The Whole Truth

A film producer accused of murdering the leading lady of his latest project must acquit himself and save his marriage. Stewart Granger was more than apt at the part of the producer and his relationship with Donna Reed (who plays the part of his wife) is full of fairly intelligent dialogue. George Sanders' character as the actual killer of the leading lady, who had totally humiliated him with her numerous affairs, makes convincing sense as the plot unfolds of an older man confronted with a marriage that's only evidence of matrimony was the worthless piece of paper the marriage certificate was written on. The ending is a bit of a stretch, but there are a lot of nice interior shots of the jet set enjoying a swanky party on the French Riviera where the story takes place.

"The Whole Truth" breaks a number of murder mystery conventions, making it pleasantly unpredictable. It's almost Hitchcockian (in the lighthearted vein of "Rear Window"), with a good measure of humor, suspense, and romance.

While the film may lack megastars, its cast's performances are faultless. George Sanders is at his oily best in the film as Mr. Carliss, while Stewart Granger is a worthy leading man. Its brisk pace is complimented by a fantastic, upbeat jazz score, more typical of '60s spy films. Its aesthetic sense --cinematography, set direction-- isn't particularly fabulous, and it fails to capture the beauty of its French Riviera setting, but that fortunately doesn't detract from the delightfully suspenseful story.

Ultimately it's a fun bit of suspenseful entertainment --not iconic but definitely worth watching.

A rather tawdry murder mystery set among film makers in the South of France (although the principals plainly never left Walton-on-Thames), directed for all its worth by a young John Guillermin (later described by Granger as "peculiarly lacking in charm, to say the least") from a screenplay by film noir veteran Jonathan Latimer from a play by Philip Mackie, with gothic photography by Wilkie Cooper and suitably trashy musical accompaniment by Mischa Spoliansky (performed on the soundtrack by Johnny Dankworth).

It's good to see female lead Donna Reed play a more active role in the proceedings than one is accustomed to, while George Sanders also looks less bored than usual during this period in his life.

The whole truth. The 1958 one. Stewart granger, donna reed, george sanders. Married but separated max poulton (granger) has been enjoying the company of his leading lady gina (giana canale) while out of town, working on a film. But when he tells gina it's over, she gets angry. Then carliss from scotland yard shows up, asking questions. About gina's murder. And then, a very drunk gina shows up! And she hasn't been murdered. So what is this carliss pulling? And when things get crazy, now carliss is telling a completely different story. What's going on ? Can max convince the coppers that he had no part in any of this? We feel the suspense and anguish that poulton is going through, as the police lock him up. It's pretty good. Kind of a silly bit right at the very end, but it all works. Based on the play by philip mackie. He won the bafta for court martial. Directed by john guillerman. He had also directed the 78 version of death on the nile, and towering inferno!

Max Poulton (Stewart Granger) is a movie producer working on the French Riviera and having a tempestuous affair with his leading lady, Gina (Gianna Maria Canale). Max considers coming clean to his faithful wife, Carol (Donna Reed), but a mysterious man named Carliss (George Sanders), a detective from Scotland Yard, informs Max that Gina has been murdered. When Gina shows up to Carol's party alive, and then is murdered hours later, Max believes he has been set up by Carliss, who now claims that he was Gina's husband and not a detective.

A slick and stylish whodunit with many twists and turns stars Stewart Granger who is quite debonair and convincing as a film producer who is framed for the murder of an actress he once had a fling with. She threatens to reveal this to his wife. But of course, she gets stabbed, but not before George Sanders, in a typical slimy cad role, appears, kickstarting a cat and mouse situation. From the beginning, THE WHOLE TRUTH proves to be quite a compelling thriller, and it's a great to see Granger and Sanders play off against each other. Gianna Maria Canale as the vamp-like actress is really good in her role, and Donna Reed does well, too.