Room to Let (1950 film)

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Room to Let
Room to Let film Opening titles (1950).jpg
Opening titles
Directed by Godfrey Grayson
Written by
Produced by Anthony Hinds
Starring
Cinematography Cedric Williams
Edited by James Needs
Music by Frank Spencer
Production
company
Distributed byExclusive Films
Release date
  • 15 May 1950 (1950-05-15)
Running time
68 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
Language English

Room to Let is a 1950 British second feature ('B') [1] historical thriller film directed by Godfrey Grayson and starring Jimmy Hanley, Valentine Dyall and Constance Smith. [2] It was adapted by John Gilling and Grayson from the BBC radio play by Margery Allingham, broadcast in 1947. [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Plot

After a fire at an insane asylum during the Edwardian era, a young journalist becomes convinced that one of the patients has escaped and taken lodgings at a local middle-class household. The mysterious "Doctor Fell" comes to dominate the three women in the house – mother, daughter and maid – and increasingly shuts them off from outside contact. Despite a lack of assistance from the authorities, the journalist suspects that the Doctor is in fact the notorious Jack the Ripper who is planning a fresh series of attacks.

Cast

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Valentine Dyall is suitably sinister in this Victorian period piece, but the film is protracted and tedious." [6]

Picturegoer wrote: "As a film, it has very little out of the ordinary to commend it .... The story has an unusual ending, which is not, unfortunately, entirely convincing. Constance Smith, a newcomer to the screen, deals rather more than adequately with a part that does not constitute an exactly ideal opening to her career, and looks quite charming in Victorian costume." [7]

Picture Show wrote: "Effective but rather grim." [8]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "mediocre", writing: "Well-acted; tedious at times." [9]

The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "Hammer Films took a step towards its future speciality with this early B-feature ... Modest, but enjoyable. " [10]

TV Guide gave the film two out of five stars, calling it "A fairly disturbing programmer which remains suspenseful to the end." [11]

References

  1. ↑ Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 76. ISBN   978-1-8445-7319-6.
  2. ↑ "Room to Let". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  3. ↑ "Room to Let". BBC Programme Index. 11 November 1947. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  4. ↑ "Room to Let (1950)". Archived from the original on 3 October 2017.
  5. ↑ Jones, Julia (2018). The Adventures of Margery Allingham. Golden Duck UK Ltd. ISBN   9781899262014 – via Google Books.
  6. ↑ "Room to Let" . The Monthly Film Bulletin . 17 (193): 49. 1 January 1950. ProQuest   1305812198.
  7. ↑ "Room to Let" . Picturegoer . 19: 19. 4 May 1950. ProQuest   1705085582.
  8. ↑ "Room to Let" . Picture Show . 54 (1419): 12. 10 June 1950. ProQuest   1879634009.
  9. ↑ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 242. ISBN   0-7134-1874-5.
  10. ↑ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 788. ISBN   9780992936440.
  11. ↑ "Room To Let". TVGuide.com.
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