Movie review - "The Whisperers" (1967) ***1/2 (warning: spoilers)

 Didn't know anything about this movie apart from the fact it was from Bryan Forbes for Edith Evans. That's the way to see it. It's a series of incidents that happen to a little old lady who lives in a shabby area in some shabby town. She hears voices. The man who gives her her dole is nice. Neighbour Nannette Newman, with a black lover, isn't nice. She has a deadshit son (Ronnie Fraser) and husband (Eric Portman) both of whom are involved in crime. She's conned by a bratty lady.

Still it's post war England so she's got some government assistant and National Health. People do try to help her.

It's moving. I like how Evans remains a mystery. The relationships are well evoked.

This is a film festival movie but it is interesting. Great chance for Evans and also Eric Portman, at the end of their lives.

Movie review - "The Deep Blue Sea" (1955) **

 I can see why Alex Korda thought Vivien Leigh would be ideal in the lead. She'd just won an Oscar playing a woman who goes crazy in part due to her lust for a younger man, in real life she had a breakdown over her love for Peter Finch despite being married to Laurence Olivier. She was a big star.

And yet... She doesn't work here. Kenneth More felt she was too pretty. Or at least was once pretty. I don't think that's the issue so much as she simply didn't nail the role. I didn't believe her. She has no chemistry with More.  She didn't really act needy. Anatole Litvak didn't nail it. I kept trying to imagine it with Laurence Olivier and Peter Finch - that could've worked as a film. But it's not the story. The Deep Blue Sea is basically about a woman who falls in love for the first time only thing is she's married and the object of her affection is not her husband.

Would Olivia de Havilland have done better? It's all very well to say "get Peggy Ashcroft" but I understand they needed a star. I think Korda only kept on Kenneth More because he had More under contract.

CinemaScope doesn't help but I'm not sure that's the fault as much as opening it up - setting scenes at air shows, and bars and ski resorts. Black and white Cinema Scope using the cramped world of the apartments would've been fine.

Emlyn William doesn't quite work as the husband, nor does Eric Portman as the man in the building.  It's all a bit... off.

Movie review - "West 11" (1963) **

 Michael Winner's first "proper" movie I guess - it's an odd combination of angry young man slice of life drama and Strangers on a Train. Alfred Lynch is the disaffected man, who constantly changes jobs, has an off-on relationship with Kathleen Breck. Winner wanted Sean Connery for this part, and Oliver Reed, either who would've been better than Lynch who isn't bad so much as just far too laid back - it's like he's falling asleep in some scenes.

Winner also wanted Julie Christie over Breck - I've got to say I like Breck she's lively. Eric Portman is in it as the man who proposes murder. Diana Dors is a girl who knows Portman and Lynch.

Others in the cast include names like Kathleen Harrison, Finlay Currie and Australia's Gerry Duggan, Marie Ney and Peter Reynolds. David Hemmings, who would be in Winner's The System, had a small role. Francisca Annis pops up.

It's interesting to contrast this with The System. It doesn't have that film's energy. I don't mind the melodrama of the murder plot but it's too little - it feels awkwardly shoehorned in. It's like Lynch and Breck are in one movie than Portman strolls in from another movie, a 1940s Gainsborough thriller or something. Oliver Reed would have been much much better than Lynch - he would have had the dynamism and murderous intent to make the role sing.

Still it's interesting. There's glimpses of Notting Hill at the time - Lynch walks past a nationalist rally, he goes to coffee bars, ec.

Movie review - "The Blind Goddess" (1948) ** (warning: spoilers)

The bloke who wrote the play on which this was based sounds interesting - Boer War service, top KC, high profile cases, Labor government minister, part time playwright.

I'm sure this was fine on stage - the tale of a libel trial. Its hard to get too excited about libel cinematically - it's all words. The back story of this does sound cinematic - ripping off post war programs in Prague. Hello Third Man. But we don't see it.

There's lots of clipped voices and slicked hair. The cross examinations are fine. Eric Portman is always decent value. I liked seeing Michael Denison at first but his character got on my nerves. Claire Bloom is lovely in a "girlfriend" part. Anne Todd's character has possibilities -a woman who had a fling with Denison and is willing to lie for husband Hugh Williams; if they'd trashed her up, had her sleeping with Denison, and being ruthless, then it might be fun. I did laugh how unconcerned Portman seemed to Williams' probable suicide at the end.

But this isn't a very good movie. I wouldn't recommend seeing it unless you love British libel trials or Eric Portman.

The film vanished from my mind not long after seeing it.

Movie review - "Wanted for Murder" (1946) **1/2

One of a series of film noirs the British film industry turned out in the late 40s, possibly because they were cheap to make rather than public demand. Eric Portman is excellent if perhaps too old to play a mummy's boy, son of an executioner, serial killer.

He taunts Scotland Yard with his crimes, but is also tormented - easy to read queer subtext into this. Some location filming helps as does a glimpse of rationing London - Derek Farr and Dulcie Gray go to a restaurant and can only order two or three things.

Farr and Gray seem like real people, the mood is down beat and the pace is fast. This isn't a masterpiece but it is enjoyable.

Movie review - "Daybreak" (1948) **1/2 (warning: spoilers)

Follow up to The Seventh Veil from Sydney Box, Ann Todd and Compton Bennett but, crucially, no James Mason.

It's not a bad story, and has a strong gimmick - a hangman is going to hang a man for the hangman's own murder. Not enough is used for the hangman's gimmick and the film feels emotionally cheating by using two suicides.

There's some convoluted stuff whereby Portman is a barber and a hangman and pretends to inherit some barges... it's like one too many things. Ann Todd is alright, Portman is excellent.

Maxwell Reed has a smouldering look that no doubt looked good on stills, and there were a few "new Stewart Grangers" around this time, but he's awful. He might've been alright if he didn't speak but he attempts a Dutch accent and it's like he had a stroke.

The barge setting is different, the support cast features some decent names like Bill Owen and there's decent atmosphere. It was cut about by censors so it's not all the filmmakers' fault.

Movie review - "The Spider and the Fly" (1949) **1/2

The first film from the reactivated Mayflower Productions, benefits from atmospheric Robert Hamer direction and strong leads. The story is good too though I wonder about the structure - detective Eric Portman chases thief Guy Rolfe, and both men kind of love each other and also a girl, Nina Grey, who works for Rolfe. Portman gets Rolfe two thirds in and the last act it's World War One and Portman arranges for Rolfe to get out of prison to spy. It's like they started the whole movie again. Shouldn't that be the whole story?

Portman is typically excellent; Rolfe is impressive too, he steps up. Grey less so but I don't think it's her fault, she doesn't get enough screen time - more scenes would have helped (I would have revealed she was a spy then played it out more).

Should be remade. I'm surprised they kept this as a French story - could've worked as a American or British one.

Movie review - "Dear Murderer" (1947) *** (warning: spoilers)

Enjoyable, unpretentious British thriller, based on a play - one of those plays about upper middle class couples where the man discovers his wife is cheating and plots to get revenge. There were a bunch of these in the 40s and 50s - Obsession, Dial M for Murder, etc. This is a good one.

Eric Portman is ideally cast as the husband, and Greta Gynt (a bit of a British B movie fave) is his wife. It's got some good twists... Portman gets revenge on Denis Price (a lot more effective in small parts like this one than leads) who has been cuckolding him with Gynt, by killing Price and making it look like suicide. Then Portman finds out Gynt dumped Price and has a new bloke, Maxwell Reed... so could get busted for murder... so he tries to pin it on Reed. Only Gynt really loves Reed and Portman really loves Gynt so both are vulnerable.

Reed and Hazel Court have decent looks - neither is called on to do too much. Jack Warner is ideal as the investigating detective.

It's briskly handled and benefits from not trying to make Portman or Gynt likeable. Solid three act entertainment.

Movie review – “A Canterbury Tale” (1944) **1/2

The success of Powell and Pressburger’s films at the box office saw them becoming increasing bold artistically – this is a genuine one of a kind movie, about three young people (two soldiers and a girl) who meet in a town in Kent where a local odd ball is running around putting glue in girl’s hair. The big debit of this for me was the performance of Joe Sweet as the American – he was awful, and his voice grated. Every time he appeared on screen or talked, I winced.

Eric Portman’s magistrate is really weird – he runs around putting glue in girls hair so men won’t be tempted to ask them out on dates and thus attend his lectures on the countryside. And the film seems to support him – he isn’t punished.

Sheila Sims was much better – another in the long Powell-Pressburger line of sensible British heroines. And Dennis Price was fine. There was much to enjoy – the Scooby Doo mystery (who is the glue bandit), small town atmosphere, the sense of camaraderie amongst young people, the scene of Eric Portman and Sims on the hill, people walking in the dark, war women talking, the finale at a cathedral, the whole dreamy "feel" of it. It's just that frigging American who wrecks it.

Movie review – “One of Our Aircraft is Missing” (1942) **1/2

Just as Powell and Pressburger followed up Spy in Black with Contraband, so this was an unofficial sequel to The 49th Parallel. Perhaps responding to criticism of making a war film with German protagonists, this has the same situation only it’s a British air crew who’ve cashed in occupied Holland.

It’s a lot less fun movie – the co-operative, professional British soldiers are less interesting than the Germans, who were always yelling, squabbling, and pushing Nazi doctrine on the locals. Ditto the locals in The 49th Parallel were more colourful and engaging that the Dutch here, who are loyal, diligent, etc. – and dull. The only bright spark is Robert Helpmann as a traitor, although Googie Withers and Pamela Brown have beautiful, evocative presences. The main debit are the characterisations of the British soldiers - it's hard to tell them apart except the old guy (a knight who flies on a bomber). They're all bland.

Some of it’s brilliant, though – the stunning opening credit sequence with an empty plane flying through the air, Googie Withers’ inspirational speech about resistance in the dark. And I did like the fact that the British find the missing one of their number playing soccer with some locals.

Movie review – “The 49th Parallel” (1941) ****

Just as the British film industry treated Australia with more respect, feeling and accuracy than Hollywood, so was the case with Canada. We see Eskimos, French Canadian trappers with flannos, Scotch trappers, sophisticated city folk, soldiers, Mounties, farmers, writers. Between them the manage to trap a small group of Nazis – but only just.

As if in response to the brave, sympathetic Germans in The Spy in Black, the submariners here are vicious Nazis, constantly hi Hitler-ing and talking about world domination, with Eric Portman’s leader being cold and humourless, and shooting a mother Eskimo with a baby. But they’re still the protagonists, bravely fighting their way home, surrounded by enemies, sticking to their convictions (well, mostly - there’s one nice German, a baker tempted to stay). I loved it how the Germans were always foisting their doctrine on the others eg Portman tries to get Olivier on to Mein Kampf. So basically they're still sympathetic.

The structure of the film consists of four main encounters: with some trappers (Laurence Olivier, Finlay Currie), a religious community (Anton Walbrook), a writer (Lesley Howard), and an AWOL soldier. The best of these are the first two, both containing some brilliant propaganda and effective death scenes: Walbrook and Olivier sticking up for Canada, the deaths of Olivier and Neil McGinnis (the good German). The sequence with Leslie Howard ended a bit silly-ly with him storming towards a German getting shot at – being brave isn’t the same as being stupid. But it's beautifully shot, with great location footage, and a superlative cast.

Movie review – “Millions Like Us” (1943) ****

Rough rule of thumb – British war films aimed to be more realistic than Hollywood ones, and that was rarely better illustrated than in this loving slice-of-life drama about young women at war – specifically two of them who work in a factory. They are Pat Roc, who you think is going to be the sole star, but then around half an hour in the film introduce Ann Crawford as well to romance Eric Portman. Roc is very unthreateningly pretty – she was sort of the back up Phyllis Calvert (just as Jean Kent was the back up Margaret Lockwood). She has a romance with a painfully young Gordon Jackson.

The film is very socialist – it’s all about sacrifice and giving into the greater cause. Roc at the end is sitting at lunch or something but eventually joins in the singing at the end. The romance between Crawford and Portman is very much skewed in Portman’s favour. If Launder and Gilliat had been Yanks they would have been blacklisted for this!