The Walking Stick

Based on a Winston Graham novel, (he of "Marnie" fame), Eric Till's "The Walking Stick" is, perhaps surprisingly, a good psychological thriller that came and went without too many people seeing it. Okay, Till was no Hitchcock, (this was only his second feature after the excellent, and again little-seen and underrated, "Hot Millions"), and the film does suffer from a little too much soft-focus prettiness at times but he does make great use of his London locations, draws first-rate performances from leads David Hemmings and Samantha Eggar and ensures the thriller plot builds to a reasonably satisfactory climax.

Eggar is the girl whose early polio means she has to use the walking stick of the title and Hemmings is the not particularly good painter she meets at a party. They start a romance but then she begins to suspect he may not be all that he first seemed. Others caught up in proceedings include Emlyn Williams as Hemmings' shady 'patron' and Phyllis Calvert as Eggar's somewhat aloof mother. It's certainly no classic but it is also much better than its original reputation might have suggested and is worth seeking out.

Three English movies "obsessed" me all my life and I always wanted to see them and watch them again and again: "The Walking Stick" (1970), "The Collector" (1965) and "Our Mother's House" (1967). And, I've seen and re-seen them many times. And I would see them again with the same great pleasure. All three have something magical. All three have also something tragic, melancholic, they are particularly sad and all three are about love, about the big failure in love. The first two star Samantha Eggar, actually, she is the movies. Her acting is impeccably perfect. She is of a unique beauty, you can't help but fall in love with her. That's what happened to me. This is not actually a review, but an eternal declaration of love, mine to Samantha Eggar. She really convinces you that is a crippled person here, that she has polio. There are two other great actors in the film, David Hemmings and Dudley Sutton. Excellent director Eric Till, excellent music, an exceptional film.

Curtailing evil, criminal intentions, a dashing young man, Leigh, seduces and persuades the dreary, moderate polio victim Deborah Dainton into falling in love with him. Deborah leads a neatly organized life, and is obligated to see it being reduced to shreds when she discovers her boyfriend is part of a gang who intends to rob the auction house in which she works in. That's when Deborah has to come to grips with the fact that Leigh may have maintained a relationship with her solely for the benefit of the heist.

This is an utterly unforgettable study on bitterness, hope and disappointment. We get to witness the magnificence of Eggar's performance as her character slowly discovers what Leigh - David Hemmings - truly had in mind when they began living together. And how Eggar manages to show that her bad leg does not stop her from being as tricky - if not trickier - than the good for nothing Leigh.

'The Walking Stick' is an emotionally-charged melodrama that does not appeal to tacky tearjerker clichés. Everything is beautifully executed in a low-key, calm and yet gut-wrenchingly real manner, with an emotionally disarming ending that will leave you sobbing.

Pretty but man-shy art-appraiser in London, alienated from the opposite sex due to one leg affected by childhood polio, is courted by a struggling artist and falls in love; soon after moving in with him, however, he demands her help in a burglary, leaving her unsure whether he ever loved her or perhaps was simply using her. Flawlessly acted, rather brilliantly assembled adaptation of Winston Graham's book is a bit slow, yet incredibly assured. Director Eric Till shows a deft touch in weaving sequences together, keeping a fluid pace, and he's helped by wonderful editing and cinematography. The film examines deeply the issues of trust and love...and the consequences of those emotions when they are blind to reality. A real sleeper, with Samantha Eggar giving one of her finest performances. *** from ****

The first thing I noticed was the music, the very same as in DEER HUNTER, of course the composer is the very same. Second, is that Samantha Eggar and David Hemmings are totally, entirely in their place in this movie which seemed to have been made for them. Samantha Eggar had more or less the same kind of character in THE COLLECTOR, where she had to co star Terry Stamp, remember? Of course it was a total different story, but the same kind of poor naive and victim female. So, this crime romance drama is pretty cute, very British indeed, and convincing acting helps much to keep you glued to it. Could have been far far worse.