former commando leader who is now a brooding baronet), Naunton Wayne (a clear nod toward Hitchcock right there, having acquired a reputation playing one of two cricket-crazy twits in THE LADY VANISHES [1938] – now a chatty, crooked car salesman) and Edward Rigby (playing a Welshman, thus obviously a miner!). Notable support, then, is provided by the lovely Patricia Roc (as Sinclair's intended, and whose 'meeting cute' with Milland precipitates a bumpy affair – again a' la NORTH BY NORTHWEST – but with the expected happy ending) as well as the ever-reliable Reginald Beckwith (from director Tourneur's later NIGHT OF THE DEMON [1957], as Goring's long-suffering partner).

Despite the rather glum aura of the proceedings, this is less a noir than a whodunnit and, as if to emphasize that very difference, we are regaled with celebrated cinematographer Oswald Morris (and equally notable camera operators Gilbert Taylor and Arthur Ibbetson)'s breathtaking location shooting – the downbeat revelation at the climax, taking place in an open field, is particularly masterfully handled – as opposed to the claustrophobic studio sets usually associated with the former genre. For the record, Milland himself had starred in Fritz Lang's superb wartime thriller MINISTRY OF FEAR (1944) boasting a famously inaccurate Hollywood rendition of London!

Another link to "The Master Of Suspense" is the presence of co-producer Joan Harrison (a longtime Hitchcock collaborator), even if the 'whistled tune' giveaway device immediately reminds one of Lang's child-murdering masterpiece M (1931)! In the end, one should be grateful Jacques Tourneur's first working trip to England here worked as well as it did – since, in six years' time, this would be followed by his last great (and one of his best-ever) film i.e. the afore-mentioned NIGHT OF THE DEMON.