''The Squeaker'' is a 1937 British

crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

directed by William K. Howard and starring

Edmund Lowe Edmund Dantes Lowe (March 3, 1890 – April 21, 1971) was an American actor. His formative experience began in vaudeville and silent film. Biography Lowe was born in San Jose, California. His father was a local judge. His childhood home was a ...

, Sebastian Shaw and

Ann Todd Dorothy Ann Todd (24 January 1907 – 6 May 1993) was an English film, television and stage actress who achieved international fame when she starred in 1945's '' The Seventh Veil''. From 1949 to 1957 she was married to David Lean who directed h ...

. Edmund Lowe reprised his stage performance in the role of Inspector Barrabal. It is based on the 1927 novel '' The Squeaker'' and 1928 play of the same name by

Edgar Wallace Richard Horatio Edgar Wallace (1 April 1875 – 10 February 1932) was a British writer. Born into poverty as an illegitimate London child, Wallace left school at the age of 12. He joined the army at age 21 and was a war correspondent during th ...

. Wallace's son Bryan Edgar Wallace worked on the film's screenplay. The Squeaker is underworld slang for an informer. The film is sometimes known by its U.S.

alternative title An alternative title is a media sales device most prominently used in film distribution. Books and films are commonly released under a different title when they are screened or sold in a different country. This can vary from small change to the ...

''Murder on Diamond Row''.

Plot

London's thieves are at the mercy of a super

fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its whole length. ...

, who is in on every big jewellery robbery in the city. If the thieves won't split the loot with him, 'The Squeaker' shops them to the Police. A disgraced ex-detective believes there may be an opportunity to clear his name if he can capture 'The Squeaker'.

Cast

as Inspector Barrabal * Sebastian Shaw as Frank Sutton *

as Carol Stedman * Tamara Desni as Tamara *

Robert Newton Robert Guy Newton (1 June 1905 – 25 March 1956) was an English actor. Along with Errol Flynn, Newton was one of the more popular actors among the male juvenile audience of the 1940s and early 1950s, especially with British boys. Known for hi ...

as Larry Graeme *

Allan Jeayes Allan John Jeayes (19 January 1885 – 20 September 1963) was an English stage and film actor. Jeayes was born in Barnet, Hertfordshire, the son of Isaac Herbert Jeayes, archivist and Assistant Keeper of Manuscripts at the British Museum. ...

as Inspector Elford *

Alastair Sim Alastair George Bell Sim, CBE (9 October 1900 – 19 August 1976) was a Scottish character actor who began his theatrical career at the age of thirty and quickly became established as a popular West End performer, remaining so until his ...

as Joshua Collie *

Stewart Rome Stewart Rome (born Septimus William Ryott; 30 January 1886 – 26 February 1965) was an English actor who appeared in more than 150 films between 1913 and 1950. He was born in Newbury, Berkshire in 1886 and took the stage name of Stewart Rome ...

as Police Superintendent Marshall *

Mabel Terry-Lewis Mabel Gwynedd Terry-Lewis (born as Mabel Gwynedd Lewis) ( 28 October 1872 – 28 November 1957) was an English actress and a member of the Terry-Gielgud dynasty of actors of the 19th and 20th centuries. After a successful career in her twe ...

as Mrs. Stedman * Gordon McLeod as Mr. Field *

Alf Goddard Frank Henry "Alf" Goddard (28 November 1897 in Brentford, Middlesex – 25 February 1981 in Ealing, London) was an English film actor. Brother of a famous boxer, Alf Goddard was once a boxer too. He was also a trained athlete and a professiona ...

as Sergeant Hawkins * Danny Green as Safecracker *

Michael Rennie Michael Rennie (born Eric Alexander Rennie; 25 August 1909 – 10 June 1971) was a British film, television and stage actor, who had leading roles in a number of Hollywood films, including his portrayal of the space visitor Klaatu in the s ...

as Medical Examiner

Critical reception

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'' wrote, "(it) has its moments, but is bogged down by the unnecessary characterizations, some occasionally inept lensing, and slow-paced direction"; while the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves ...

'' wrote, "Edgar Wallace's classic whodunnit has been reworked into an efficient crime story by producer Alexander Korda...Confined within starchy studio sets, William K Howard directs steadily, but the removal of that touch of mystery leaves him with precious little to play with, to the extent that he has to bolster the action with protracted love scenes between Lowe and Ann Todd. Robert Newton and Alastair Sim put in pleasing support appearances"; and

Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fi ...

wrote, "classy cast in first-rate Edgar Wallace mystery."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Squeaker 1937 films 1937 crime films Films directed by William K. Howard Films based on works by Edgar Wallace Films set in London British crime films British black-and-white films 1930s English-language films 1930s British films

Plot

Cast

Critical reception

See also

References

External links