*By submitting your contribution, you agree to TCM's Terms of Use. TCM will use your personal information consistent with our Privacy Policy

• Gripping film

  • Karen Burditt
  • 3/12/10

  This is a terrific film and worth seeking out. The opening scenes caught my attention - a foot chase through the actual streets of Brighton, England in the late 40's. I don't know how they did it but it looked like they filmed with the actual crowds, not extras. Richard Attenborough plays Pinky, a young hood trying to take over the turf of another hood. The difference - Pinky is a sociopath, and Attenborough makes him as chilling as any portrayed in Film Noir. Hermoine Badderly does a great job as brassy Ida, who keeps trying to solve a murder when the police have given up. Carol Marsh is a young naive waitress, Rose, who knows more than she realizes about that murder. Pinky romances her to keep her from talking. It becomes a race against time as the worldly Ida tries to protect Rose from Pinky. There is an interesting balance between Ida's intuition and Rose's obliviousness, between Ida's drive and Rose's passivity. All the while there is Pinky, spinning his sinister web around Rose. The world of tired and tatty Brighton is showcased. Overwhelmed with the postwar crowds, and showing its Edwardian age, its as sad as Atlantic City in the 70's. Find this film and watch it - a well crafted British film noir.

• More Reviews