The Whole Truth

It's a pity that Granger wasn't teamed up against George Sanders in the same way that he was against James Mason. I think their standoff would have made a good fight sequence in a swashbuckler like 'Moonfleet'. A good yarn, but disposable after the first watch.

Smoothly directed by John Guillermin (who, 20 years later, would helm my favorite Agatha Christie film adaptation, "Death On The Nile") and intelligently acted by a capable cast (including sultry Italian star Gianna Maria Canale), "The Whole Truth" is a slick, well-made mystery movie. It's not, however, a whodunit, like its poster claims; we learn who the killer is early on. It's more of a cat-and-mouse game between the killer and the hero. Nevertheless, there are quite a few surprising plot developments. Also of note is the lively, jazzy music score by Johnny Dankworth and Lambert Williamson. Not a great film, but one that deserves to be better known. **1/2 out of 4.

A rather tawdry murder mystery set among film makers in the South of France (although the principals plainly never left Walton-on-Thames), directed for all its worth by a young John Guillermin (later described by Granger as "peculiarly lacking in charm, to say the least") from a screenplay by film noir veteran Jonathan Latimer from a play by Philip Mackie, with gothic photography by Wilkie Cooper and suitably trashy musical accompaniment by Mischa Spoliansky (performed on the soundtrack by Johnny Dankworth). It's good to see female lead Donna Reed play a more active role in the proceedings than one is accustomed to, while George Sanders also looks less bored than usual during this period in his life.

A film producer accused of murdering the leading lady of his latest project must acquit himself and save his marriage. Stewart Granger was more than apt at the part of the producer and his relationship with Donna Reed (who plays the part of his wife) is full of fairly intelligent dialogue. George Sanders' character as the actual killer of the leading lady, who had totally humiliated him with her numerous affairs, makes convincing sense as the plot unfolds of an older man confronted with a marriage that's only evidence of matrimony was the worthless piece of paper the marriage certificate was written on. The ending is a bit of a stretch, but there are a lot of nice interior shots of the jet set enjoying a swanky party on the French Riviera where the story takes place.

THE WHOLE TRUTH is a solid Hollywood thriller in the Hitchcockian mould; namely it's a "wronged man" story with Stewart Granger at his charismatic/stressed out best as a womaniser whose latest conquest leads to disaster. This UK/USA co-production takes an awful long time to get going, trading on the charms of Italian starlet Gianna Maria Canale for a long while until the real plot kicks in. At that point we get a George Sanders at his most sinister, a great chase sequence, and the right level of suspense as Granger tries to extricate himself from an increasingly desperate situation.

The fact that this film was made at Walton studios is a clear indication of the limited budget.Some of the exterior sets are so small it makes it look as if it was filmed in a bathroom.All the main leads were on their way down,though there is always pleasure in seeing Sanders.The problem though is there is little suspense and the ending is predictable.Not one of the better efforts from Romulus. It has the feel of honouring contractual commitments.

I rated this film 5/10 as it was no more than par for the course.The minute George Sanders appeared, I knew he was going to play another suave sophisticated villain as he has played in so many other films.Donna Reed must have been disappointed with her rather anodyne part and Stewart Granger does his best with the dialogue in the mediocre screenplay. As far as I was concerned, the star of the film was the 1958 white Jaguar XK3 sports car.A few location shots around the south of France were seen but the rest was obviously shot in a film studio.The most farcical shot was a so called "car chase" that seemed to be wholly and claustrophobically shot on the film set where the cars seemed to be going round in circles around the artificial buildings!