The Woman in Question is a relatively unsung film, made in 1950 by Anthony Asquith, the son of a former Prime Minister. I found a DVD version in my quest for whodunit movies – as I've mentioned before in this blog, they are much scarcer than thrillers. And I certainly wasn't disappointed with this one.
A woman (played by Jean Kent) who scrapes a living as a fortune teller in a small seaside town is found strangled in her home. A police team headed by Duncan MacRae investigates and interviews a series of witnesses and potential suspects. The unusual and clever feature of the film is that each witness portrays the victim in a different light, so that understanding her character from the contrasting accounts becomes key to solving the crime. What other books and films have done this so explicitly? A few, but not a large number, I think.
Among the witnesses is a young stage performer played by Dirk Bogarde, whose American accent is so ropey that it comes as a great relief when he admits to his girlfriend that he was actually born in Liverpool – not that there is any trace of a Scouse accent, either. But overall he and the rest of the cast do a good job.
When it emerged that the dead woman had a pet parrot, I anticipated that the bird would provide the detectives with a vital clue, and so it proved. I managed to figure out the identity of the murderer, but this did not in any way spoil my enjoyment of a short, snappy and entertaining mystery movie. It is almost a British film noir, and I can definitely recommend it.
Thursday, 28 July 2011
The Woman in Question
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8 comments:
Martin - Thanks for this recommendation. This one's a film I wasn't familiar with, but it certainly sounds worth looking up. Another for my list of films to see...
Margot, I honestly think you are likely to enjoy it. Even though dated, it is very interesting and not over-long.
This is one of my favourite films of all time. Seedy seaside atmosphere, Hermione Baddeley, the lovely and funny Jean Kent, Duncan McCrae as the investigating officer, filmed on location. I taped it from the TV in the days when TV companies screened this kind of b/w film - why don't they any more??????????
Great review, thanks for sharing.
I have a vague recollection of seeing this, but no matter -- if I did, I'd like to see it again. This is a timely post, Martin: Jean Kent turned 90 on June 29, looking wonderful and sounding strong.
Richmonde, it's a very good question!!
Thanks, Toyin O.
Philip, glad to hear that. It is a strong film, and I enjoyed it even more than I expected.
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