ianlouisiana Review of Footsteps in the Fog

Footsteps in the Fog (1955)

A pre - Hammer feast of Edwardian skullduggery has period charm

[6/10 · 12 February 2010]

The adorable Miss Jean Simmons sparkles as a scheming cockney housemaid who blackmails her murderous master (the deuced handsome Mr Stewart Grainger)when she comes to realise he had poisoned his late wife. When he tries to bump her off too,he mistakenly kills the wife of the local Bobby and servant and master scheme for ascendancy in the aftermath. "Footsteps in the fog" is a solid movie featuring one of British cinema's favourite couples of the time.It is full of enjoyable cameos from stalwarts like Miss Marjorie Rhodes,Mr Victor Maddern and Mr William Hartnell and features a splendid brilliantly splenetic performance from Mr Grainger's old chum Mr Peter Bull.When they face each other across the Courtroom it must have been hard for either of them to have kept a straight face,particularly if Mr Bull was wearing Mr Grainger's crocodile shoes as he was wont to do given the slightest opportunity. Unfortunately Mr Bill Travers is a bit too flouncy for the barrister who is a rival with Mr Grainger for the fair hand of the ill - fated Miss Jill Day. In 1955 no one would have been surprised for Miss Simmons to have ended up with the hangman's noose although evidence her guilt was as slender as Miss E.Thompson's a quarter of a century earlier. Notable mainly now for its cast,"Footsteps in the fog" comes over as a pre - Hammer Grand Guignol feast,with Mr Grainger over - acting like mad and Miss Simmons gallantly attempting Estuary English.But it certainly pulled 'em in in 1955.