WHISPERING SMITH VS. SCOTLAND YARD

WHISPERING SMITH VS. SCOTLAND YARD (aka Whispering Smith Hits London/1952). Director: Francis Searle. 

Famous American detective Steve "Whispering" Smith (Richard Carlson) comes to England for a Welsch vacation but is immediately importuned to solve a murder in London. A young woman named Sylvia has been found drowned, an apparent suicide, but her father is convinced it was murder. His secretary, Ann Carter (Rona Anderson of The Flaw), begs Smith to take the case but at first he seems more interested in romancing her. Smith goes about interviewing several people who knew Sylvia: her lawyer, Hector Reith (Alan Wheatley); her fiance, a puppeteer named Roger Ford (Herbert Lom of Mysterious Island); and one of her best friends, Louise Balfour (Greta Gynt). When someone tries to run over Smith and Ann it's clear that somebody is violently opposed to his investigation. 

Richard Carlson and Greta Gynt

Whispering Smith, a character first introduced in a novel and then in movies, was actually a 19th century railroad detective known for being rather quiet, hence "whispering." Alan Ladd played the part in a 1942 western. In this one-shot movie starring Richard Carlson the character has been updated to the 20th century, but he doesn't seem very quiet, but rather brash in the way of most American private eyes. Carlson gives a very good performance, Rona  Anderson is cute and charming, Greta Gynt radiates a certain sensuality and menace, and Wheatley and Lom make convincing antagonists; Lom is especially effective, as usual. Reginald Beckwith [Doctor in Love] is cast as a man who was a victim of vicious blackmail. Usually a comic figure, he gives a good, if brief, dramatic performance in this. An interesting element has to do with a sinister nursing home called Star Opaque, which is actually a mayhem-for-hire outfit run by the creepy Dr. Taren (Daniel Wherry). An early production from Hammer studios, this is better than their usual mysteries, well-acted, with an interesting plot (even if the ending is not that big a surprise) and characters and a swift pace. Nice score by Fred Spencer.

Verdict: Some more Whispering Smith films with Carlson would have been welcome. ***. 

TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1989)

Sarah Maur Thorp and Frank Stallone

TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1989). Director: Alan Birkinshaw. 

Harry Alan Towers had already produced two earlier versions of Agatha Christie's venerable story -- the notable 1965 version and the terrible 1974 version -- when he decided to trot it out a third time and the results are mediocre. In this version, which is faithful to the period, the assorted wrong-doers are invited on an African safari and wind up staying in a very isolated area -- a rope bridge over a chasm is destroyed -- inside large tents. The premise still casts a certain creepy spell, but otherwise this is not very memorable.

The cast of Ten Little Indians 

There are some notable performers in the cast, however: Donald Pleasence [Circus of Horrors] as the judge; Herbert Lom  of Asylum as the general (he played Dr. Armstrong in the 1974 version); Sarah Maur Thorp as Vera; and Warren Berlinger, a pleasant surprise as Mr. Blore. Brenda Vaccaro gives the same fussy performance as she did in her later years. I'm honestly not certain if Frank Stallone can even be considered a genuine actor, so his choice as the male lead is rather strange. One of the characters acknowledges a lesbian affair which was not in the novel but was picked up for a British TV mini-series many years later. The lousy score for the movie only makes matters worse. 

Verdict: Stick with the 1965 version or And Then There Were None. **1/4.  

TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1974)

Lom, Frobe, Attenborough, Reed and Sommer

TEN LITTLE INDIANS (1974). Director: Peter Collinson. 

Several people receive invitations to an empty luxury hotel built in the Iranian desert near some ruins. While there they learn that their unknown host has assembled them for past misdeeds and an unseen killer strikes at them one by one, the murders related in some way to a nursery rhyme. Eventually the rapidly-dwindling group comes to realize that the murderer is one of their own. Paranoia sets in as the deaths continue and everyone falls under suspicion. 

Unlikely lovers: Elke Sommer and Oliver Reed

This is the second of three versions of Agatha Christie's venerable story that was produced by Harry Alan Towers, who would seemingly produce any piece of shit if he thought he could turn a profit. At least he has assembled an interesting cast in this misfire: Richard Attenborough as the judge; Elke Sommer and Oliver Reed [The Shuttered Room] as the unlikeliest pair of young lovers ever; Stephane Audran as the actress who may have murdered her husband; two Bond villains -- Gert Frobe of Goldfinger and Adolfo Celi of Thunderball -- as, respectively, a detective and a general; French entertainer Charles Aznavour as the drunken first victim; Herbert Lom [Mysterious Island] as Dr. Armstrong, and no less than Orson Welles as the voice of the host. 

The most notable things about this production are the settings and the cinematography of Fernando Arribas. The musical score is atrocious, and the clumsily-directed film -- there are way too many long shots and the murder scenes are devoid of elan -- has virtually no tension or suspense. The acting is generally good, with Attenborough coming off the best. Towers had one more version of the story to go. 

Verdict: Another tax write-off for Towers. **. 

ASYLUM

Robert Powell 

ASYLUM (1972). Director: Roy Ward Baker. Screenplay by Robert Bloch.

Dr. Martin (Robert Powell) arrives at the Dunsmoor Asylum to be interviewed for a job by Dr. Starr. Martin is told by Starr's assistant, Rutherford (Patrick Magee), that Starr has gone crazy and is now one of the institution's patients! Rutherford tells Martin that he can have the job if he is able to tell which of the inmates he's going to see is actually Dr. Starr. The patients then tell Martin their rather horrific stories as he tries to figure out who's who.

Richard Todd wants his wife to "rest in pieces!"

The first story, an EC Comics pastiche, has a man (Richard Todd) taking an ax to his wife (Sylvia Sims) so that he can be with his mistress (Barbara Parkins). Unfortunately for both of them, the wife's pieces, wrapped in paper, come alive to get revenge upon them. In the second and arguably best story a financially-desperate tailor (Barry Morse) accepts a commission from a strange man (Peter Cushing of The Beast Must Die) who wants him to make a special suit -- but he can only work on it at certain hours. 

Charlotte Rampling and Britt Eklund

The third story is a fairly obvious split-personality tale of a sick woman (Charlotte Rampling) and her best friend (Britt Eklund) and murders that ensue. The final story has an inmate (Herbert Lom) putting his soul into a tiny robot-like replica of itself, a murderous "doll" that has realistic internal organs and blood inside of it. Despite some lame aspects -- and its lack of real scares -- Asylum is probably the best horror anthology put together by Amicus Studios. The film is well-acted, fast-paced, and extremely entertaining. Barry Morse [No Trace], who is marvelous as the tailor, certainly shows off his  versatility in this.

Verdict: Lots of fun! ***.