The Rank Organisation once again tries to hide it's making a British film. This is set in Germany. Juliette Greco is a woman stalked by William Sylvester. She hops on a trawler with OW Fisher, who was a German star at the time. Muriel Pavlow and Marius Gording are an English couple who work on the trawler.
The basic story isn't bad. Woman chases stalker, flees for help from romantic hero, complicated by others (Goring is weak, Pavlow it's hinted loves Greco and is jealous).
But it's hampered by a few things. Greco and Fisher have nil chemistry. They don't seem into her. Fisher has this sort of kindly doctor vibe when the role needs someone tougher, rugged - or at the very least more into Greco. It's not very nice either that he agrees with the cops to use Greco as bait for Sylvester and doesn't tell her. Why not?
Greco doesn't seem into him (she hated Fisher during filming). The film never seems sure how to pitch her. How hard could it be? She's a Bad Woman who falls in love and is redeemed - that's what should happen. But it doesn't happen. Sylvester is good as the psycho.
There's a promising subplot with Pavlow jealous of Greco but they don't do anything with it. Pavlow should've been used by Sylvester in some way. The way they are here they could've been cut out of th film.
The setting of a tugboat on the Rhine is a little different and there's some pretty ish pics of the Rhine. But it's a tugboat on the Rhine. It's not that visually spectacular. The boat heads towards this whilrpool at the end and I'm sure in real life that's very dangerous and exiciting but here it just looks a bit wavy and the tugboat is really big so you never feel in danger. They may as well have set it in Scotland among the craggy rocks of the Orkneys or something.
No comments:
Post a Comment