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When international financier Siggsbee Manderson (Welles) is found dead in the flowerbed, the police are quick to declare it suicide. Ace reporter Philip Trent (Wilding) is not so sure: he suspects foul play and sets to work finding the killer. Is the grieving widow genuinely distraught? Was the private secretary really in Southampton? And who is the mysterious ‘George Harrison’?

Trent’s Last Case is a whodunit of the old school: it might seem a little dated to viewers of CSI but that, of course, is all part of its charm. It’s a real ‘in-the-study, with-the-lead-piping’ puzzler, complete with a country house, red herrings and multiple suspects.

In truth, most amateur sleuths will tumble the killer long before Trent himself: the why is more important than the who and the how. The real pleasure comes from the unforced pace and stalwart cast, which includes Miles Malleson and a babyfaced Kenneth Williams. So, break out your magnifying glasses, warm up your little grey cells and enjoy a film where murderers knew how to dress for dinner.

 

Barney Kelley on 24th December 2007
View all 19 of Barney Kelley's reviews