Directed by Anthony Asquith • 1950 • United Kingdom
Starring Jean Kent, Dirk Bogarde, John McCallum
Fortune teller Agnes Huston (Jean Kent), a.k.a. Madame Astra, has been murdered—but that’s about all anyone can agree on as five different perspectives on the dead woman’s personality come to light during the course of a labyrinthine police investigation. Each suspect remembers her differently. Was Agnes a beautiful, well-bred lady? A slovenly, raging drunk? Can we ever understand the truth of another person’s life? Putting a noir spin on the CITIZEN KANE/RASHOMON–style subjective-flashback structure makes for a delightfully clever and involving whodunnit.
Up Next in British Noir
-
Pool of London
Directed by Basil Dearden • 1951 • United Kingdom
Starring Bonar Colleano, Susan Shaw, Renée AshersonNotable as one of the first British films to star a Black actor and to depict an interracial romance, POOL OF LONDON centers on the sailors of the merchant ship Dunbar, who take an especially ev...
-
Yield to the Night
Directed by J. Lee Thompson • 1956 • United Kingdom
Starring Diana Dors, Yvonne Mitchell, Michael CraigSuffused with unrelenting dread, this powerful “angry young woman” drama gave British star Diana Dors perhaps the finest dramatic showcase of her career. She delivers a riveting performance as...
-
Hell Drivers
Directed by Cy Endfield • 1957 • United Kingdom
Starring Stanley Baker, Herbert Lom, Peggy CumminsBlacklisted from Hollywood, American director Cy Endfield found a fresh start in Britain, where he brought a pronounced anticapitalist punch to this exciting crime drama set in the trucking industr...
