90 Degrees in the Shade

One assumes that this was made in Czechoslovakia during the brief thaw in the communist regime under Dubcek.One further supposes that one of the main reasons for its production in Prague was economy.Obviously a wise move given the tone of the film.It has to be said that everything about this film reeks of its commercially.The atmosphere in the film is one of dread.The economy of production is self evident,and the title is truly dreadful.It would appear from this site that this film was not distributed in cinemas in the UK,and thus sat on the shelf for over 40 years till it's DVD release.This is not very surprising.The film is of interest in that it features Donald Wolcott and Ann Todd in character roles near to the end of their respective careers.Not to be watched if you are in a melancholic state of mind.

NINETY DEGREES IN THE SHADE is obscure for a reason: it's an entirely dull, lifeless, shot-in-black-and-white romantic drama made in the Czech Republic without much in the way of directorial flair or interest. The aim seems to be to make a film in the style of THE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLD but the resultant drama is instead full of uninteresting characters who do very little. About the only thing this has going for it is the interesting cast, featuring various imported actors to give it a bit of life. Donald Wolfit plays against type and is fun, for instance; it's difficult to criticise Anne Heywood's lead performance, and both James Booth and Ann Todd are reliable. A shame that the film itself is no fun at all.