THE HOUSE IN MARSH ROAD [1960]

 "EVERYTHING AND EVERYBODY IN THIS TOWN'S GONE SUPERNATURAL!" 

As I watched this, I could've sworn that it was made in the late 1940's to 1950 at the latest.  Then when I went to write about it, imagine my surprise when I saw 1960 as the release date!  Now, before you jump at conclusions, this is not a put-down or criticism of the film.  It has that delightful old British spooker feel which I love but without any creakiness which such British films from the 30's & 40's can sometimes have.  In fact, there were no draggy bits and I really enjoyed it for what it was:  sort of a British film noir with supernatural overtones.  But don't worry, there really IS a supernatural element going on here and it is NOT explained away at the end of the film like a Scooby-Doo episode.  The ghost is real!

Tony Wright & Patricia Dainton

Jean and David Linton (Patricia Dainton & Tony Wright respectively) are a married couple who are just managing to keep one step ahead of their creditors; dodging landladies for back rent ("Yeah, everybody funny . . . now you funny too").  David is a failed author who barely ekes out a living writing book reviews and living off his wife's meager pay.  He can't manage to get off the stick and write his novel; using booze as a crutch.  With one pound left in his wallet, David sends Jean to sneak back to the previous lodging and collect their mail.  Jean comes back with a letter informing her that her aunt has died and left Jean her old country house called 'Four Winds'.  When the couple arrive in the country to take possession of the house along with executor Richard Foster (Derek Aylward), they learn that the house is thought to be haunted.  A beautifully subtle bit of business occurs when they first enter the house.  While talking nonchalantly, Foster quietly slides an armchair from the middle of the room over against the wall.  Later, we see the chair has moved by itself back into the center of the room again.  Four Winds has a poltergeist. 

Sandra Dorne & Tony Wright

Through Foster, the previous housekeeper Mrs. O'Brien (Anita Sharp-Bolster) comes back to work at Four Winds and informs Jean that "that's just Patrick".  He's a ghost who just like to moves this about and ring bells etc.  Mrs. O'Brien warns Jean that there's nothing to fear from Patrick as long as you don't mock him and treat him with respect.  However, Davis Linton, still drinking down at the Plough pub, still not writing much of his novel and still behaving like a surly dick.  Oh yeah, he also doesn't believe in such rot as ghosts.  He quickly hires a busty blonde in town named Mrs. Valerie Stockley (Sandra Dorne) to type up what he HAS written of his novel ans quickly starts having an affair with her.  All this does not please Patrick the ghost who has become very protective of Jean.  The poltergeist tosses around stuff in David's study and causes a mirror Valerie is looking in to smash itself.  Four Winds is in Jean name and all the money the couple possess is also in Jean's control so David the sponger has to ask his wife  for every pound note. When Mrs. Stockley discovers David has no income or money of his own, she hits the roof.  Although not before suggesting that, if Jean were to die, David would get everything.  There are a few attempts by David to murder Jean which are always thwarted by the ghost.  Until everything comes to a head.

Anita Sharp-Bolster

THE HOUSE IN MARSH ROAD, as I've said, feels much older than it is but has that wonderful British haunted house atmosphere going for it as well as an absorbing "no good husband wants to murder his wife" plotline.  Patricia Dainton as Jean is long-suffering and keeps putting up with her husband's bad temper, self-pitying tantrums, incessant drinking and permanent laziness.  She brings to the character a likeability which makes you root for her very quickly.  This role could have been enacted by making Jean a sanctimonious prude or a sugary goody-two-shoes but Dainton brings a fully-rounded performance to the role.  Dainton also gave a terrific, likeable performance as Mrs. Steve Temple 2 years later in the detective film PAUL TEMPLE RETURNS (which I also saw for the first time this year).  Dainton is a wonderful actress and I'd like to see more of her work. Tony Wright is also excellent in his role as the unlikeable husband; also taking a more subtle approach to the role instead of making David an outright moustache-twirling villain. 

David's many flaws are perfectly believable and he is his own worst enemy; David is not so much evil as suffering from a very weak character.  Anita Sharp-Bolster may look a lot like Margaret Hamilton but she quickly becomes very protective of Jean and doesn't have much time for David.  Sandra Dorne is also very good as David's 'bit on the side' Mrs. Stockley; she plays the role not as a stereotypical floozy but also more realistically.  There are really no over-the-top moments or performances in the film  Director Montgomery Tully does a nice job of keeping things moving along and the 70 minutes of running time make sure the film is trim and free of fat.  As I've said, the poltergeist is shown to actually exist; which is a refreshing change.  There is no 'did we or didn't we see anything'; we see objects moving by an unseen hand of the ghost.  There are no 'scares' per se because the poltergeist is actually the good guy so that's also a nice change from the norm.  We're looking to the ghost to save Jean from her husband's murderous plans.  THE HOUSE IN MARSH ROAD is a surprisingly watchable and enjoyable flick!