kidboots No one could portray the ordinary man plunged into extraordinary circumstances quite like Ralph Richardson. This movie may not appear on any best movie lists but believe me, every performer contributes to make this a gem. The whimsical opening, the tinkling music, Ralph Richardson's fussy little suburban 9 to 5 office worker masks it's genre - I initially thought it was a comedy but within minutes you are thrown into the dramatic world of amnesia. David Preston is always home at seven but tonight his hysterical wife falls into his arms, Richardson lulling the viewer into a false sense of security just by his look of disbelief. Janet is frantic - she hadn't seen him since he left for work - the day before!! She has already called the police and consulted their concerned Dr. Sparling (Jack Hawkins) who, when he examines David finds he really has no idea about the last lost day. Jack Hawkins is just terrific - he just never doubts David's story and looks at things in a logical manner. Into this mix comes darker elements, David's neighbour, an old colonel pops over to inquire if David has the treasury funds that one of the other club members saw him holding last night. This shadowy, mysterious member (who David has developed a real hatred for) has lost no time in hurrying to the neighbour's house to inform on him. A short time later the man's body is found on some waste ground...but where is the money???So many tantalizing tit bits so beloved by British "little" movies turn up. When Janet rings up David's work she is informed that his working day finishes at 5 - not 6, so where does he go for that hour (a perfectly innocent reason). Then when things get grim and a solicitor is called in, Janet has to confess that in reality they are poor - David has been paying back money over the years that his father absconded with. Margaret Leighton matches Richardson in intensity and emotion. From her first appearance she is keyed up to fever pitch and her quavering edginess never leaves her. She is brilliant.Among the memorable scenes - the one where David reveals his true feelings about the mystery member, Richardson has you believing that's the way he really feels - to listen to his emotion was really unsettling. Another, when David realises that he may soon face prison, he tries to organise his business affairs in a calm and rational manner, all the while Janet's nerves are being strung to breaking point and then they plan to spend the evening at the pictures!!Such a tribute to Richardson's acting, he never drops his character for a moment - even at the very end when everything has been settled, you know he doesn't really understand what has happened and will always be wondering about that missing day!!Just brilliant!

George Wright Ralph Richardson, who both directs and acts in this film, has taken a simple story that depicts a short period in the life of a middle-class couple in post-war England whose routine is suddenly disrupted by the memory lapse of the husband. The story is brought to life by the acting of the three main actors - Richarson and Margaret Leighton as the couple and the medical doctor, Jack Hawkins.A veteran of World War II (1939-45), the dutiful husband is stricken with an anxiety attack that causes him to relive his days in battle. When this mental episode is over, he cannot remember what happened for a full 24-hour period. Husband and wife are perplexed and anxious by this sudden turn of events. They turn to their understanding family doctor for an explanation. The doctor, Jack Hawkins, is sympathetic and not overly worried but eager to find out the source of the problem.As it turns out, a theft and murder occurred that seem to implicate the husband or so the couple fears. Lies and cover-ups complicate the matter and the couple become so upset that they make things worse for themselves. The couple are so used to their routine that a sudden and unexplained twist becomes exaggerated. The story presents us with a puzzle and the reaction of two decent but somewhat docile human beings, who feel they will be unfairly targeted by the authorities. However, the police go about their work very calmly and before long everything is explained.The movie is a throwback to a time when ordinary people enjoyed simple pleasures like going to their club, or taking in the "pictures" and growing their chrysanthemums in the adjoining greenhouse garden...so very British. It is these very ordinary people that I have a great sympathy and admiration for in our often self-serving world. Nothing extraordinary about the movie or the couple but almost 60 years on, the acting still makes it a delight to watch.

Mishnish Most appetising piece of oh-so British whimsey, predicated upon the premise that we English must never, ever lose control. As it is then, that chaos is come again.Old Ralphie (well I remember his performances at awards ceremonies: "...thus affording the winner to paddle in a puddle of pride") casts himself (he directed this!) as the ever so staid English civil servant who finds himself in a most unusual predicament after the onset of a memory block, not, I might add, precipitated by a surfeit of alcohol, but by a ...well, I forget myself.Anyway, the fact that a portion of the action takes place in a licensed premise notwithstanding, Ralphie manfully weathers this personal maelstrom and emerges a jolly good fellow (as if we ever doubted it) and all round tophole egg.

MIKE WILSON A long forgotten British film, that has David Preston ( Ralph Richardson) as a lowly bank clerk, who returns home, as usual, only to be told by his wife, that he has been missing for 24 hours.He slowly starts to come to terms with what has happened, only to find out that the steward of his local club has been murdered, and that he has been implicated. Margaret Leighton as his wife, and Campbell Singer,as the police inspector give good support. I find these films from 40's and 50's fascinating, as they show a way of life that has long since disappeared.