Incident at Midnight ** (1963, Anton Diffring, William Sylvester, Justine Lord, Martin Miller) – Classic Movie Review 13,337

The 1963 British Edgar Wallace Mystery second feature crime thriller film Incident at Midnight stars Anton Diffring as a nefarious ex-Nazi war criminal involved in a drugs scam.

Director Norman Harrison’s 1963 British Edgar Wallace Mystery second feature crime thriller film Incident at Midnight stars Anton Diffring, William Sylvester and Justine Lord. It is written by Arthur La Bern, based on Edgar Wallace’s short story, and is made at Merton Park Studios as part of the long-running 48 film series of Edgar Wallace Mysteries.

Incident at Midnight (1963) is an interesting, unusual and ambitious but chaotic, unfocused and melodramatic mystery-free crime thriller, with some over-exaggerated performances (Tony Garnett is very hammy) but some good ones too (Anton Diffring, Justine Lord, Philip Locke, Martin Miller), lots of intriguing ideas (way too many for the running time) and a sweet action finish at Piccadilly Circus Underground station.

Mostly a bit static, set largely in an all-night chemist’s shop (again interesting), it often runs like a stage play, but James Wilson’s noirish cinematography makes the most of the cramped situation. It is certainly busy enough to maintain, or even require alert attention.

Martin Miller plays struck off old Dr Schroeder, who for some long time has been attending a late night chemist every night for a prescription at midnight, and to observe Dr Erik Leichner (Anton Diffring), an ex-Nazi war criminal who has assumed another person’s identity. One night Schroeder encounters the glamorous and mysterious Diane Graydon (Justine Lord), also there waiting, apparently for a prescription.

Leichner has a loyal older blonde wife (Sylva Langova as Vivienne Leichner) and a greedy younger blonde mistress (Jacqueline Jones as Vanessa Palmer), who is blackmailing him. He is also involved in a drugs scam involving two lockers at Piccadilly Circus Underground station and two keys to them, and aims to become a millionaire selling drugs.

Meanwhile, a wounded bank robber (Oliver MacGreevy as Wilkinson) has been brought into the dispensary for treatment by two other robbers (Tony Garnett as Brennan and Philip Locke as Foster), and to rendezvous with the gang leader. Dr Schroeder is forced to attend to the robber’s gunshot injuries, with the help of the glamorous and mysterious Diane Graydon (Justine Lord).

Weirdly, William Sylvester’s prominently billed role as Vince Warren is entirely extraneous to the proceedings, and the way too complicated film would be better off without this character. Peter Howell plays Inspector Macready, and his character, though necessary, fits in awkwardly to the proceedings.

And, with all this other interest, you also get Warren Mitchell as the chemist, a young Geoffrey Palmer as Dr Tanfield, and Roland Curram as soldier.

Tony Garnett quit acting and became a major figure in British film and TV, especially associated with Ken Loach as producer and writer.

The main filming location is Piccadilly Circus Tube Station, London.

The cast

The cast are Anton Diffring as Dr Erik Leichner, William Sylvester as Vince Warren, Justine Lord as Diane Graydon, Martin Miller as Dr Schroeder, Tony Garnett as Brennan, Philip Locke as Foster, Sylva Langova as Vivienne Leichner, Warren Mitchell as chemist, Jacqueline Jones as Vanessa Palmer, Peter Howell as Inspector Macready, Oliver MacGreevy as Wilkinson, David Futcher as Whitehead, Clifford Earl as sergeant, Geoffrey Palmer as Dr Tanfield, Derek Partridge as detective, Fred Beauman as policeman, Mike Moyer as policeman, and Roland Curram as soldier.

Arthur La Bern (1909–1990)

British novelist Arthur La Bern wrote screenplays for Freedom to Die (1961), Dead Man’s Evidence (1962), Time to Remember (1962), Incident at Midnight (1963), Accidental Death (1963) and The Verdict (1964).

Arthur La Bern had four of his novels adapted into films, including Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square (1966), which was made into Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy (1972), provoking him to write a frenzied angry letter to the editor of The Times.

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,337

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