River Beat
River Beat is a 1954 British noir crime film directed by Guy Green and starring John Bentley, Phyllis Kirk and Leonard White.[1] The screenplay concerns a river police inspector who faces a moral dilemma when a woman he knows gets caught up in jewel smuggling. It was shot at Walton Studios and on location around London. The film's sets were designed by the art director John Stoll. It was produced as a second feature and distributed in the United States by Lippert Pictures.
| River Beat | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Guy Green |
| Written by | Rex Rienits |
| Produced by | Herman Cohen Victor Hanbury |
| Starring | John Bentley Phyllis Kirk Leonard White Glyn Houston |
| Cinematography | Geoffrey Faithfull |
| Edited by | Peter Graham Scott |
| Music by | Hubert Clifford |
Production company | Insignia Films |
| Distributed by | Eros Films Lippert Pictures (US) |
Release date | 29 March 1954 |
Running time | 70 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Plot
Judy (Phyllis Kirk) is a radio operator on an American ship duped into smuggling diamonds in the belief that she was delivering cigarettes. Stopped by Customs she is in further trouble when the man who involved her is found dead in the river. Customs Detective Dan Barker (John Bentley), who has fallen for Judy has to find out whether she is guilty or innocent and protect her from the smuggling gang, especially if they think she is “going to talk”.
Cast
- John Bentley as Detective Inspector Dan Barker
- Phyllis Kirk as Judy Roberts
- Robert Ayres as Watford
- Leonard White as Detective Sergeant Mack McLeod
- Glyn Houston as Charlie Williamson
- Patrick Jordan as Bert Fisher
- Ewan Roberts as Customs Inspector J.S. Blake
- David Hurst as Paddy McClure
- Charles Lloyd-Pack as John Hendrick
- Isabel George as Anna
- Margaret Anderson as Nell, Charlie's girl
- Harold Ayer as Joseph Benson, alias Alfred Gordon
- Tony Hilton as Harry, the bartender
- Jack McNaughton as Hickson
- Dermot Palmer as Wayne
- Colin Douglas as Harbor Patrol superintendent
- Bill Nagy as Eddie, deckhand
- Michael Browning as Detective Perry
- Michael Balfour as Adams, sailor
- Peter Collingwood as Surgeon
- Warwick Ashton as Constable
- Eric Corrie as Constable
Reception
Variety said "The programmer market, currently short of passable supporting filmfare, will find this London-localed melodrama an acceptable filler... Miss Kirk provides a casting switch to the Anglo-American film efforts Lippert usually releases. Heretofore it has been an American male in England, and mixed up with Scotland Yard and British crooks... The plotting is contrived and everything drops too patly into place as the 70 minutes unfold."[2] The film critic Dennis Schwartz called it "a decent adventure film involving ruthless smugglers" and noted the "great location shooting in London, a taut screenplay by Rex Rientis, and a fine acting performance by the American Phyllis Kirk."[3]
References
Bibliography
- Chibnall, Steve & McFarlane, Brian. The British 'B' Film. Palgrave MacMillan, 2009.[ISBN missing]