Mystery Junction

source: Mystery Junction

Director: MICHAEL McCARTHY. Script: Michael McCarthy. Photography: Bob Lapresle. Film editor: Geoffrey Muller. Art director: George Haslam. Music: Michael Sarsfield. Camera operator: Leo Rogers. Make- up: Jack Craig. Hair styles: Jane Seymour. Set continuity: Biddy Chrystal. Production manager: George Mills. Assistant director: Ted Holliday. Sound re-recording: Dick Smith, Ronald Abbott. Western Electric Sound System. Producer: William H. Williams. A Merton Park Studios Production, released in the U.K. by Anglo Amalgamated: 26 July 1952 (sic). London trade show: September 1951. Not copyrighted or theatrically released in the U.S.A. Probably released in Australia by British Empire Films, but no record of a release date. 6,050 feet. 67 minutes. SYNOPSIS: Miss Owens is immensely excited when she recognizes her traveling companion as the author of a detective story she is reading. She demands to know how he sets about writing a thriller and Larry outlines for her a plot involving people on the train. Petersen and Constable Blake are escorting Steve Harding to his trial for murder; Harding causes trouble and when the train is held up by snow, and the passengers are together in the waiting room, he seizes a gun and holds them up, but is unable to escape through the snow. During the night Petersen and the stationmaster are murdered. COMMENT: It's hard to decide which is the worst feature of this film — the doggedly clichéd and totally uninteresting variation on the it-was-all-a-dream plot, acted out by stodgy characters in a couple of cramped sets; the patently second-rate cast (even Barbara Murray makes little impression); or the dull, lifelessly uninvolving direction; or the tiresome, endlessly see-sawing dialogue. True, there's a tiny bit of action and the movie would probably cut down to a passably entertaining two-reeler (despite its poor performances). But, padded out to feature length, it's an unqualified bore.

The scenario in which a group of people find themselves in a closed environment where a murder is then committed by an unseen hand was not new when this short black and white film was made. However, Mystery Junction plays out the tale neatly and efficiently, keeping us guessing all the way, although following exactly who has done what to whom becomes increasingly difficult. The acting is excellent, the cinematography exemplary - there are some quite classical compositions, one in particular towards the end. This is a very British film, the drama comes from tension, not from heroics. Indeed, that heroism is futile is made plain throughout, and even where violence brings results, they will ever play you false. The quality of this film is masked by its low budget, and, on the print I just saw on television, murky resolution. Two of the cast, Sydney Tafler and Ewen Solon, went on to prominent TV careers, and most of the others found plenty of work in television. However, for Pearl Cameron, whose performance was a minor highlight of the film, this was her second, and last credit. While not an outstanding film, Mystery Junction is worth watching if you value tight, understated drama.

It's a murder mystery - or is it? Pretty enjoyable but most of the film is in a snowbound railway station

Compact little B-movie crime thriller starring Sydney Tafler as mystery writer Larry Gordon. Gordon is button-holed in a railway compartment by an adoring fan who wants to discuss his writing technique. Suddenly a scream is heard and the pair investigate, checking the varied array of passengers in the rest of the carriage. They find that a police officer has been murdered on the train and the ticket collector knocked unconcious and his uniform jacket stolen. All of the suspects end up in the waiting room of a snow-bound station. Then another policeman in charge of a prisoner, is shot. But, was he the intended target? And why do most of the passengers seem to have some connection with the criminal? The action and dialogue seem at times rushed and rather preposterous. Cliches and red herrings abound. Is there something else going on? Bear with it and you'll find out!

While on a train travelling through a snow storm, detective novel author Sydney Tafler is autographing one of his novels for Christine Silver. When he starts to explain to her the process of writing a detective novel, they hear a scream, coming from outside, and when they look around, they find fresh snow near the exit. They decide to alarm the train guard but he's been sapped and mugged. After poking around some more, they find police detective Ewen Solon is on the train, accompanying criminal Martin Benson to an important court appearance. Solon's partner has disappeared, and he believes whoever mugged the guard must've thrown his partner off the train. He orders everybody from their coach off the train at the next stop. But when the train leaves again, the group find themselves trapped inside the train station waiting room as the snow storm has blocked all the roads. While they are waiting for the weather to improve, the phone line is cut, and soon after an unknown person shoots Solon, giving Benson a chance to take control of the situation. Tafler however believes the bullet was meant for Benson, and he manages to convince him of it. Benson orders Tafler to flush out the killer... Only mildly noir-ish, this murder mystery yarn is a beautiful mix of Agatha Christie meets Alfred Hitchcock (in his British period). The stranded group also has several women including a gorgeous Barbara Murray as a showgirl hitching a ride on the train and Pearl Cameron as Benson's gun moll. Tafler is (again!) great here, in a less shady role, but he pulls off the quick-thinking author really well. The man is simply a joy to watch. Benson is not far behind. Tafler, Benson and Murray carry the movie, but the cast does a great job overall. The movie moves at a brisk pace, it lasts just over an hour, and while it's almost a two-acter, one half on the train, one half in the waiting room, it never fails to entertain. It's got a lot of dialogue, but also a lot of tension and suspense. Tafler does a good job of making Benson wary of his own men (as well as his gun moll) while Benson is ruthless and not above killing to make a point. As the movie progresses all the different relationships between the characters come to the surface, including why the killer attempted to, indeed, kill Benson. Director (and writer) Michael McCarthy and DoP Robert LaPresle already worked with Tafler and Benson on 'Assassin For Hire', which is a nicely made movie. But this is the superior movie. It doesn't have the shadowy look of the former, but it is such a well-made and 'effortless' movie, it really surprised me. Great stuff. Recommended! 8/10

I quite liked this little murder mystery which feels like a classic crime novel from the 1930s. Sydney Tafler, always an underrated presence, plays a crime author travelling by train who becomes stranded at a remote snowbound station with an escaped prisoner for company. A whole host of supporting characters keep you guessing as to the identity of the nefarious ones, and despite the short running time, there are plenty of twists and turns along the way. The ending's a cop out, but until that point it's fun enough.

Mystery writer Sidney Taffler is speaking to Christine Silver as they travel on the train, about how he writes his stories. Suddenly a scream is heard. They investigate and discover one of the crew has been knocked out and his uniform stolen. There's also a detective transporting Martin Benson to his trial. To investigate, most of the passengers are taken to a station. As they wait, a storm rises outside. A shot rings out, and the detective is killed. Half the passengers are members of Benson's gang. They prepare to leave, but Taffer points out that no one admits to killing the detective. The target was Benson. They start to work out who wants him dead. It's a nicely composed classical locked-room mystery, decently acted, and brilliantly shot by DP Robert LaPresle, with carefully composed side-lighting to make the setting dark and oppressive, gradually giving away to brighter lighting as suspects are eliminated -- sometimes by shooting. It's good, sturdy B Movie work, composed for economy on two sets, with competent but inexpensive actors.

Hard to follow - perhaps because I came in half-way through. The excellent Sidney Tafler struggles as a detective story writer stuck in a snowbound remote railway station with a killer handcuffed to a cop, two music-hall performers, a little old lady mystery fan and several men in hats and raincoats who are successively revealed as members of the gang. The film might have made it with better direction, despite the antique, Ghost Train-like plot. The two music-hall performers, a sister act, are OK. There is a running buffet of tea, tea and tea. "Pat Dawn" gives a hint of the criminal's misdeeds that are censored by the mores of the time. One excellent line of dialogue. When the killer finds out that Tafler is a mystery writer he asks with a sneer: "Do you do /deep/ muck?" "No, just ordinary detective stories," responds Tafler. Sadly these days the "deep muck" has taken over. Made in 1951 but feels older.

Dull, Wooden acting, even Sidney Tafler doesn't help it out much. Still better it's better than a lot of rubbish on Netflix Watch the ghost train 1941, for a much better film in as similar vain, ie stuck at station with baddies about.