The Squeaker (1937 film)

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The Squeaker
"The Squeaker" (1937).jpg
U.S. theatrical poster
Directed by William K. Howard
Screenplay by
  • Ted Berkman (as Edward O. Berkman)
  • Bryan Edgar Wallace (scenario) (as Bryan Wallace)
Based onnovel and play by Edgar Wallace
Produced by Alexander Korda
Starring
Cinematography Georges Périnal
Edited by Russell Lloyd
Music by Miklós Rózsa
Production
company
Distributed by United Artists
Release date
  • 6 November 1937 (1937-11-06)(UK)
Running time
77 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office£42,858 (UK distributor) [1]

The Squeaker is a 1937 British crime film directed by William K. Howard and starring Edmund Lowe, Sebastian Shaw and Ann Todd. [2] Edmund Lowe reprised his stage performance in the role of Inspector Barrabal. [3] It is based on the 1927 novel The Squeaker and 1928 play of the same name by Edgar Wallace. Wallace's son Bryan Edgar Wallace worked on the film's screenplay. The Squeaker is underworld slang for an informer. [4] The film is sometimes known by its U.S. alternative title Murder on Diamond Row. [4]

Contents

Plot

London's thieves are at the mercy of a super fence, who is in on every big jewellery robbery in the city. If the thieves won't split the loot with him, 'The Squeaker' shops them to the Police. A disgraced ex-detective believes there may be an opportunity to clear his name if he can capture 'The Squeaker'.

Cast

Critical reception

TV Guide wrote, "(it) has its moments, but is bogged down by the unnecessary characterizations, some occasionally inept lensing, and slow-paced direction"; [5] while the Radio Times wrote, "Edgar Wallace's classic whodunnit has been reworked into an efficient crime story by producer Alexander Korda...Confined within starchy studio sets, William K Howard directs steadily, but the removal of that touch of mystery leaves him with precious little to play with, to the extent that he has to bolster the action with protracted love scenes between Lowe and Ann Todd. Robert Newton and Alastair Sim put in pleasing support appearances"; [3] and Leonard Maltin wrote, "classy cast in first-rate Edgar Wallace mystery." [6]

See also

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References

  1. James Chapman ‘The Billings verdict’: Kine Weekly and the British Box Office, 1936–62' Journal of British Cinema and Television, Volume 20 Issue 2, Page 200-238, p 205
  2. "The Squeaker". BFI. Archived from the original on 13 January 2009.
  3. 1 2 David Parkinson. "The Squeaker". RadioTimes.
  4. 1 2 "Murder on Diamond Row (1937) - Notes - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.
  5. "Murder On Diamond Row". TVGuide.com.
  6. "Murder on Diamond Row (1937) - Overview - TCM.com". Turner Classic Movies.