The Blue Parrot is a low budget 1953 British "B" crime film directed by John Harlow and starring Dermot Walsh, Jacqueline Hill, Ballard Berkeley, Richard Pearson, and John Le Mesurier.[1] The film was produced by Stanley Haynes for Act Films Ltd.[2] The screenplay is by Alan MacKinnon from a story by British crime reporter Percy Hoskins.
| The Blue Parrot | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by | John Harlow |
| Written by | Allan MacKinnon, story by Percy Hoskins |
| Produced by | Stanley Haynes |
| Starring | Dermot Walsh Jacqueline Hill |
| Cinematography | Robert Navarro |
| Edited by | Robert Jordan Hill |
| Music by | Eric Jupp |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Monarch Film Corporation (UK) |
Release date |
|
Running time | 69 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Plot
editSmall-time crook Rocks Owen receives a mysterious phone call at the Blue Parrot Soho night club and is later found murdered. Bob Herrick, a New York detective in London to learn about Scotland Yard's methods, investigates, and policewoman Maureen Maguire goes undercover at the club posing as a hostess.
Cast
edit- Dermot Walsh as Bob Herrick
- Jacqueline Hill as Maureen Maguire
- Ballard Berkeley as Superintendent Chester
- June Ashley as Gloria
- Richard Pearson as "Quinny"
- Ferdy Mayne as Stevens
- Victor Lucas as Rocks Owen
- Edwin Richfield as Taps Campelli
- John Le Mesurier as Henry Carson
- Arthur Rigby as Charlie
- Valerie White as Eva West
- Diane Watts as Carla
Critical reception
editIn a contemporary review Kine Weekly wrote: "Pleasantly intriguing, if modest, whodunnit. It illustrates the big part played by a young American detective in the apprehension of a Soho killer, and ends with a bang. The red herrings are neatly handled by the competent cast. The comedy relief is apt and the dénouement suspenseful. Feminine appeal slight yet piquant."[3]
The Radio Times said: "Dermot Walsh does his best with lacklustre material, and John Le Mesurier turns up in a supporting slot, but there's little else to recommend it."[4]
In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan wrote: ''Efficient thriller with a bit more sting in the action than usual.''[5]
Chibnall and McFarlane in The British 'B' Film write: "There is little to distinguish this from numerous other urban-set thrillers, but its pacey editing (Robert Hill) and cast of reliable character players carries one over the less probable plot maneuvers."[6]
References
edit- ^ "The Blue Parrot". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
- ^ Action! Fifty Years in the Life of a Union. Published: 1983 (UK). Publisher: ACTT. ISBN 0 9508993 0 5. ACT Films Limited - Ralph Bond p81 (producer listed as Stanley Haynes)
- ^ "The Blue Parrot". Kine Weekly. 439 (2417): 18. 15 April 1948.
- ^ Radio Times Guide to Films (18th ed.). London: Immediate Media Company. 2017. p. 113. ISBN 9780992936440.
- ^ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 286. ISBN 0-7134-1874-5.
- ^ Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-8445-7319-6.
External links
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