Alex Nicol plays the American journalist who gets caught up in a tale of intrigue and murder while gathering up the private possessions of a former friend who allegedly had committed suicide. What seems to be a promising film, fails to deliver. Slow tempo, weak storyline and a conspicuous lack of tension and energy, quickly had me yawning. I was longing for some action, and some emotionally charged scenes but it was all in vain. The director offers no gripping moments of suspense or sudden or twists and turns - instead the audience are left with our American hero simply wandering through the village looking for clues but ends up meeting no more than a collection of unremarkable, staid and starchy, one dimensional village characters. The main reason why the storyline is so unconvincing is that everyone is too nice, polite and well mannered! None of the characters reveal any menace. I was longing for an angry Dan Duryea to show up and play the bad guy. He would have injected much needed energy and gritty cynicism into the film, but sadly we are left with Colin Tapley, playing the toff, who comes across as a merely bitter and sad character. As for the love interest of Alex Nicol, Anne Paige, sounds bored and detached from what's going on. Her character has no 'edginess' or 'attitude.' Indeed, after watching this film, instead of watching a crime drama, I felt I was watching middle class life village life in the 1950's. I would give this film a miss.
Review of A Stranger in Town
