The Green Shoes

A curious choice for actor George Cole,almost playing a much more serious variation on his standard 'worried and wimpy' comic roles he had made a living out of in his British film career,this time in a short film.The twist ending is fairly obvious,but the film is watchable;it probably would have worked better as a TV half-hour drama rather than a film.

THE GREEN SHOES once turned up on late night UK TV in the 1980's;it has vanished from view since.Some other UK short films of the 1960's like RHUBARB(1969),OUCH!(1967),and perhaps most famously of all,the featurette THE PLANK(1967)regularly made showings on UK TV in the 1970's;the aforementioned have also made similar disappearing acts.

Quite possibly the most obscure thing on George Cole's CV, I captured this little gem on a late night screening on ITV in 1984, all 25 minutes of it. Its set in a police interview room where a moody detective investigating the murder of a girl is questioning a witness who may in fact be the killer. The witness is none other than George Cole as a mild-mannered, nervy, wetter than a wet weekend but rather seedy put upon husband who claims he was letching the girl harmlessly like a lonely middle aged married man and had nothing to do with her murder.

Cole is playing a slightly less affluent Arthur Daley here, and its a marvellous character performance: over 25 minutes he even manages to develop catchphrases and unique mannerisms. Aside from a few silent flashbacks the film is totally a one room piece and a forgotten gem, like a low-key and quirky version of The Offence. Its themes are interesting and its tone light.

I remember watching this late one weekday in the early eighties and it was mesmerizing. George Cole playing a scared suspect convincingly and without his well-known comedic angle.