Operation Murder

1957 British film by Ernest Morris

Edward J. Danziger
Harry Lee Danziger

Starring

Tom Conway
Sandra Dorne
Patrick Holt

CinematographyJames WilsonEdited byAnne BarkerMusic byEdwin Astley

Production
company

Danziger Productions

Distributed byAssociated British-Pathé (UK)

Release date

January 1957 (1957-01) (UK)

Running time

66 minutesCountryUnited KingdomLanguageEnglish

Operation Murder is a 1957 British 'B'^[1] crime film directed by Ernest Morris and starring Tom Conway, Patrick Holt and Sandra Dorne.^[2]^[3] It was written by Brian Clemens and produced by the Danzinger brothers.

Plot

A scheme by two doctors to establish an alibi for a killing by switching roles in the operating theatre is foiled by the insight of a detective and the chance action of a small boy.

Cast

Tom Conway as Dr. Wayne
Patrick Holt as Dr. Bowen
Sandra Dorne as Pat Wayne
John Stone as Inspector Price
Virginia Keiley as Julie
Rosamund John as Head Nurse
Frank Hawkins as Sargeant Vine
Robert Ayres as Larry Vinton
Gilbert Winfield as garage attendant
Timothy Fitzgerald as Harry Bright
Alastair Hunter as Williams

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "The familiar crime-and-detection formulas are applied in a manner conventional to the point of dullness; and the acting does little to brighten things up. Perhaps the reason the scenes in the operating theatre (reminiscent, as they are, of something better) achieve so little tension is because the locale itself has become so stereotyped."^[4]

Kine Weekly wrote: "Unpretentious and untidy British thriller. ... The cast contains popular names, but the leading players fail to achieve the impossible and seal the many loopholes in its sketchy script. Both surprise and punch are lacking. ... The picture has a novel idea, but its ingenuity is dissipated by unsubtle treatment. John Stone does a neat job as Inspector Price, but Tom Conway and Patrick Holt are forced to behave as if they want their heads examined as Doctors Wayne and Bowen and Sandra Dorne is completely wasted as Wayne's extravagant wife. The staging, too, leaves something to be desired, and so does the dialogue. Definitely made on frayed cuff."^[5]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "poor", writing: "Dull drama, described by one critic as 'clinical claptrap'."^[6]

References

^ Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-8445-7319-6.
^ "Operation Murder". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
^ "Operation Murder (1956) | BFI". Explore.bfi.org.uk. Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
^ "Operation Murder". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 24 (276): 20. 1 January 1957 – via ProQuest.
^ "Operation Murder". Kine Weekly. 477 (2577): 15. 3 January 1957 – via ProQuest.
^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 357. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.