Movie review - "The Spanish Gardener" (1956) **1/2

A real hit and miss affair, which surely was made with the hopes of it resulting in another The Fallen Idol. Michael Hordern is a single father of Jon Whitely, working in Spain, who watches with concern as Whitely starts hero worshipping a gardener Dirk Bogarde. This eventually drives Hordern to frame Bogarde for a crime he didn't commit.

This movie is all over the shop, rather like Bogarde's performance - in parts effective, he's undermined by his dodgy accent (which pops in an out and he's never really remotely convincing as a Spaniard). (NB You know this would have worked just as well had Bogarde played an Englishman and the story been set in England - he could be very effective having control over people). It's not a bad performance, though - he's got the charisma and presence which is needed, and he works well with Whitely (with whom he made Hunted).

Hordern is superb - it's really his movie, a man suffering a mid life crisis (divorced, passed over for promotion), uncertain about his future, in a foreign country, poor relationship with his son and friends. He really goes all out and takes all his chances. The script does let him down, in part because of censorship - his attraction towards the gardener, a feature of the novel, cannot be conveyed. There are some odd bits like Geoffrey Keen telling off Hordern because he can't let people in (an Englishman telling another Englishman this) and saying that Whitely's relationship with Bogarde is perfectly healthy and normal (is it?).

There's some pleasing location work, such as a pelota game, and a refreshingly positive view of foreigners for a British film of the 50s (here it's the Poms who are the hypocrites - Maureen Swanson, whose pointy nose meant she normally always played bad girls is actually allowed to be a nice person). Muriel Pavlov is in it too and I always like her. But it feels flawed and half done - restricted by the censor, miscasting and the talents of the makers involved. A shame because it feels as thought it could have been something really good. Bogarde fans will want to check it out for novelty.