Man from Tangier
{{Short description|1957 British film by Lance Comfort}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2014}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Man from Tangier
| image = "Man_from_Tangier"_(1957).jpg
| caption = U.S. 1-sheet poster
| director = Lance Comfort
| producer = W.G. Chalmers
| writer = Paddy Manning O'Brine
| starring = Robert Hutton
Lisa Gastoni
Martin Benson
Derek Sydney
| music = Wilfred Burns
| cinematography = Geoffrey Faithfull
| editing = Peter Mayhew
| studio = Butcher's Film Service
| distributor = Butcher's Film Service {{small|(UK)}}
Republic Pictures (US)
| released = {{Film date|df=y|1957|06|27|UKThe Times, Thursday 27 January 1957, page 2: First ever appearance of Man from Tangier in the classified ads for "picture theatres", showing at Odeon Marble Arch together with Monkey on My Back - Found in The Times Digital Archive 2014-04-30}}
| runtime = 67 mins[https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/man-from-tangier-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0yndi5otk BBFC: Man from Tangier (1957)] Linked 2014-04-30
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
}}
Man from Tangier (U.S. title: Thunder over Tangier) is a 1957 British second feature{{Cite book |last=Chibnall |first=Steve |title=The British 'B' Film |last2=McFarlane |first2=Brian |publisher=BFI/Bloomsbury |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-8445-7319-6 |location=London |pages=106}} crime film directed by Lance Comfort and starring Robert Hutton, Lisa Gastoni and Martin Benson.{{Cite web |title=Man from Tangier |url=https://collections-search.bfi.org.uk/web/Details/ChoiceFilmWorks/150038958 |access-date=25 December 2023 |website=British Film Institute Collections Search}} It was written by Paddy Manning O'Brine.
Plot
Main cast
- Robert Hutton as Chuck Collins
- Lisa Gastoni as Michele
- Martin Benson as Voss
- Derek Sydney as Darracq
- Leonard Sachs as Heinrich
- Emerton Court as Armstrong
- Richard Shaw as Johnny
- Robert Raglan as Inspector Meredith
- Harold Berens as Sammy
- Jack Allen as Rex
- Michael Balfour as Spade Murphy
- Frank Forsyth as Sergeant Irons
- Reginald Hearne as Walters
- Fred Lake as hotel porter
- Alex Gallier as Max
- Marianne Stone as woman in hotel
- Ronnie Clark as Coster
Releases
Man in Tangier was cut by the British Board of Film Classification to 67 minutes running time, in order to achieve a "U" classification. The film premiered at Odeon Marble Arch in London on 27 January 1957, where it ran as a double bill together with Monkey on My Back (1957).
In April 2011 the film was released on DVD as a double bill together with director Lance Comfort's 1961 film The Breaking Point.[https://www.amazon.co.uk/Breaking-Point-Man-Tangier-DVD/dp/B004PYHHK8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1398880749&sr=8-1&keywords=Breaking+Point%2FMan+from+Tangier Amazon UK: Breaking Point/Man from Tangier] Linked 2014-04-30
Critical reception
The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "A fairly competent thriller, in which the upholders of the law are considerably more convincing than the crooks, with their alternating foreign and public-school accents. The story is very vaguely constructed; initially there seems very little reason for introducing Tangier; towards the end the action is almost incoherent."{{Cite journal |date=1 January 1957 |title=Man from Tangier |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/1305823425/5E4C8001F3F428DPQ/1 |journal=The Monthly Film Bulletin |volume=24 |issue=276 |pages=103 |via=ProQuest}}
Picturegoer wrote: "A paper-thin plot is blown up to bursting point by a lot of agitated but pointless action taking in murder, blackmail and roughstuff with precious few thrills."{{Cite journal |date=1 August 1957 |title=Man from Tangier |volume=34 |issue= |pages=15 |id={{ProQuest|1771182421}} |magazine=Picturegoer}}
Picture Show called the film a "neatly made, holding melodrama."{{Cite journal |date=2 November 1957 |title=Man from Tangier |volume=69 |issue=1805 |pages=10 |id={{ProQuest|1879625937}} |magazine=Picture Show}}
In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "mediocre", writing: "Lots of huff and puff bursts paper-thin plot."{{Cite book |last=Quinlan |first=David |title=British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 |publisher=B.T. Batsford Ltd. |year=1984 |isbn=0-7134-1874-5 |location=London |pages=343}}
The Radio Times Guide to Films gave the film 2/5 stars, writing: "This barely acceptable B-thriller was made at a time when British cinemas habitually ran supporting features to give you time to buy your soft drinks and popcorn."{{Cite book |title=Radio Times Guide to Films |publisher=Immediate Media Company |year=2017 |isbn=9780992936440 |edition=18th |location=London |pages=583}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb title|0050677}}
{{Lance Comfort}}
Category:Films directed by Lance Comfort
Category:Republic Pictures films
Category:1950s English-language films