Three Cases of Murder

I love the way Eamonn Andrews, in his introduction, saunters over to the mantelshelf, picks up the cigarettes and lights one! How better to make him seem to be acting naturally in the 50s?

Story 1 is intriguing and disturbing but a bit too long. Some of the flat spots add to the suspense and atmosphere, but some are just flat spots.

Agatha Christie has spoiled us for the likes of Story 2. I'm sure most people see the twist coming a mile off. The only sub-standard section.

A great actor and a master storyteller come together to produce something special in Story 3, marginally better than Story 1 and thus best of the bunch.

British anthology from the 1950's when the world was black and white, smoking was considered healthy & most people spoke with a plum in their mouths. Eamonn Andrews introduces three stories. The first is about a mysterious painting in an art gallery, the second a love triangle and the third a deadly tale of two political enemies. The first & third feature the supernatural. Each riveting story features a different director but they are all of a high calibre. I think it would have been slightly better had the second story also featured the supernatural, but only a minor quibble. As a film fan of over 35 years I only discovered this gem when it was screened on British TV two days ago. Superb.

Three stories of murder and the supernatural. In the first, a museum worker is introduced to a world behind the pictures he sees every day. Second, when two lifelong friends fall in love with the same woman and she is killed, they are obvious suspects. Is their friendship strong enough for them to alibi each other? Third, when a young politician is terribly hurt by the arrogant Secretary for Foreign Affairs Lord Mountdrago, he uses Mountdrago's dreams to get revenge.

Orson Welles received top billing, but he appears only in "Lord Mountdrago." According to Patrick Macnee, who had a supporting role, Welles began making suggestions to director George More O'Ferrall throughout the first day of filming, and by the third day he had taken over the direction of the entire segment.

Does this surprise anyone? Of course Welles would be the star to draw audiences in, and of course he would try to take over the production, because that was very much the sort of chap he was. For better or worse, a film starring Welles was very much a Welles film.

As far as anthologies go, this one is not often remembered. And as far as horror anthologies go (if this even counts), it seems all but forgotten, overshadowed by the later Amicus films. I love Amicus, and it is hard to beat them, but surely this film must have been some influence on the later Amicus and Hammer productions.

Eamonn Andrews is the link man for two tales of supernatural suspense and one murder mystery.

In the first segment, titled In The Picture, an art gallery guide is lured into a macabre house painting by the artist and finds himself at the mercy of the residents who dwell there. In the second segment, titled You Killed Elizabeth, two friends fall in love with the same woman and when she is murdered it's obvious one of them did it. But which one? The final segment, titled Lord Mountdrago, The Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs ruins the career of an opponent in Parliament and finds the man appearing in his dreams enacting retribution.

As is always the case with anthologies, the quality of stories is mixed, with here the middle section being the one that is pretty standard fare. No such problem with the other two stories though.

The first one is very creepy, even bordering on the terrifying as the tale reaches its conclusion. Once the story reaches the insides of the house in the painting, we are treated to a trio of odd characters living in a house that instantly conjures up images of horror. Ramshackle and creaky, director Wendy Toye further enhances the discord by using canted angles and personalised framing. An excellent story. Starring Hugh Pryse, Alan Badel and Eddie Byrne.

The third tale is considerably boosted by Orson Welles giving bluster to the story written by W. Somerset Maugham. Not without genuine moments of humour, it never reaches scary heights but always it feels off-kilter, the revenge dream attack angle devilish and the production has good quality about it. Very good. Alan Badel co-stars and although the three stories are not related, he is the constant actor in all three. Grand old British trilogy. 8/10

The first, "The Picture", stars Alan Badel as a wonderfully devilish character who breaks the glass on a painting in a museum and then sits and waits for the guide (Hugh Pryse) to notice. Milquetoast Pryse is fascinated by this eerie painting of a stark dark house on a hill. Little does he know Badel is the artist (deceased) who's going to take him 'inside' the painting and into the bizarre house where the structure and it's inhabitants are a little 'off'. There's very dark comedy in the house without lights, and the conclusion is spooky enough to stay with the viewer.

Tale two, "You Killed Elizabeth", is a more typical plot: two men are in love with the same woman. She's murdered, but which one did it? And how? There's a nice little twist at the end, but this is reminiscent of several 40's films about being 'set up'.

The third segment, "Lord Mountdrago" gets a lot of attention because of it features Orson Welles. Welles plays a powerful pompous politician who gleefully belittles younger lawmaker Alan Badel (yes..him again). He then begins having recurrent dreams, in which Badel has the upper hand. The dreams are so disturbing, he seeks help to no avail, and feels his life unraveling in his waking hours. The end is interesting, but the dream sequences are a bit overboard, with Welles' hamming it up, and too many choruses of "Daisy Bell". Evidently, Welles pretty much took over the directing of the scenes from George O'Ferrall.

Overall, it's an interesting watch and the wonderfully disturbing performances of Badel in two stories are noteworthy.