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...!

The film is of no interest as a who dunnit (as a child of five could guess who diddit) but for the fact that one quick scene in a garage has the most extraordinary cast. The dialogue is between John Ireland (archetypical Hollywood beefcake); Arthur Lowe (one of Britain's greatest comic actors); and John Schlesinger (one of Britain's greatest movie directors).

I assume this was one of those B movies made then.Usually shown in a double bill in the cinemas.I couldn't really call this a murder mystery as you see who the killer is from their first murder.As often happens in this type of thing the smaller parts are more interesting than the main leads.Leslie Dwyer is interesting here in a small role and nice to see Arthur Lowe in a small part years before Dad's Army.

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.

"Black Tide", also called "Stormy Crossing", is a decent mystery/suspense story with an interesting setting. While the story itself is fairly routine, the setting and some likeable characters make it worth watching.

The story takes place in Dover (England). As it begins, two swimmers are in training for an attempt to swim across the English Channel - Danny, an experienced swimmer trained by his brother Griff, and Kitty, a model and amateur swimmer, backed by a separate group. They decide to make their attempt together, but things go very wrong. Danny is convinced that what happened was no accident, and he tries to investigate despite the fact that no one else believes him.

The events that follow are not too surprising, and sometimes predictable, but the story keeps the viewer's interest once it gets going. It's a mostly plausible story, and it is helped by some other positive features.

The channel/seacoast setting is an interesting one that works well for this kind of story, and it is nicely done. You do feel as if you are there at the Channel, with the mist, the birds, and the current. There are also a couple pretty likeable characters: John Ireland is good as Griff, and Maureen Connell is good as the young hotel manager. Danny, though, is not a very good character - pretty much a stereotyped indignant, headstrong young man. Overall, the positives outweigh the weaknesses.

Most fans of mystery or suspense films should find this worth a look.