Behind the Mask

Medical films were in vogue when this film was made in 1958.the doctor films were in full swing.carry on nurse would shortly go before the cameras.emergency ward 10 was popular on itv.most of these titles were very entertaining which is more than can be said for this film.It concerns itself more with hospital politics than treatment.Tony Britton makes a mistake tending to a drug addict doctor rather than a patient who as a result dies.Britton agrees to carry the can in a rather unlikely scenario particularly since he had already been complicit in the schemes of Michael Redgarve as his future son in law.Britton is by chance engaged to his daughter played by Vanessa Redgarve in her first role.She is terribly aloof and about as appealing as a plate of cold mashed potatoes.the film is far too talky and overlong.Some entertaining character actors are unable to raise the tempo.

Michael Redgrave's name on the opening credits is usually as good as money in the bank but even class acts are entitled to an off day and this is a doozy. It is, of course, possible he was worrying about real life daughter Vanessa making her debut in front of the camera in this extremely ho hum entry in which virtually the entire cast - Tony Britton, Niall McGuiness, Miles Malleson, Lionel Jeffries - either walk though their roles and/or phone them in. The plot would be an embarrassment on Crossroads and needs only Paul Carpenter and Arthur Mullard to attain mediocrity. Even major surgery can't save this piece of cheese.