Suspect
Suspect is a minor Peter Cushing vehicle from directors Roy and John Boulting adapted from Nigel Balchin’s novel A Sort of Traitors. It follows a team of scientists, led by Cushing’s Professor Sewell, who have discovered a new way to combat certain diseases like the bubonic plague; while the actual science itself is pretty vague, the idea is something that the British Department of Security fears is a potential security risk if leaked to other entities, which could bring about some type of germ warfare. Thus, Sewell and his team are blocked from publishing their findings, leaving scientists Bob Marriott (Tony Britton) and Lucy Byrne (Virginia Maskell) wondering if they are risking the lives of millions of people by not exposing their findings.
The film’s direction and pacing are all pretty dry; there’s really no grandiose cinematography or much in the way of setting to alleviate the audience’s feeling that the plot delivery is all very rote and expositional. With that said, Balchin’s adaptation of his own story does incorporate a few interesting ideas that sort of get lost in the mix. One such is the treatment of soldiers after their return from war; Lucy’s ex-boyfriend Alan (Ian Bannen) lost both of his arms in Korea, and his disabled status is a sticking point throughout the film that shows the overall sacrifices of the individual for the service of the government. Another is civic duty itself, a quandary that Cushing works through as the embattled Sewell struggles with the decision to divulge his research.
Unfortunately, though, the film’s pacing is a bit too slow and Cushing is mostly absent from the film’s second act. There are occasional saving graces, like Thorley Walters’ absent-minded approach to his inspector character Mr. Prince and a very small appearance by Donald Pleasence as the villain Brown; but for the most part, it’s difficult to find a lot to love about Suspect‘s understated subject matter. It’s not a meritless watch by far thanks to its cast, but the film lacks a strong charm that sort of ensures its sequestration in obscurity.
The Man Who Finally Died
Cushing is featured in another fairly small role in The Man Who Finally Died, a thriller from Quentin Lawrence released in CinemaScope in 1963. It’s based on a TV series of the same name that lasted seven episodes, also directed by Lawrence and written by Lewis Greifer. Here, the idea is truncated to a 100 minute movie starring Stanley Baker as Joe Newman, nee Deutsch, who is investigating the supposed death of his father in Germany. The film’s title hints at the main conceit – namely, that Newman’s father Kurt Deutsch was once presumed dead previously and actually lived, and now the same sort of ordeal is going on again.
Lawrence’s film offers a pretty interesting conceit in the search for whether Kurt Deutsch is really alive or dead, and it takes the viewer to all sorts of places. There’s a question of whether another man who died at the same time as Deutsch could have possibly been buried instead; Cushing plays the doctor who examined them both, and becomes Newman’s prime suspect when it becomes clear that not all of the facts have been given. Interestingly, though, The Man Who Finally Died has pacing issues despite its adaptation from a longer TV serial; perhaps the subject matter lent itself better to episodic elements rather than a full film, but regardless, Lawrence often gets caught up in minutiae that bogs down the narrative throughout.
With that said, the film’s final act is pretty intriguing as it slowly unravels the truth about Newman’s father’s death (or life?), replete with tons of orchestral stings and facial reaction shots. The expository nature of the dialogue, though, shows the weaknesses of the film’s writing, which often relies on characters stating, “You just don’t understand!” without bothering to explain anything more to Newman. Cushing excels here in a role where it’s not immediately clear if he’s a good guy or a villain, ultimately settling somewhere in the middle; unfortunately, he just doesn’t get enough screentime to really shine.
The Man Who Finally Died offers a good mystery, at the expense of some tedious leadup that suffers from writing that doesn’t know how to carry along the suspense without hamstringing both the main character and audience along. As a minor Cushing film, this one does its job in a serviceable fashion and should appeal to fans of Cold War-style dramas.
Blu-ray
Suspect and The Man Who Finally Died are both included on one disc as part of Severin Films’ Cushing Curiosities boxset.
Suspect gets a a new 2K scan from the original negative performed by StudioCanal and the results are excellent. There’s very little in the way of damage besides a couple of lines and cigarette burns, and overall the negative looks to have been in great shape. Detail is quite strong, noticeable in both facial features and the illustrious clothing patterns throughout the movie. The grain is exceptionally fine, to the point where it almost fades into the background; however it doesn’t appear any artificial DNR was used for smoothness. The grayscale color tone is well-represented without ever seeming too dark, and likewise, the inferior night sequences feature good black levels without any appreciable crush. All told Suspect boasts a very respectable video transfer.
The Man Who Finally Died also receives a new 2K scan of its negative by StudioCanal. This one looks very close to Suspect, in that it does have a very fine grain scale and a strong image with exceptional detail. The cinematography in the film is a bit more varied than Suspect, opting for some darkly-lit sequences that are managed well in grayscale on this transfer. There is a bit of noticeable gate judder at times, and occasionally some flashing is visible on the left-hand side of the image; but overall this also boasts strong image thanks to the StudioCanal scan.
Both films features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono track and sound is overall very good. There aren’t any noticeably hiss or sibilance issues nor drops in dialogue volume, though neither employ a particularly bombastic soundtrack (besides The Man Who Finally Died‘s stings). English subtitles are also included for both.
Extras include two new audio commentary tracks, one for each film. Jonathan Rigby and Kevin Lyons provide the one for Suspect, while Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw speak on behalf of The Man Who Finally Died. Lyons and Rigby provide a very spirited discussion between the two about the film’s players, background surrounding its production, and an overall wide appreciation for the low-budget offering. Newman and Forshaw provide a similarly-structured commentary on The Man Who Finally Died, digging into the cast backgrounds while occasionally remarking on the plot happening throughout the movie; it’s another deep dive into the context of the movie while commenting on the episodic element that inspired it.
Extra Features
- NEW 2k scan from the original negatives by StudioCanal
- NEW Audio Commentary For SUSPECT With Jonathan Rigby, Author Of English Gothic, And Horror Historian Kevin Lyons
- NEW Audio Commentary For THE MAN WHO FINALLY DIED With Kim Newman, Author Of Anno Dracula, And Barry Forshaw, Author Of Brit Noir
Verdict
Both Suspect and The Man Who Finally Died are equally small roles for the esteemed Cushing, but fans of slow-burn thrillers may find some value in both films regardless. Here, two audio commentaries add some much-needed context for viewers, and the StudioCanal transfers both look great on Severin’s Blu-ray.
