The Hangman Waits

An odd and dark low-budget docudrama which follows the hunt for the killer of a cinema usherette. It's opening credit claims to provide an insight into the investigative journalism that goes into the reporting of a murder (it was made with the co-operation of The News of the World) but it shows little of any worth. Little is known about its Australian-born writer, director and producer A. Barr-Smith, and while the film is often amateurish and clumsily directed, he does show some moments of real creativity. John Le Mesurier makes his screen debut as a newsman.

I stumbled over this little known British film from the late 40's on Talking Pictures TV whilst having my breakfast this morning.

What can I say? Well apart from the terrible acting, probably because most of the cast weren't pro actors, the writing and direction were bad as well. Most of it was quite comical, shades of the Keystone cops in a chase sequence with half a dozen policemen hanging off the sides.

A lot of padding with footage of trains running back and forth, then the chase sequence up the stair, and up the stairs and yet more running up the stairs.

Nice to see a very young, uncredited John Le Mesurier with a couple of lines, if you don't recognise the face his voice is unmissable. Filmed around the streets of London, still very heavily bomb damaged, makes it worth watching.

Don't expect anything special but worth an hour or so of your time.

By the way, who let the cat out on the piano, the music soundtrack was awful.

This film could almost be an advertisement for the journalistic integrity of the "News of the World" newspaper. Indeed, it's almost a documentary that follows the investigation into the brutal murder of a cinema usherette. We see the crime committed, but have no idea why or whom - all of that, rather procedurally, comes out over the next hour or so. Neither the acting nor the script merit much of a mention here, the production is really very basic, and it's all rather dry, but there is some interesting print works actuality from a day when this was an hugely successful publication and we are offered some rather depressing imagery of just how badly the City of London was damaged by the Blitz. The title flatters to deceive a bit - this isn't really very exciting or memorable.

The plot in this curiosity is simple enough. A cinema usherette is murdered immediately following a dalliance with the cinema manager and with the killer on the loose, we follow the police attempts to catch the person responsible and a newspaper's (ironically The News of the World) efforts to get the story. Some attempt was made to make a kind of semi-documentary out it (rolling printing presses etc) but I suspect it was hoped to deflect from the plot's deficiencies.

I'm really not sure why this film was ever made. It was released in 1947 when British Cinema was perfectly capable of making professional and entertaining films but this film is neither of those things. It looks and feels as though it was made at the dawn of talking pictures with some stilted performances, erratic editing and simplistic storyline.

There are some faults in the actual physical quality of the film but I'm not criticising those because this is obviously a rarity that must have been rescued from the darkest corners of Renown's vaults and if you are like me, curiosity means you must watch it for your own satisfaction.

So – accept this film purely as a rare curiosity and nothing more. However it is notable for one thing. The sharp-eyed viewer will see the very first screen appearance of the great British character actor John Le Mesurier. His first film is often quoted as being DEATH IN THE HAND from 1948 but he appears here as a newspaper employee called into his editor's office and has one line to speak.

A run-down cinema late at night. With the customers making their way home, the commissioner heads to the manager's office to hand over (presumably) a note of the takings. But the manager has company. An hour or so later, we see a young, blonde usherette exit his office and towards the staff room to get her coat. Only someone is waiting for her..... A previous reviewer describes this movie as "poverty row" which tickled me as I find it hard to believe the budget for this thriller would have stretched much beyond a few hundred pounds - and that supplied by the News of the World on the understanding they're portrayed as being forever one step ahead of the police.

The story itself is nothing special, there are no real twists in it, no stand-out performances. The editing is iffy at best, much of the dialogue is unintelligible due to the low quality.

But this is worth putting up with for two specific reasons. The first is the location photography. Filmed in and around Fleet Street itself, we see numerous rather artistically framed shots of a bomb-damaged London. Indeed, 20 years later, London was still recovering from the damage inflicted by the Luftwaffe.

The second reason was quite unexpected and one which earned the killer a degree of sympathy from me. Whilst taking refuge in a church, he is offered a chance to play the organ. As this takes place, we see his mind drift back to happier times when he and the usherette were courting. For once in his otherwise miserable life, he was happy. He felt part of the human race. And then she ripped that away from him, presumably by giving him the elbow.

It doesn't excuse his actions (or his subsequent action) but it did add a dimension to his character I didn't expect.

I don't know if the ending was some sort of homage to the Keystone Cops or not but that's what it reminded me in.

We do see the killer's face right at the end - and those who are acquainted with "Dead Of Night" may recognise him.

Oh - and I love the soundtrack that's used throughout. Reminds me in "Carnival Of Souls".