The Share Out *** (1962, Bernard Lee, Alexander Knox, Moira Redmond, William Russell, Richard Vernon, Richard Warner, John Gabriel) – Classic Movie Review 13,193

The twisty 1962 British Edgar Wallace Mystery crime drama film The Share Out is written by Philip Mackie, and stars Bernard Lee, Alexander Knox, Moira Redmond, and William Russell. 

Director Gerard Glaister’s 1962 British Edgar Wallace Mystery crime drama film The Share Out is written by Philip Mackie, and stars Bernard Lee, Alexander Knox, Moira Redmond, William Russell, with Richard Vernon, Richard Warner and John Gabriel. One of the long-running series of 48 Edgar Wallace Mysteries films made at Merton Park Studios, it is based on Edgar Wallace’s 1920 novel Jack O’Judgment.

A small gang of high-class corporate thieves use blackmail to force their victims to sell them their property at knock-down prices, in another convoluted Merton Park Studios Edgar Wallace thriller, with the very decent if contrived (though well contrived) mystery and the fine cast coming to the rescue of a humble production and slightly stagey handling.

Bernard Lee stars as canny Scotland Yard Superintendent Meredith, who investigates Colonel Calderwood (Alexander Knox), who runs a property company with a couple of other partners (Richard Vernon as John Crewe, John Gabriel as Monet) and a company secretary (Moira Redmond as Diana Marsh) as a cornerstone building block for their business of blackmail. Calderwood uses a private detective (Richard Warner as Mark Speller) to dig out the dirt, but Calderwood finds out he’s reporting to Meredith, and has him killed.

The gang of four have a stash of diamonds, worth half a million pounds, as an emergency fund to be shared equally between the four when the company is shut down, which Calderwood keeps in a safe. With this bunch of thieves, it doesn’t look like there’s going to be much of a Share Out. It looks more like winner take all.

Calderwood hires a new private detective called Mike Stafford (William Russell) and Meredith gets him to help him bring Calderwood to justice, but when Calderwood gets Stafford to spy on the lovely company secretary Diana Marsh (Moira Redmond}, Stafford falls for her. Soon Stafford is playing all ends against the middle.

Bernard Lee impresses mightily yet again, Alexander Knox is impressively chilly as the main villain, Richard Vernon has plenty of sweaty dodgy stuff to do, and Moira Redmond and William Russell give formidable portraits in double-dealing duplicity. Philip Mackie’s screenplay is watertight, with fast-moving, quick-witted plotting and good quality, credible dialogue. It is quite an achievement to accomplish all this in just 61 minutes. This is recommended as one of the best of the series.

The cast are Bernard Lee as Detective Superintendent Meredith, Alexander Knox as Colonel Calderwood, Moira Redmond as Diana Marsh, William Russell as Mike Stafford, Richard Vernon as John Crewe, Richard Warner as Mark Speller, John Gabriel as Monet, Jack Rodney as Gregory, Stanley Morgan as Detective Sergeant Anson, Robert Perceval as Britton, Ann Harriman as receptionist, Julie Shearing as Judy, Fanny Carby as Mrs Wall, Ian Hamilton as waiter, Walter Horsbrugh as registrar, and Ann Harriman.

The Share Out is directed by Gerard Glaister, runs 61 minutes, is made by Merton Park Studios, is released by Anglo-Amalgamated, is written by Philip Mackie, based on Edgar Wallace’s novel Jack O’Judgment, is shot in black and white by Bert Mason, is produced by Jack Greenwood, is scored by Bernard Ebbinghouse, and is designed by Peter Mullins.

The film changes the plot of the 1920 thriller novel Jack O’Judgment, which features a vigilante who takes on a gang of blackmailers, using a mysterious identity and leaving the Jack of Clubs as a calling card.

Bernard Lee plays Superintendent Meredith in Clue of the Twisted Candle, Clue of the Silver Key, The Share Out (1962), and Who Was Maddox? and Inspector Mann in Partners in Crime.

William Russell (19 November 1924 – 3 June 2024) enjoyed a career of more than seven decades. He starred in the title role of the TV series The Adventures of Sir Lancelot (1956–1957). In 1963, he was in the original cast of Doctor Who, playing schoolteacher Ian Chesterton from the show’s first episode to 1965.

Russell’s film roles include parts in The Man Who Never Was (1956), The Great Escape (1963) and Superman (1978).

The Edgar Wallace Mysteries

There were 48 films in the British second-feature film series The Edgar Wallace Mysteries, produced at Merton Park Studios for Anglo-Amalgamated and released in cinemas between 1960 and 1965.

• Urge to Kill (March 1960)
• Clue of the Twisted Candle (September 1960)
• The Malpas Mystery (October 1960)
• Marriage of Convenience (November 1960)
• The Man Who Was Nobody (December 1960)
• Partners in Crime (February 1961)
• Clue of the New Pin (February 1961)
• The Fourth Square (June 1961)
• Man at the Carlton Tower (July 1961)
• Clue of the Silver Key (August 1961)
• Attempt to Kill (September 61)
• Man Detained (October 1961)
• Never Back Losers (December 1961)
• The Sinister Man (December 1961)
• Backfire! (February 1962)
• Candidate for Murder (February 1962)
• Flat Two (February 1962)
• The Share Out (February 1962)
• Number Six (April 1962)
• Time to Remember (July 1962)
• Solo for Sparrow (September 1962)
• Playback (September 1962)
• Locker Sixty-Nine (September 1962)
• Death Trap (October 1962)
• The Set Up (January 1963)
• Incident at Midnight (January 1963)
• The £20,000 Kiss (January 1963)
• On the Run (February 1963)
• Return to Sender (March 1963)
• Ricochet (March 1963)
• The Double (April 1963)
• To Have and to Hold (July 1963)
• The Partner (September 1963)
• Accidental Death (November 1963)
• Five to One (December 1963)
• Downfall (January 1964)
• The Verdict (February 1964)
• We Shall See (April 1964)
• The Rivals (May 1964)
• Who Was Maddox? (June 1964)
• Face of a Stranger (September 1964)
• Act of Murder (September 1964)
• Never Mention Murder (November 1964)
• The Main Chance (November 1964)
• Game for Three Losers (April 1965)
• Change Partners (July 1965)
• Strangler’s Web (August 1965)
• Dead Man’s Chest (October 1965).
• © Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 13,193
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