VividSimon Simply Perfect

FeistyUpper If you don't like this, we can't be friends.

Adeel Hail Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

Zandra The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Spikeopath Floods of Fear is directed by Charles Crichton who also co-adapts the screenplay with Vivienne Knight from the novel written by John and Ward Hawkins. It stars Howard Keel, Anne Heywood, Cyril Cusack, Harry H. Corbett, John Crawford and Eddie Byrne. Music is by Alan Rawsthorne and cinematography by Christopher Challis. Two convicts and one guard are washed away into a flood after the barrier they were building collapses. Ending up at the flooded farmhouse of Dr. Matthews (John Phillips), the men find that the doctor is not at home but his daughter Elizabeth (Heywood) is. Soon enough tensions rise to boiling point, especially since one of the cons, Donovan (Keel), appears to be innocent of the murder he is locked up for, and he has revenge on his mind... Something of a legend for his directing work for Ealing Studios, Charles Crichton does a fine job blending a suspenseful action thriller with film noir thematics. Though primarily known for comedies (his last film would be A Fish Called Wanda), Crichton had already shown he had a considerable eye for noir with the brilliant and under seen Dirk Bogarde starrer Hunted (1952), only difference here is that the setting is predominantly set on or near water, and it really works for dramatic purpose. The flood recreation scenes are excellent, be it our protagonists/antagonists flailing about in the water trying to keep alive, or the destruction sequences as houses and various other parts of the watery landscape falling by the wayside, there is high peril crafted out there on those waters. With Challis' (Footsteps in the Fog and latterly Arabesque) beautiful black and white photography making a mark, and Rawsthorne's (Uncle Silas/Pandora and the Flying Dutchman) musical score suitably stirring, the tech credits are high grade for such a Brit production. It's the character dynamics that really seal the deal to make this a film well worth seeking out. Keel is full on brooding machismo, who seems to have the world on his shoulders, but he always convinces as a man to turn to in a crisis. Cusack is a nutter, no beating around the bush, he would stab you as soon as look at you, and he has very unhealthy designs on Elizabeth. Which brings us to Heywood, who as the sole female of the piece gives a real stoic performance, she's constantly pulled from pillar to post, drowned like a rat, and she has to balance fear, bravado and romance, which she does admirably. While Corbett, who would find fame in the hugely popular TV comedy show Steptoe & Son, provides the requisite officialdom axis in the play. All good really. 7.5/10

gordonl56 FLOODS OF FEAR – 1958 This is a UK production set in the American Northeast during a rather nasty flood. A group of convicts are put to work reinforcing a levee with sandbags. The levee however gives way and everyone is sweep into the rushing waters. Two convicts, Howard Keel, Cyril Cusack and an injured guard, Harry Corbett all make it to safety. They are joined by local, Anne Heywood. The four take shelter from the rising waters on the top floor of Heywood's home. Keel immediately starts building a raft. He has no intention of returning to prison. He has murder on his mind. Keel got a life sentence for murdering his business partner, John Crawford's wife. The two had been having an affair and when she had turned up dead, all the evidence pointed at Keel. Crawford and Keel had been partners in a river tug outfit located just down the river. Corbett does his best to protect the girl Heywood, from the unwanted attentions of the oily Cusack. Cusack arms himself with a large blade and hints that Corbett will get his soon. Keel finally gets his raft done only to have Corbett swipe the thing in order to get away from Cusack. The rising waters soon push the rest of the house off its footings and into the river. Keel, Cusack and Heywood manage to survive by holding onto a piece of the roof that breaks off and serves as a raft. As luck would have it, they find a small boat and transfer to it. Keel soon grows tired of the rat, Cusack, and his constant attempts at Heywood. He fires the rodent off the boat at the first bit of land they come to, before continuing towards his "date" with Crawford. Heywood realizes that Keel is not the vicious murderer she had thought him to be. Keel simply wants the truth to come out about the crime he was sent up for. Keel lands Heywood at a safe spot and carries on. Guard Corbett has made it to safety and contacts the local law, Eddie Byrne. He tells Byrne that Keel intends to murder Crawford if he can reach him. Byrne hands Corbett a revolver and assigns him a couple of National Guardsmen to escort him to Crawford's place. Now we find out that Cusack has knifed a would be rescuer, and stolen his small motorboat. Cusack plans on reaching Crawford before Keel. Cusack intends a bit of blackmail. He believes Crawford to be the real murderer as well. Cusack is sure Crawford will pay for the warning about Keel, as well as for Cusack to keep his silence about the murder. Heywood has also reached the local law. A quick word with Byrne has the Sheriff send Heywood and a couple deputies racing to Crawford's in case Corbett might need help. Guard Corbett and the two National Guardsmen have by this time reached Crawford's tug boat pier. Corbett warns Crawford about Keel's break out, and his planned attempt on Crawford's life. Soon Cusack comes puttering out of the rain in his little motorboat. Everyone mistakes him for Keel, and Cusack collects several bullets before being collared. Heywood arrives with the extra men, everyone now just sits and waits for Keel to put in an appearance. Keel however is already there, and has been watching everything for the last 20 minutes. He sneaks under the dock and enters Crawford's office. He gets the drop on the man and proceeds to give Crawford a most vicious beating. He cannot however bring himself to kill Crawford. He turns himself in to Corbett. Corbett, who has been busy questioning Cusack, tells Keel that enough questions as to his guilt have been raised, that a new trial is likely. There are some fairly intense moments in the film and Keel is surprisingly good in a non-musical role. What throws the viewer off to a degree, is the rather ineffective American accents used by the UK members of the cast. It would have worked better being set in the UK. Having said that, the film as a whole, works quite well. There are several noir touches throughout, murder, revenge, infidelity being the foremost. And the raging waters do well at replacing the alleys and dark streets of an urban setting. Both are empty to the man on the run. The look of the film also works with D of P Christopher Challis, supplying a nice assortment of black and grey tones. The four time BAFTA nominated Challis did some top fight work with, THE SMALL BACK ROOM, FOOTSTEPS IN THE FOG, CHANCE MEETING, NEVER LET GO, SINK THE BISMARCK, ARABESQUE, VILLAIN and EVIL UNDER THE SUN as examples of his work. The director, Charles Crichton, is best known for the films, HUE AND CRY, THE LAVANDER HILL MOB and A FISH CALLED WANDA. He also touched on suspense with HUNTED and THE THIRD SECRET. (b/w)

sol ***SPOILERS*** Movie musical star Howard Keel as escaped convicted murderer Donovan doesn't sing a note and is bear chested during, with a few exceptions, the entire film. Donovan tries to make his way back to Westmills to get his hands on the person who framed him for his wife's murder construction boss Jack Murphy, John Crawford. Not only did Murphy frame Donovan in his-Murphy's-wife's murder but took control of his construction business from Donovan when he was sent up the river. With the Humboldt River now overflowing its banks Donovan plans his escape by going or swimming downstream to get to Murphy and make him pay for what he did to him.But a number of problems arise for Donovan when he's forced to save Elizabeth Matthews. Anne Hayworth, fellow convict Peebles, Cryil Cusack, and injured prison guard Sharkey, Henry H. Corbett,on his way downstream to Westmills. This together with the flood waters hinders Donovan's plan to get Murphy and puts him on the spot in getting captured by the police and national guard units who are out looking for him. Taking shelter,together with Elizaberth Sharkey & Peebles, in Elizabeth's three story house Donovan knows that it's only a matter of time when the raging floodwater's engulf the place which makes his desperate situation even more desperate. And with both Peebles and Sharkey having it in for him for totally different reasons Donovan has to work real fast before he ends up dead by them or the by now over 30 feet high and deep floodwater's that covering the entire landscape.What seems like a precursor to what's happening now with the threat of global warming and climate change "Floods of Fear" addresses these two major environmental issues of our time some 50 years before we became conscious of them. The floods are caused by the melting of the ice and snow because of the unusual high temperatures in the mountain regions that's now turning the valleys belows into lakes. Of course Dovonan & Co. has no idea of this, climate change, happening their just trying to survive the flood which by now has reached Noah and his Ark proportions.It's pretty Elizabeth who soon realizes that Donovan isn't, in his gentlemanly manor and kindness to animals as well as her, the cold blooded killer that he's made out to be. Elizabeth does everything she can to get Donovan to give himself up and prove, even thought he was already convicted of murder, his innocence! That's before he ends up killing Murphy and proves her wrong!***SPOILERS**** Very wet, with all the water in it, and interesting film about an innocent man who's out to prove that he was framed for a crime he didn't commit. Where at the same time he has to deal with nature at it's most destructive in him proving it. Donovan who when he finally tracks down Murphy decides to let the law take care of him but only after beating him, with Murphy getting a few good licks back in return, within an inch of his life. It in fact was Elizabeth who got Donovan to see the light and not blow Murphy away, with a gun pointed at his head, that turned things around for him. And changed them for the better.

sol- A rarely seen film from Charles Crichton, the director of popular British comedies such as 'The Lavender Hill Mob' and 'A Fish Called Wanda', Crichton manages to establish an appropriately solemn atmosphere for this film, but even so, it is only passable viewing overall. There are some fine bits of drama woven into the tale, however the film has a tendency to be unrealistically melodramatic, and the dull, heavy-handed narration is no help. The floods effects are great though, and together with apt music, the film has a fair few moments of great power. It is only intermittently intense though, and the plot is completely predictable, with a typical love interest and obvious plot twists. Fans of Crichton or the cast members might find something interesting here. It is pretty watchable - just not especially well made.