The Desperate Men

'Cat & Mouse' isn't terrible, but it isn't anywhere near good either. Of course, there wasn't any big expectations that I held coming into it, but B movies can still offer entertainment. This Paul Rotha picture? Not so much, for me anyway. It's all rather dull.

Lee Patterson and Ann Sears play lead, both are alright. Patterson is the better, even if his character is more there for his style than any substance; looks straight out of 'Grease'. Hilton Edwards, despite chewing the heck outta the scenery, is my standout from this.

I did like seeing bits of 1950s London, mind you. I know it's only because I'm looking at it through modern eyes, but there is something about seeing this general era of England on film that I do enjoy. That's the only true positive I have, which probably says it all in regards to how I view this film.

Ann Sears calls on Hilton Edwards at his request. Her father had been hanged for murder during a jewelry robbery twenty years ago. Now her mother has just died. Edwards is here to collect the jewelry. Miss Sears says she does not know anything about any jewelry. Edwards becomes threatening, and she pushes him off. He falls onto the floor, hitting his head on the mantel. The next thing Miss Sears knows, Lee Patterson is talking to her about getting rid of the corpse. Eventually they flee to her home, where he starts out wheedling and ends up threatening.

Paul Rotha's movie has a dreamlike, nightmarish quality to it, as circumstances and people push Miss Sears in one direction or the other, and she goes along, helpless and knowing it, powerless to do anything about it. Perhaps that quality is derived from John Creasey's source novel. He once described his method as "I've no idea ahead of time what will develop. The plot and any other ideas all happen simultaneously in the - if you'll forgive the pompous phrase - in the act of creation as it were. None of it is easy."

Well, it seems to have worked for Creasey, who wrote something between 500 and 600 books. That sounds nightmarish to me, and Rotha has certainly captured that quality in his movie.

Ann Coltby (Ann Sears) is a young woman who visits the house of William Scruby (Hilton Edwards) late at night.

Scruby was an associate of her father who was a villain and involved in a robbery. After the death of Ann's mother, he is certain that she knows where the loot was hidden.

In an altercation it seems Ann has killed Scruby. Then Rod Fenner (Lee Patterson) an American army deserter enters the scene.

He was being blackmailed by Scruby. He has overheard the conversation between Scruby and Ann and he wants in on the hidden loot. Ann is vulnerable because of her involvement in the death of Scruby.

The problem is Ann has no idea about what her father had hidden. Her best hope is that the police can get to her in time after Fenner injured a policeman.

Director Paul Rotha was known for his documentaries. He is ill at ease with this low budget B thriller. It is listless and dull.

The story is so silly, it was hard to take it seriously. Ann has been bound by Fenner and then kindly asks him to get her coat from the next room. She does not realise that she is a kidnap victim and or is in a vulnerable position until much later.

Just watched this movie on UK satellite channel "Movies for Men". Not come across it before and found it quite entertaining. Lee Patterson is always worth a look and it seemed strange to see perennial bit part player Madden in a more major role, albeit in a comparatively minor film. I tend to side with the contributor who suggests that the injury to Madden's arm was sustained when Patterson was cornered in the living room by the six coppers. The violent part of the scene could have been axed by the censors (or even the TV company as it was shown on daytime TV). It would not be the first time either that a TV company has clipped a film to fit into broadcasting schedules. Maybe someone more in the know could put our minds at rest!

No acting to speak of, soporific directing, dialogue-by-numbers, poor Victor Maddern looks ridiculous as the CID man with the obligatory trench coat and pipe.