Trent's Last Case

I failed to notice that Orson Welles was in this film (recently screened by Talking Pictures TV), and when he appeared I wondered why the actor was impersonating Welles under a load of truly horrible makeup. However, Orson's talent shines through, especially in the car scene.

Kenneth Williams appears briefly - finding the body, and giving evidence at the inquest - in a Welsh accent! He was of Welsh descent, but was a true Cockney: there's a plaque on his parent's home in Marchmont Street. A small touch heralds his future brilliance: as the camera pans over the impassive witnesses, he gives one twitch of the cheek.

Margaret Lockwood is beautiful and enigmatic, and her servants (butler Martin and secretary Marlow) are characterful and convincing. Her wardrobe is fabulous. This was the era of the "New Look", which so often translated as the new frumpy. It consciously looked back to the eighteen-forties and fifties. As Lockwood sits in a box at a concert she looks straight out of the 1850s. The pianist, Eileen Joyce, plays Mozart in a train that covers most of the stage.

Philip Trent's art is not too bad - I wonder who did the prop drawings?

I was pleasantly surprised by this film. I fail to understand why so many people have criticized it. I thought the entire peace of work was brilliant! Orson Welles gives a stirring and chilling performance as an insane cynical business man. I especially loved the fact that his presence remains quite strong through out the entirety of the film. The story reeks of the talent of Orson Welles. I am surprised that he did not direct the peace himself. We follow the story of a young new reporter looking for the story of a life time. He finds such a story within the home of a black widow, brilliantly played by Margret Lockwood. As i have stated many times, Margret Lockwood never ceases to amaze me with her subtle, but layered performances. She manages here to evoke a certain dismalness that cannot go unnoticed. She plays a rather mellow and unfeeling part. Frankly, her character is really not all that interesting. Margret plays her part well, but the part is very limited. The main focus is the character of Trent, a savvy and sly man who will stop it nothing to find the truth. This film is a classic murder mystery, produced in a citizen Kane manner. The flash back sequences are very well crafted, as well the plot and story structure. The other characters are also quite interesting. The character of Marlow is perhaps the victim of this tale and probably the most sympathetic of all characters. However,the ending is rather cliché and slightly destroys the tone of the film. I do recommend this film though on so many levels. If you want a good mystery story, as well as some good acting, then sit back and enjoy!

This is pure whodunit,in the grand tradition of Agatha Christie and there are similarities with the lady of crime's "murder on the links" ,but the solution is not as brilliant as hers ,because in this field,she has no equal.

Anyway ,everyone who likes Christie will relish .A desirable mansion ,where a man took his own life (or was it murder?) and suspects including two secretaries,one of whom may be in love with the dead's wife and the other one may be jealous.But the main asset of the movie is the wealthy (suicidal?) businessman ,masterfully portrayed by Orson Welles whom we only see in flashbacks :the scene when we hear his formidable voice ,but only the back of his armchair gives the jitters. Michael Wilding has no gray cells,but he displays flair for clues ,as though he had be trained by Hercule Poirot.Entertaining whodunit.

Surprisingly for me, this is a remake of a movie based on a novel written in 1913 or whereabouts. Surprisingly, because the plot is nothing special, a sort of opposite-gender "Leave her to Heaven", but a lot more lackluster.

Michael Wilding is the titular Trent, a bland and moderately charming artist-journalist (?) investigating the bizarre suicide of unpleasant billionaire Sigsbee (???) Manderson. What with the weird name? Anyway, after a coroner's verdict of suicide, Trent is intrigued by allegations of Manderson's wife having an affair with her husband's dashing secretary.

Lockwood plays the wife and she's the only substantial and charming presence in the movie. There is a lot of talk and only by the third act we get to see Orson Welles with bushy eyebrows and prosthetic nose as Sigsbee and he's indeed a malevolent character but also very grotesque, due to the ridiculous disguise.

After long explanations from all the players the movie ends on a happy, albeit forced, note.

Due to Welles appearing so late and to take advantage of the popularity of an earlier film, in Italy this was titled "The Third Man Returns", even if it has nothing to do with that masterpiece.

It's good news for Welles completists that this, the better of the two films he made for Herbert Wilcox in 1952 (to help finance his on-off-on but finally magnificent film of 'Othello') is now available on DVD, though dismally free of extras. As a thriller it is a puzzle almost devoid of suspense, though there are some clever twists at the end. There are polished performances by Margaret Lockwood, John McCallum, Michael Wilding as the classy sleuth Trent, Miles Malleson in one of his best roles and Welles. Welles appears for no more than 20 minutes, in flashback, but, with his formidable false nose, is an intimidating presence as the late Sigsbee Manderson. In a fraught dialogue with McCallum he talks about 'Othello' and the production he's recently seen: "Didn't like the leading actor!" The leading actor was Welles himself, performing at the St James' theatre - a performance I was privileged have seen a year or two earlier, when Ken Tynan, long before PC was thought of, headed his review 'Citizen Coon'!