Stormy Crossing

Five years after Esther Williams swam the Channel in 'Dangerous When Wet' someone had the bright idea of setting a crime drama against the backdrop of another Channel swim with an American star and authentic Dover locations.

Joy Webster looks great in a swimsuit if predictably unconvincing as a top model whose sideline is endurance swimming; and the viewer's time is also rewarded by a scene in a garage in which the mechanics are played by Arthur Lowe and John Schlesinger...!

Sheldon Lawrence is in England to swim the Channel under the coaching of his brother, John Ireland. Joy Webster is also planning to do the swim, and they develop a friendship. Any deeper feelings are forestalled when Miss Webster tells Lawrence she is to be married to someone as soon as he gets a divorce. When they set off for their swims, a fog comes up and Miss Webster drowns. Lawrence, however, thinks it's murder.

It's nicely performed under the direction of C. M. Pennington-Richards, with DP Geoffrey Faithfull offering some nicely lit compositions. Alas, I didn't find the mystery aspect of it challenging, but a good cast includes Derek Bond, Leslie Dwyer, Maureen Connell, John Horsely, John Schlesinger, and swimmer Sam Rockett as himself.

Danny Parker is set to swim The English channel, but he's distracted by a beautiful young woman, who's also there to complete the swim, tragedy strikes, and she drowns, Danny is convinced she was murdered.

As a whodunnit, it doesn't offer up anything really, as we see the incident, it would have worked better had they omitted that scene.

So it's more in the mystery thriller genre, on the plus side, the visuals are striking, it looks and feels very authentic, and The Dover setting works incredibly well, on the debit side, I found the story a little weak, there's nothing original, the film doesn't cover any new ground.

Best scene, Baker's Garage, look out for Arthur Lowe (of Dad's Army fame,) and John Schlesinger. John Horsley and John Ireland were pretty good. Joy Webster and Sheldon Lawrence are pretty convincing, and add a bit of glamour.

It's a competent movie, 6/10.

Having worked in and around Dover for many years from the 1970's I was fascinated to watch Stormy Crossing made in 1958 to see how it looked back then. Unfortunately we only see the coast and some scenes in Folkestone ( the next town). Nevertheless, there is a real sense that you are actually there on that coastline, and it feels very authentic and not just studio bound. John Ireland is an American cross channel coach, training his younger brother, Sheldon Lawrence, a cocky one dimensional actor. Ireland on the other hand was an excellent actor so he carries some of the other cast. Maureen Connell who plays their hotel manager is particularly appealing. Derek Bond is the not so nice posh bloke who causes the main interest in this slim thriller but it's still quite watchable for the decent performances, particularly a short scene in a garage with the soon to be famous Arthur Lowe of Dad's Army fame and film director John Schlesinger.

A lightweight and weak story line, cliched dialogue, and then combine it with mediocre acting from the two female stars, makes this a tedious and underwhelming film drama that never gets out of second gear! The other problem is that too many of the characters are one dimensional and so it fails to attract the interest of the audience. John Ireland, the usual tough film guy, was badly miscast, playing a very unconvincing swimming coach. The villain of the piece, Derek Bond, plays the usual, middle class smarmy cad type, leading a double life, but all too predictably gets his come uppance. Joy Webster, who plays Kitty, shows little emotion throughout the film, never really engaging with the role of the mistress in a marriage triangle. She looks great in a swimsuit but her wooden acting crushes any potential interest in the story. This was a very disappointing film, perhaps watched simply for views of Dover in the 1950's and ladies swimwear! I can't recommend this film.