- That Woman Opposite
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That Woman Opposite 
UK promotional posterDirected by Compton Bennett Produced by William J. Gell Written by Compton Bennett
John Dickson CarrStarring Phyllis Kirk
Dan O'Herlihy
William FranklynMusic by Stanley Black Cinematography Lionel Banes Editing by Bill Lewthwaite Distributed by Monarch Film Corporation Release date(s) 28 May 1957 Running time 85 min. Country United Kingdom Language English That Woman Opposite (U.S. City After Midnight) is a 1957 British crime drama, directed by Compton Bennett and starring Phyllis Kirk, Dan O'Herlihy and William Franklyn. The screenplay, also by Bennett, was adapted from John Dickson Carr's 1942 novel The Emperor's Snuff-Box.
The film was generally positively received by critics, with Picturegoer commenting: "At last, a British thriller with class...here's a gloss that usually comes with an import label". In a more measured but still approving critique, a Radio Times reviewer said: "Don't expect too much of this modest film...and you'll be agreeably entertained by an efficiently directed work graced by many recognisable faces".[1]
Contents
Plot
In a town on the French coast, English antiques dealer Maurice Lawes (Wilfrid Hyde-White) is a witness to the night-time murder of a gendarme. The killer spots Lawes at his window, and realises he has been seen. The following evening, Lawes' daughter Janice (Petula Clark) finds her father also murdered.
An investigation is launched by the local police and a private insurance investigator Dermot Kinross (O'Herlihy). The initial assumption – that Lawes was murdered by the gendarme's killer to prevent identification – soon comes into question as several other individuals connected to Lawes are revealed to have plausible motives for the murder.
Lawes' son Toby (Jack Watling) is found to have been embezzling funds from his father to pay off a blackmailing ex-mistress; Toby's fiancée Eve (Kirk), living directly opposite the murder scene, is investigated and found to have in her possession bloodstained clothing which she cannot satisfactorily explain away. Eve's ex-husband Ned (Franklyn) turns out to have a particular interest in a rare snuffbox from Lawes' personal collection which is discovered to be missing, and may have killed Lawes when disturbed in the process of burglary.
Eve comes under particular scrutiny as it is considered she could have been an accomplice of either Toby or Ned. It falls to Kinross to unravel the actual chain of events and arrive at the correct solution.
Cast
- Phyllis Kirk as Eve Atwood
- Dan O'Herlihy as Dermot Kinross
- William Franklyn as Ned Atwood
- Jack Watling as Toby Lawes
- Wilfrid Hyde-White as Sir Maurice Lawes
- Petula Clark as Janice Lawes
- Guido Lorraine as Aristide Goron
- Margaret Withers as Lady Helena Lawes
- Tita Dane as Marie Latour
- Robert Raikes as Bill
- André Charisse as Gaston
- Jacques Cey as Busson
- Irene Moore as Diana
References
- ^ That Woman Opposite information page In May 2011 the film was issued on DVD by Renown Films , as well as another film starring Petula Clark MADAME LOUISE. this was after a prolonged email campaign organised by Petula Clark fans .Retrieved 11-08-2010
External links
- That Woman Opposite at the Internet Movie Database
- That Woman Opposite at AllRovi
The films of Compton Bennett 1940s Men of Rochdale • The Seventh Veil • The Years Between • Daybreak • My Own True Love • That Forsyte Woman1950s King Solomon's Mines • So Little Time • The Gift Horse • It Started in Paradise • Desperate Moment • Man-Eater • That Woman Opposite • After the Ball • The Flying Scot1960s Categories:- English-language films
- 1957 films
- 1950s crime films
- British films
- Films directed by Compton Bennett
- Black-and-white films
- Films set in France
- Films based on novels
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