Park Plaza 605

Norman Conquest was the improbably named hero of some fifty light-hearted, tongue-in cheek-thrillers, penned for about thirty years from the late 1930s by the prolific Edwy Searles Brooks under the pseudonym Berkeley Gray. A desperado of the Simon Templar school, Conquest was aided and abetted by his partner Joy "Pixie" Everard, while Inspector Bill Williams was the Claud Eustace Teal figure, always on the verge of at last getting Conquest behind bars, only to see the chance slip inescapably through his hands.

Now period pieces and largely neglected, (though BBC radio attempted a revival in 1998, adapting several of the stories with Christopher Cazenove as Conquest and Bonnie Langford as Joy), the books were at the height of their popularity when this film was made. There was clearly an assumption on the part of the producers that many of the putative audience would be familiar with the leading characters and stock situations, such as Norman's penchant for dangerous blondes, which Sid James as Williams teases Pixie about, while the outlandish business of Conquest accidentally bringing down the carrier pigeon whilst playing golf is entirely typical of Brooks' wacky plots.

Star Tom Conway, then pushing fifty, was, however, far older than the character in the book, so anyone expecting non-stop action was in for a disappointment. He gives his usual affable, charming performance though and it's perplexing how this most essentially British of actors is occasionally delineated as just another imported American star.

The convoluted plot, including the murder of a member of a Soviet trade delegation involving the seductive Nadia (Eva Bartok), diamond smuggling, and a Nazi war criminal could have been handled more efficiently, but Conway's charm and character actors like Joy Shelton and Richard Wattis help it along.

Production values are slightly above average for a British second feature of the day. Co-producer Albert Fennell of course later became famous as producer, and with Brian Clemens, the major creative influence on the filmed series of THE AVENGERS. It would be interesting to know if Brooks' tales of the earlier crime fighting duo of Conquest and Pixie inspired him at some level.

A slick tongue-in cheek little Cold War thriller making light of the usual casualties (starting with an unfortunate courier in the opening scene) in which Hollywood's 'B' picture 'Saint' Tom Conway tangles with foxy foreign femme Eva Bartok (in a blonde wig and a tight shiny dress) and various mean-looking goons while cop Sid James looks on in helpless exasperation.

'Park Plaza 605' or it's alternative title 'Norman Conquest' is a low budget British B-movie that you will never have heard of with B-Pic regular Tom Conway, (Brother of George Sanders) playing Private Detective Norman Conquest who gets mixed up with Nazi Criminals, Murder, and a Blonde Femme Fatale when he hits a carrier Pigeon playing a golf shot (don't ask!) and proceeds to go to the Park Plaza Hotel room 605 out of curiosity after reading a message the bird was carrying.

Co-Starring Sid James (Before his 'Carry on' fame) and Eva Bartok as the Beautiful Femme Fatale with minor roles for Terrence 'Bergerac' Alexander & Richard 'Allo Allo' Marner.

Not great, but not bad for a 75 min B-Movie...Keep your expectations low and you - Like me, should enjoy

**1/2 out of *****

Norman Conquest" from 1953, is a suspenseful mystery-thriller that cleverly intertwines elements of noir, intrigue, a bit of comedy sprinkled here and there, and a strong character-driven narrative. Directed by Bernard Knowles, it all involves a secret message about a meeting in room 605 of the Park Plaza Hotel, intercepted by a curious private detective (Tom Conway), who escapes with his life but is framed for a murder. He proceeds to uncover a jewel-smuggling scheme involving a beautiful woman (Eva Bartok) and a fugitive Nazi war criminal. The film is a tightly crafted, atmospheric gem with enough twists and turns to keep viewers hooked despite the complexity of the plot. But this is a film noir-ish effort from the 50's, so that should be expected. Director Knowles worked as cinematographer for several of Alfred Hitchcock's earliest movies, and Eva Bartok alone is easily worth the price of admission. What are you waiting for? This movie is also known by the title "Park Plaza 505."

This one hasn't got a lot going for it really. Despite crediting at least three writers it's pretty dull stuff with an overly-complicated plot. Tom Conway imitates his more successful brother once more. After accidentally killing a message-carrying pigeon with a golf shot (I kid you not) our suave hero ('amusingly' named Norman Conquest) decides to attend the hush-hush rendezvous mentioned in the message that is scheduled to take place at the titular hotel room. There he meets the rather fetching Eva Bartok in a bad blonde wig who quickly shoots him in the face with a spray of knockout powder when she realises he isn't the man he's supposed to be.

It gets even sillier after that, with police detective Sid James making a lot of noise for no real reason other than to pad out the already slim running time. Clues and women fall into the suave Conquest's lap, and the film is quite, erm, saucy, for its time with women bound and gagged or threatening to remove their clothes after being soundly spanked (believe me, though, it's not as interesting as it sounds).

There's quite a few familiar British faces worth looking out for (including bespectacled Richard Wattis as a bad guy), but I was struggling to stay awake less than half-an-hour into this and, by the time it finished, I was left wishing I hadn't bothered..