PORT AFRIQUE – 1956
A nice looking, but rather hollow murder mystery set in French Morocco. This Technicolor film was another attempt to showcase European import Pier Angeli for North American audiences.
The story revolves around American pilot, Phil Carey. Carey was rather badly wounded during the war and is just returning to Port Afrique. Carey, and his partner, Dennis Price, had run a lumber company based in Morocco before the war. Carey had gone off to do his duty, leaving Price in charge of the business, as well as keeping an eye on Carey's wife, Marie Hanson.
Carey has returned from a rather long spell in a military hospital recovering from wounds received in the war. He is met at the dock by old friend, Eugene Deckers, who is also the local Police Commander. Deckers, tries to let Carey know that perhaps his wife might not like to see him. She has been stepping out with various male "friends".
Carey does not believe it and heads home for what he hopes is a grand reunion. What he finds is his wife, Hanson, dead from what looks like a self-inflicted gunshot. The Police are summoned and the local coroner calls it a suicide.
Of course Carey does not buy the suicide angle and goes digging. A whole gaggle of possible suspects are now thrown at the audience. Was it Carey's partner, Price, a painter Hanson was seeing, Christopher Lee, the local nightclub owner and smuggler James Hayter, or maybe the club singer, Pier Angeli? Carey knows he is on the right track when there are several attempts made on his life. Needless to say he falls for the drop dead gorgeous Angeli. The real culprit is soon flushed out and handed over to the authorities.
There was some real potential to make a top flight mystery thriller here, but the writer dropped the ball. This is too bad, as the look of the film is first rate with former cinematographer Rudolph Mate at the directing controls.
Mate, was nominated five times for an Oscar as a cinematographer. These include the films, GILDA, SAHARA, THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI and FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT. He then moved over to directing and scored with an excellent set of film noir. These include D.O.A. THE DARK PAST and UNION STATION.
Miss Angeli never really became a big star, but she did manage a few roles opposite Paul Newman. She also had a fling with up and comer, James Dean. She died of a drug overdose at age 39.
A nice looking, but rather hollow murder mystery set in French Morocco. This Technicolor film was another attempt to showcase European import Pier Angeli for North American audiences.
The story revolves around American pilot, Phil Carey. Carey was rather badly wounded during the war and is just returning to Port Afrique. Carey, and his partner, Dennis Price, had run a lumber company based in Morocco before the war. Carey had gone off to do his duty, leaving Price in charge of the business, as well as keeping an eye on Carey's wife, Marie Hanson.
Carey has returned from a rather long spell in a military hospital recovering from wounds received in the war. He is met at the dock by old friend, Eugene Deckers, who is also the local Police Commander. Deckers, tries to let Carey know that perhaps his wife might not like to see him. She has been stepping out with various male "friends".
Carey does not believe it and heads home for what he hopes is a grand reunion. What he finds is his wife, Hanson, dead from what looks like a self-inflicted gunshot. The Police are summoned and the local coroner calls it a suicide.
Of course Carey does not buy the suicide angle and goes digging. A whole gaggle of possible suspects are now thrown at the audience. Was it Carey's partner, Price, a painter Hanson was seeing, Christopher Lee, the local nightclub owner and smuggler James Hayter, or maybe the club singer, Pier Angeli? Carey knows he is on the right track when there are several attempts made on his life. Needless to say he falls for the drop dead gorgeous Angeli. The real culprit is soon flushed out and handed over to the authorities.
There was some real potential to make a top flight mystery thriller here, but the writer dropped the ball. This is too bad, as the look of the film is first rate with former cinematographer Rudolph Mate at the directing controls.
Mate, was nominated five times for an Oscar as a cinematographer. These include the films, GILDA, SAHARA, THE LADY FROM SHANGHAI and FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT. He then moved over to directing and scored with an excellent set of film noir. These include D.O.A. THE DARK PAST and UNION STATION.
Miss Angeli never really became a big star, but she did manage a few roles opposite Paul Newman. She also had a fling with up and comer, James Dean. She died of a drug overdose at age 39.