Directed by the great cinematographer Jack Cardiff who
worked with Powell and Pressburger on The Red
Shoes, Black Narcisus and many more, Penny Gold has some interesting
angles, great views of Windsor and Francesca Annis but, in the version I
watched, not the marvellous, deep colours of his best work.
It has some pretty decent acting and Miss Annis is an
absolute thing of wonder, with controlled expression across a face that could
launch a thousand scripts… backed up by the care-worn febrility of James Booth
and a good supporting cast; Una Stubbs, Nicky Henson, Joss Ackland. It’s a little tame and feels like a TV pilot
for Booth and Henson cop double act, but still highly watchable all the same…
It begins like a Berkshire Giallo with a young woman
emerging naked from the shower in a plush flat full of the trappings of cool
post-sixties style. Huge photographic posters of a glamourous model adorn the
walls and the angle suggests we’re not the only ones looking into the
vulnerable intimacy of the apartment. Then, from out of the dark, a figure with
a knife, with hat, sunglasses and long raincoat, slashes into the helpless
young woman, mutilating her lifeless form…
The police are called, a proto Sweeney/Morse combination
of seasoned, romantic under-achiever, Inspector Matthews (James Booth) and his
youthful detective sergeant Rogers (Nicky Henson). They interview the surviving
sister, Delphi (Annis), twin sister of the deceased, Diane (also Annis, and
shown in flashback) along with the young American woman who lived with her and
the wild child’s associates.
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| Sisters, sisters... Francesca Annis, a dummy and Francesca Annis |
There follows the tale of two wildly different sisters,
one drawn to the wild side and the other involved in her uncle’s philately
business where an ultra rare stamp called the Penny Gold might well have
provided the motive for the murder. Matthews naturally suspects Delphi but
quite quickly falls for her gamine charms – a not entirely convincing liaison.
He spends a lot of time at Rogers’ gaff chewing over the evidence and being fed
tea and biscuits by the always delightful Una Stubbs who plays Anna, the
unlikely girlfriend of Mr Henson.
There are lots of flashbacks as we learn more about the
poisonous relationship between the sisters – a chance for Annis to show her
range, albeit in fairly two-dimensional ways. More deaths follow suggesting the
killer still has unfinished business. There’s trip to the suppose owner of a
Penny Gold, Miss Hartridge (Penelope
Keith) who discovers her Gold gone… somethings afoot and it’s moderately
complicated but not entirely suspenseful in spite of a dramatic closing
sequence with a Giallo-esque twist.
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| James Booth casts an eye... |
Dusty Verdict:
As the Time Out reviewer noted at the time: the film has a "…a brilliant
opening sequence, otherwise this flat-footed British thriller is hampered by
something like the world's worst script, including flashbacks no one would ever
conceivably flash back to, and by a cumbersome storyline about big league stamp
trading."
It’s all a bit pedestrian although there’s an uneasy feeling
about just like the Giallo that, presumably influenced Cardiff. Things don’t
really move quickly enough and the young American woman is a suspicious lose
end from the start. That’s not to say that the scenery and the numerous
guest-starring, house-hold names aren’t amusing backdrops but it’s a little
predictable.
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| Also starring Windsor |
