Customer Reviews

British Cinema Classic B Film Collection, Vol. 1 (Tread Softly Stranger / The Siege of Sidney Street / The Frightened Man / Crimes at the Dark House / The Hooded Terror / Girl in the News)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The quality of the picture and sound in "British Cinema Classic B Film Collection, Vol. 1" is mediocre. The picture is generally blurry, the sound fuzzy. Most of the films carry the logo of a TV distributor. One of them, "The Siege of Sidney Street," was filmed in a widescreen process called Dyaliscope (2.35:1), but on this disc the picture is cropped to the old TV ratio (1.33:1). The right and left sides are cut off.

These obscure British films have never been on DVD in US before and - to my knowledge at least most were not on VHS. I chanced on to this one to see the 1958 film "Tread Softly Stranger" with Diana Dors - which received excellent reviews when released in the UK as a PAL DVD. I'm glad I spent the time on this film. Not only is Dors - a combo Jayne Mansfield (but with a slimmer figure) and Marilyn Monroe actress - both sexy and erotic, but the tale of a robbery gone wrong has some great twists and turns. The other films on this set aren't quite as good in my opinion.

The prints are not sharp but apparently the best that can be hoped for until someone takes the time - and money - to restore them. But at least they are out there for all the word to see. The other improvement that could be made with this set is a series of film notes about the actors, directors and the British film industry.

Steve Ramm
"anything Phonographic"

We will never know what happened to Hundreds of British Films which seem to have vanished forever into the mists of time.
I have combed the Internet in search of Old British Titles that thrilled me at the Cinema and on Early Television.
Amazon have managed to open doors to many great film titles and this collection on Vol 1 is great entertainment from begining to end.
B Grade is Buy Grade for this DVD
A Fantastic chance to add to a film collection and may many more of these treasures find their way into our hands.
As a projectionist I have seen and run films in Cinema,s and Drive-in,s and its a pleasure to buy six of the best.
BUY IT

Dave Cox

These are good movies and are good quality, both video and audio. I am happy with my purchase.

I don't know why some people were complaining about the picture quality. I didn't find anything wrong with it. Really.... What can you expect from such old movies? I found each and every movie to be well worth the time spent viewing them. I would say, "This set is worth every penny". I hope someday there will be a Volume 2. If you like British movies this set is for you.

The half-dozen films in VCI's British 'B' collection #1 include two by the legendary Tod Slaughter, plus a story of cornered anarchists, a convalescent nurse implicated in murder for the second time, an honest man and son who foolishly break the law, and an industrial safe heist.

SYNOPSES--

CRIMES AT THE DARK HOUSE-- Tod Slaughter portrays a murderer who assumes the identity of his wealthy Australian victim and then travels to England to claim the man's inherited estate.

FRIGHTENED MAN-- A struggling antique shop owner fences some stolen goods to raise money for his son's university education. The boy comes home looking for some fast cash; he gets involved in a gang-style robbery that goes terribly wrong.

GIRL IN THE NEWS-- A nurse acqutted in the death of an elderly patient changes her name and takes a job as assistant to a wheelchair-bound man whose wife and butler want to kill him and frame the girl for the crime. Directed by Carol Reed ("The Third Man").

HOODED TERROR-- Master sleuth Sexton Blake pursues the "Snake," and his gang of masked thugs, the "Hooded Terror." A fine opportunity to watch Tod Slaughter (as our bad guy) devour the scenery with his usual gusto.

SIEGE OF SIDNEY ST.-- Anarchists trying to raise money in aid of Latvia's freedom fight are involved in a deadly robbery. The building they take shelter in is surrounded by 100 policemen. Story of the failed robbery is told in flashback as the seige unfolds. Based on a true event from 1911.

TREAD SOFTLY STRANGER-- Calculating woman plays upon the affections of two brothers, convincing them to rob a safe at the steel mill where one of them works. During the heist, a night watchman is killed, and his son sets out to find those responsible.


CLASSIC BRITISH THRILLERS features two 1930s movies, plus one film noir from the '40s that stars James and Pamela Mason.


Parenthetical numbers preceding titles are 1 to 10 viewer poll ratings found at a film resource website.

(7.0) Crimes At The Dark House (UK-1940) - Tod Slaughter/Sylvia Marriott/Hilary Eaves/Geoffrey Wardwell/Hay Petrie
(5.7) The Frightened Man (UK-1952) - Dermot Walsh/Barbara Murray/Charles Victor/John Blythe/Michael Ward
(6.5) Girl in the News (UK-1940) - Margaret Lockwood/Barry K. Barnes/Emlyn Williams/Roger Livesay/Margaretta Scott
(4.1) The Hooded Terror ("Sexton Blake and the Hooded Terror") (UK-1938) - George Curzon/Tod Slaughter/Greta Gynt
(6.0) The Siege of Sidney Street (UK-1960) - Donald Sinden/Nicole Berger/Kieron Moore/Peter Wyngarde
(6.8) Tread Softly Stranger (UK-1958) - Diana Dors/George Baker/Terence Morgan/Patrick Allen/Jane Griffiths

VCI Entertainment presents "BRITISH CINEMA CLASSIC B FILM COLLECTION VOL.1" --- (1938-1960) (465 mins/B&W) (Dolby digitally remastered) --- The titles included in the set are: The Siege of Sidney Street (1960), The Frightened Man (1952), Crimes at the Dark House (1940), The Hooded Terror (1938), Girl in the News (1940) and Tread Softly Stranger (1958) ------- A standout is "Crimes at the Dark House" (1940) is a British film starring Tod Slaughter, Sylvia Marriott and Hilary Eaves and was directed by George King. It is loosely based on the novel The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins --- In this lurid melodrama Tod Slaughter plays a villain who murders the wealthy Sir Percival Glyde in the gold fields of Australia and assumes his identity in order to inherit his estate in England --- On arriving in England he schemes to marry an heiress for her money and, with the connivance of the enigmatic Count Fosco, embarks on a killing spree of all who suspect him to be an impostor and get in the way of his plans to be the Lord the Manor --- Outstanding performance by the legendary Tod Slaughter, who always gave us his best in every film.

My fellow reviewer Annie Van Auken has given the synopses on each film on this page --- Listed below are some of the cast and release dates from the six British Cinema Classics from VCI.

Films with Titles, Date Released, Time, Directors & Some of the Cast members:

First up we have - "SIEGE OF SIDNEY STREET" (11 October 1960) (93 mins/B&W) - Robert S. Baker & Monty Berman (Directors)

Cast includes:
Donald Sinden ... Mannering
Nicole Berger ... Sara
Kieron Moore ... Toska
Peter Wyngarde ... Peter
Godfrey Quigley ... Blakey
Tutte Lemkow ... Dmitrieff
Bart Bastable ... Sgt. Tucker
George Pastell ... Brodsky
Angela Newman ... Nina

Second we have - "THE FRIGHTENED MAN" (March 1952) (69 mins/B&W) - John Gilling (Director)

Cast includes:
Dermot Walsh ... Julius Roselli
Barbara Murray ... Amanda
Charles Victor ... Mr. Roselli
John Blythe ... Maxie
Michael Ward ... Cornelius
Thora Hird ... Vera
John Horsley ... Harry
Annette D. Simmonds ... Marcella

Third we have - "CRIMES AT THE DARK HOUSE" (March 1940) (69 mins/B&W) - George King (Director)
.
Cast includes:
Tod Slaughter ... The False Percival Glyde
Sylvia Marriott ... Laurie Fairlie / Anne Catherick
Hilary Eaves ... Marion Fairlie
Geoffrey Wardwell ... Paul Hartwright
Hay Petrie ... Dr. Isidor Fosco
Margaret Yarde ... Mrs. Bullen
Rita Grant ... Jessica, the Maid
David Horne ... Frederick Fairlie
Elsie Wagstaff ... Mrs. Catherick
David Keir ... Lawyer Merriman

Fourth feature - "HOODED TERROR" (1938) (70 mins/B&W) - George King (Director)

Cast includes:
George Curzon ... Sexton Blake
Tod Slaughter ... Michael Larron
Greta Gynt ... Madamoiselle Julie
Tony Sympson ... Tinker
Charles Oliver ... Max Fleming
Marie Wright ... Mrs. Bardell
David Farrar ... Granite Grant
Norman Pierce ... Inspector Bramley
H.B. Hallam ... Monsieur Bertrand
Bradley Watts ... Paul Duvall

Fifth feature - "GIRL IN THE NEWS" (31 January 1941) (78 mins/B&W) - Carol Reed (Director)

Cast includes:
Margaret Lockwood ... Anne Graham
Barry K. Barnes ... Stephen Farringdon
Emlyn Williams ... Tracy
Roger Livesey ... Bill Mather
Margaretta Scott ... Judith Bentley
Wyndham Goldie ... Edward Bentley
Basil Radford ... Doctor Threadgrove
Irene Handl ... Gertrude Mary Blaker
Mervyn Johns ... James Fetherwood
Betty Jardine ... Elsie
Kathleen Harrison ... Cook
Felix Aylmer ... Prosecuting Counsel

Sixth feature - "TREAD SOFTLY STRANGER" (August 1958) (90 mins/B&W) Gordon Parry (Director)

Cast includes:
Diana Dors ... Calico
George Baker ... Johnny Mansell
Terence Morgan ... Dave Mansell
Patrick Allen ... Paddy Ryan
Jane Griffiths ... Sylvia
Maureen Delaney ... Mrs. Finnegan
Betty Warren ... Flo
Thomas Heathcote ... Sgt. Lamb
Russell Napier ... Potter
Norman Macowan ... Danny
Wilfrid Lawson ... Holroyd
William Kerwin ... Michael

Hats off and thanks to Robert Blair and his staff at VCI Entertainment --- VCI was named in Variety and Hollywood Reporter as the first company to produce and release motion pictures directly to the home marketplace --- order your copy now from Amazon or VCI Entertainment where there are plenty of copies available on DVD, stay tuned once again for top notch releases --- VCI are experts in releasing long forgotten films and treasures to the collector -- looking forward to more Nostalgic Collections.

Total Time: 465 mins on DVD ~ VCI Home Video 8535 ~ (9/16/2008)

This would have been a 5 star item if not for the inclusion of "The Hooded Terror", which is not in the same class by the other films. The remainder are unique in that they're based on literate story telling and their focus is on their capable acting. A valued addition to my collection at an excellent price.

Unless you're a glutton for B movies (and I usually am), the reason for buying this set is The Girl in the News. I have no idea why VCI would label this Carol Reed film a B movie. I can well understand why they don't fess up and let us know that the video quality of all the films in the set ranges from abysmal to just poor. VCI seems to have taken whatever old, tired VHS tapes they could find and slapped them onto the DVD format. However, the only real quality turkey in the lot is Tread Softly Stranger. The most amusing has Tod Slaughter camping it up as a chortling murderer in Crimes at the Dark House.

But The Girl in the News is an A effort. If it doesn't reach the classic status of the films Carol Reed directed in his great Forties and early Fifties years (Night Train to Munich, 1940; Odd Man Out, 1947; The Fallen Idol - Criterion Collection, 1948; The Third Man - Criterion Collection (2-Disc Edition), 1949; Outcast of the Islands, 1952), still it is a fine example of that satisfying genre, the well mannered British murder thriller peopled with attractive and accomplished actors, and with a clever script.

"Nurse required to attend invalid in quiet Surrey village; 22-26; hospital trained but experience in private nursing essential. Apply sending details and photograph to Mrs. Bentley, Camthorpe House, Camthorpe, Surrey." The advertisement might have added, "Also essential: Nurse must be thought guilty, even though she was acquitted at trial, of murdering a previous invalid in her care."

Anne Graham (Margaret Lockwood) had gone on trial for murdering the self-centered, sick woman she had been caring for. Sleeping pills were the means; a small legacy was the motive. Everyone assumed Anne had done it. A resourceful young barrister, Stephen Farringdon (Barry K. Barnes), was able to plant enough seeds of doubt in the jury's mind to get her off. Even he thinks she might have done it. She now finds she's unemployable. Who wants a suspected murderer for a nurse? Fortuitously, she receives in the mail a newspaper with an advertisement for a nurse. The location is in Surrey, some way from London. She applies, is interviewed, and is hired. She is to take care of a wealthy older man, Mr. Bentley, who is confined to a wheelchair. The man's attractive wife, Mrs. Bentley, is most solicitous. Tracy the butler (Emlyn Williams) watches it all. And then we realize that the butler had been present at Anne's trial.

As you might suppose, it's not long before Mr. Bentley has died from an overdose of sleeping pills. A codicil to his will gives a small legacy to Anne. And now the police are convinced Anne killed both of her patients. Fortunately, Stephen Farringdon has cast aside his original doubt. He finds himself falling in love with Anne, and he is shrewd enough to think this second murder is a clever plot to make Anne look guilty while the real killers, who now will be wealthy, move on.

There are no plot surprises. This is a "How's she going to get out of this" mystery. For the first 35 minutes, we have the set up. For the last 45 minutes, the extrication. Much depends on the appeal of Margaret Lockwood. In the Forties she became one of Britain's greatest stars. It was hard to beat her as a plucky, intelligent heroine or as a manipulating villain. Either way, she was an immensely likeable personality. Others in the cast speak to the great depth of acting Britain could put in its films when it chose to. Roger Livesey plays a detective, Farringdon's friend, and he brings a lot of charm to the film. He has that inimitable voice, husky, friendly, and a little skeptical. In small parts, often unbilled, are such fine actors as Roland Culver, Leo Genn, Mervyn Johns, Felix Aylmer and Basil Radford. Unfortunately, the movie suffers because neither the male lead nor the villain strikes many sparks. It's particularly unlikely that Tracy, small, smug and supercilious, would be any woman's hetero heartthrob. And Farringdon is one of those lean, polite, cultured types who seem to think a second glass of sherry might be too exciting for their girl friends. The movie would benefit, in my view, by having two strong, attractive actors dealing with Margaret Lockwood.

Carol Reed gives us a clever murder thriller with some nice touches, from a black kitten tugging at the hem of a night dress while a petulant, sick woman slowly creeps her way to the medicine chest, to a humorous bit of misdirection involving a detective and a crook. Reed and screenwriter Sidney Gilliat know how to create characters that have enough detail to be interesting. Gilliat, who with his partner, Frank Launder, either together or separately, either working as writer, director or producer, or in any combination, were responsible for some great Forties movies, too: Green for Danger - Criterion Collection, The Belles Of St. Trinian's, I See a Dark Stranger, The Rake's Progress, The Lady Vanishes - Criterion Collection, Night Train to Munich, among others.

The Girl in the News, as good as it is, is not worth by itself the price of this set. Better rent this disc (which comes with Tread Softly Stranger) before making up your mind.

SIX GOOD VINTAGE BRITISH FILMS. TRANSFER QUALITY IT GOOD. MANY OF THESE ARE AVAILABLE IN OTHER SETS. A BIT PRICEY AT $26.99 FOR 6 PUBLIC DOMAIN FILMS.