Gideon's Day

Gideon of Scotland Yard is a fine 1950s British detective film based on a book by the prolific writer John Creasey. It stars the inimitable Jack Hawkins as the gruff yet likable detective working hard on a number of overlapping cases during a single 24 hours in London. The film was directed by John Ford, of all people, the man best known for his epic American westerns, who brings a kind of slick stylish look to the screen.

The running time flies past because this is a very entertaining movie, one of the fastest-paced films of the 1950s I've seen. There's never a slow moment, just a building of tension, suspense, and yes, humour, which delightfully offsets the darker and more tragic elements of the plot. Watching Hawkins trying to juggle various cases, crimes, criminals, superiors, underlings, and of course his home life, is a sheer delight. An exemplary supporting cast adds to the experience, making this an all-round winner of a film.