They Drive by Night

Taut British noir. set mostly after dark and indoors, about an innocent man on the run for a crime he did not commit (Emlyn Williams), the girl who helps him (Anna Konstam with a blonde perm), not quite a tart but with a heart of gold, and a creepy serial killer (Ernest Thesiger).

Interesting for its inversion of the usual values of 1930s British films, in which the lower classes tend to be either comic or villainous or both. Here the murderer has the accent, the education, the aesthetic taste and the comfortable house while virtually all the other characters share the camaraderie of the working class, which includes a disinclination to say too much to the police.

A number of similarities with Hitchcock films of the period, in particular "Young And Innocent", which also has a falsely accused man and a girl who believes in him trying to find the real murderer in a transport café and a dance hall.

This 1938 film was released in the US by Warner Brothers and I assume it was made by their British division originally (due to British laws, several of the big US studios had British divisions making films as well). Regardless, it has nothing much to do with the more famous 1940 film by Warner.

The film finds Shorty Matthews (Emlyn Williams) getting out of prison at the same time an inmate is being executed. This is significant because Short is rather ambivalent towards the man's plight--and soon he'll be in a similar position. This occurs when Shorty goes to visit an old girlfriend and he finds her dead. Instead of handling it like a guy with a brain, he runs--and ends up making everyone think he's the killer. Instead of going to the police, this guy spends the rest of the movie avoiding the police dragnet and trying to figure out who is the real killer.

The film has a few minor flaws. I guess I could accept that Shorty was stupid but perhaps not too unusual for avoiding the police. However, the ending, while really cool to watch, really didn't make a lot of sense. But, the film has a lot of tension and some nice performances. Overall, the good far outweighs the bad and the film is worth your time.

As the Sydney nights draw in and winter approaches there are times I just want a good, solid movie to keep me entertained for 90 minutes. A story which ticks over, a touch of drama, actors who know their roles and the odd laugh is appreciated but not mandatory.

There aren't many laughs in this movie but it ticks all the other boxes. Shorty is just out of prison and barely finishes his first cup of tea before he is up for murder. If he can remain at large maybe the real murderer will surface. Unfortunately his record marks him down as guilty until proved innocent. The only people who believe him are dancing girl Molly and the foppish Mr. Hoover who steals the last 20 minutes.

You can glimpse into an older period where life was more simple, movies relied on plot over action and murderers hung from the gallows.

Emlyn Williams as Shorty plays a good bad guy. The age of this movie makes him look as if he has been on the run for a few days. The limited use of Ernest Thesiger as Mr Hoover is well timed as the character would lose its impact if he was introduced earlier.

Well worth a watch.

"They Drive By Night" (not to be confused with the Bogart) had a rare showing in a New York theater in 2009, as part of a series on British film noir. The only reason the theater screening matters is because of crowd reaction. And the reaction to this film, especially the final sequences, was absolutely joyous.

The movie is at least 2/3rds over before one of the main characters appears, the former schoolmaster Walter Hoover, played by the unbelievably urbane, stick-figure-thin Ernest Thesiger. The camera starts on his hands, so you only see what he's doing-- pasting newspaper clippings about lurid murders into a scrapbook-- but when his face is finally revealed, the whole audience seemed to sit a bit straighter, and we stayed that way through the end, reacting with open delight to this character's every movement, his every phrase.

I mean to take nothing away from the star of the film, Emlyn Williams (who wrote almost as many films as he starred in), but Ernest Thesiger was capable of turning a lousy movie into a watchable one, and a good movie into an unforgettable one. This is definitely the latter.

"They Drive By Night" is difficult to find (as are many pre World War II British titles) but well worth the effort. What starts out as a standard crime drama takes a startling turn into horror in the final reel.

Ernest Thesiger (best known as Dr.Pretorius in 1935's "Bride of Frankenstein") adds the most interesting element to the film and to share any more would ruin the fun.

Emlyn Williams as ex-con Shorty Matthews carries the film. Pity this poor fellow...he has the worst luck in the world. Upon release from prison, his intention is to return to the arms of his girlfriend. Unfortunately, someone has murdered her that very day. Naturally, police think he is the killer.

Shorty takes to the road, hitchhiking rides with truck drivers, hoping to stay free long enough for the police to find the real killer. One of the uncredited stars of this film has to be rain! The constant pouring rain accentuates Shorty's troubles as he tries to clear his name and (excuse the pun) adds buckets of atmosphere to the movie.

Don't confuse the British "They Drive by Night" with the later US version starring Humphrey Bogart. The only thing they have in common is the presence of truck drivers.