malcolmgsw During the 1950s a number of ilms were made where the plot centres around a wartime raid that went wrong and investigations as to who was the culprit.This is one of the lesser examples of this genre.It would be difficult to call this film a thriller since there is a distinct lack not only of tension but also danger.Ray Milland ,that well known Welshman,seems to have more problem in dealing with this country's old currency than actually uncovering what went wrong and how his brother died.Patricia roc seems to have been cast as the mandatory love interest.Rather a disappointment bearing in mind the cast.Some nice location work.

mamalv A tale of mystery and a quest for the truth make this quite the journey. An American (Ray Milland) sets out to find how his younger brother died in service. Along the way he meets a lovely Scottish lass (Patricia Roc) and falls for her. However his quest is so obsessive he may get the truth and lose the girl. This is a nice film with twists and turns that will make you want to go along for the ride. The last portion of the film is tense and we wonder if Douglas (Milland) will survive his walk with Hammish the man who killed his brother. Too bad that this film has such lousy transfer, the quality is very poor. However it is worth watching again, and again.

robert-temple-1 Jacques Tourneur directed this postwar British mystery film very well, and the cinematography by Ossie Morris and camera operating by Arthur Ibbetson were superior, and added to the film's atmosphere considerably. Ray Milland is the lead actor, playing an American who visits England and wants to find out how and why his younger brother had died during the War. The brother (not seen in the film) had joined up as a British commando in 1940 and was mysteriously killed on a commando raid 'with not a German in sight'. Was he murdered by a comrade? Milland sets about visiting in turn all of the 12 men of the commando unit, only to discover that many of them are dead and one died only two weeks before his arrival in England after suggesting that the brother had been a murder victim. One of the surviving men is an East End wide boy played by Naunton Wayne, who is usually a bumbling gent but on this occasion is a convincing used car salesman. His girl friend 'Bubbles' who even does a singing number is played by the ever-effervescent Dora Bryan. A deeply sinister performance is contributed by Marius Goring, as a gay ballet dancer who knows how to handle a gun and whose role in the story only becomes clear at the end. Patricia Roc is the love interest, who alternates between being bouncy and adorable and being the most horrible spoilt brat who pouts if kept waiting for a few minutes and accuses Milland of not being dressed properly when he is in a mere suit and tie (she snottily points out that he has 'ruined her evening' because he hasn't had time to change into black tie). She really needed several good spankings, but does not get one, unfortunately. Milland is very effective in this mysterious tale, exerting extraordinary self-control in the face of extreme provocation from the uncommunicative and rude former comrades of his brother. There are some fine shots of the Scottish highlands as Milland pursues the truth north of the border, where the whistling of a folk tune called 'White Heather' takes on significance in terms of identifying the killer. This is a fine film without pretensions, where the intrigue is unravelled like a thread and leads Milland to strange discoveries about what really happened.

dbdumonteil Son of a French famous director (Maurice),but an American citizen since 1919 when his father came to Hollywood,Jack (Jacques) Tourneur began his career in the land of Victor Hugo with funny comedies such as "Toto".But he is best remembered for his thrillers ("out of the past"),his adventures films ("the flame and the arrow") and his fantasy and horror movies ("cat people" ,"curse of the demon",my J.T. favourites."Circle of danger" belongs to the "thriller" category although it's rather a whodunit detective story ;as it takes place in England ,it is closer to Agatha Christie's puzzles than to American film noir .A man (Ray Milland ) investigates his brother's death.In WW2,he joined the English army and was killed in a raid .But the bullet that went through his head was not German.Jack Tourneur has a very special way of filming the places .It is obvious in "Curse of the demon" .Here too the places seem more important than the characters : the mines,the nice cottage in Scotland,the dancing school,the theater ,and above all,the sensational use of the Scottish country in the final sequence.He makes harmless elements very strange nay scary: the awful choir,the ballet,the commander's mom....There is a slight sag in the texture and tension in the second part when Tourneur focuses on the female character played by decorative Patricia Roc.Besides,when Clay talks about his kid brother,it's not enough to make acquaintance with a character who does not appear in the movie,and it is important,when you know the ending of the film.By the last thirty minutes,the movie becomes exciting again.The whistling tune is a very good trick,worthy of Alfred Hitchcock.And the final scene cannot be praised too highly:a very good suspense.