CrawlerChunky
In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.
TaryBiggBall
It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.
Rexanne
It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny
Janis
One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.
Leofwine_draca
BLACKOUT is a typical British noir flick of the 1950s with a fairly good turn from American import Dane Clark, who starts off being drunk out of his head and seduced by a blonde femme fatale (the exceptional Belinda Lee). When he wakes up the next morning he finds himself enmeshed in a murder plot and must fight to extricate himself. This film was one of the thrillers that Hammer made before moving into the horror genre and it's fairly average, not quite as good as others they made during the era (such as the underrated CLOUDBURST). Clark is a bit of a weedy hero and constantly out of his depth while the plot gets a bit bogged down during the middle stages, lacking that spark of suspense to keep it moving; the classic 'saggy middle'. Still, things do pick up for the twist-upon-twist climax, so at least it ends on a high, and the tragic Lee helps to make this worthwhile.
karen5778
This is a little British murder mystery, not a noir. The main character is a nice shlub, not a tough guy. There is very little tension or menace and certainly not any cynicism or existential despair. The dialog and bits of business are pretty funny and practically everyone in the film, including the villain, seems basically likable. Dane Clark does a very good job, although he will go on to do better. The plot offers a steady diet of red herring, but plot is not this film's strong suit. The whole thing is so likable that you may find yourself cringing that the plot and twists and turns seem so aimless and gratuitous, but it doesn't pretend to be more than a grade B movie with some good acting and good dialog.
MartinHafer
The film begins with Dane Clark being offered a strange marriage proposal from a woman he just met. Not only that, she offers this drunk guy 500 pounds to do the deed! However, upon waking up the next morning, he finds he's implicated with murder and there's no trace of the lady! So, it's up to tough-guy Clark to investigate and clear his name.Most fans of Film Noir will be surprised to hear that the British (not to mention, the French) made quite a few of these in the 1950s. Oddly, the Brit Noir films were made by Hammer Studios--the same folks who made tons of Dracula, Frankenstein and Mummy films from the late 50s to the mid 1970s! And, oddly, this film is directed by the studio's foremost monster film director, Terence Fisher.Overall, while this is far from a great film, it does stack up pretty well with the average American example, though I will admit that this film does have a few too many twists and turns (particularly for the character of Phyllis Brunner).
jim riecken (youroldpaljim)
Dane Clark plays an American drifter in London who meets a stunning blonde while on a bender at a bar. The girl tricks him into marrying him while he is in a drunken stupor and he wakes up with 500 pounds in his pocket. He then discovers he is involved in a murder and an inheritance scam.MURDER BY PROXY (a.k.a. BLACKOUT) is one of several British attempts to duplicate the American "film noir." Sometimes they even cast a genuine American "noir" star, in this case Dane Clark. Clark was in this as well as the British "noir" PAID TO KILL. However, the results were almost always that these "Brit Noir's" were never as satisfying as the American films. MURDER BY PROXY has fairly interesting plot, but things begin to get confusing, and like most "Brit Noir's", MURDER BY PROXY builds up to its climax to slowly. There is an overly long and pointless scene where Clark visits his mother and English step father and introduces himself to his new "bride." They then throw a party. This takes ups to much time and adds nothing to story.
