The Stranger Came Home (U.S. title: The Unholy Four) is a 1954 British film noir directed by Terence Fisher and starring Paulette Goddard, William Sylvester and Patrick Holt. The screenplay was written by Michael Carreras based on the 1946 eponymous novel credited to actor George Sanders but actually ghostwritten by Leigh Brackett. The film was released in the United States by Lippert Pictures.
Contents
Plot
Four friends go on a fishing trip but only three return. After an absence of four years, during which time he had been an amnesiac, the fourth man, Philip Vickers, returns home after regaining his memory. He tells of a "friend" who knocked him out, drugged him, and left him to die. Any one of the remaining men could be a suspect as Job Crandall, Bill Saul and Harry Bryce have all been interested in Philip's attractive 'widow', Angie. Unfortunately, Philip's return coincides with a murder and he becomes the main suspect. Angie joins forces with her husband to help solve the mystery and clear his name.
Cast
Paulette Goddard as Angie
William Sylvester as Philip Vickers
Patrick Holt as Job Crandall
Paul Carpenter as Bill Saul
Alvys Maben as Joan Merrill
Russell Napier as Inspector Treherne
Kay Callard as Jenny
Patricia Owens as blonde
David King-Wood as Sessions
Jeremy Hawk as Police Sergeant Johnson
Production
Filming began 4 January 1954. The film was produced by Hammer Films at Bray Studios in Berkshire with sets designed by the art director J. Elder Wills.
Release
The film was trade shown in the UK on 14 July 1954, and released on 9 August.
Critical reception
The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This confused and unconvincing murder mystery is so spattered with red herrings as to be almost incomprehensible. Paulette Goddard works hard; but for the most part the acting is little superior to the material."
The New York Times wrote, "A THIRD-RATE British-made whodunit called The Unholy Four, featuring Paulette Goddard and a nondescript cast ... A few more fly-by-nights like this Lippert presentation, produced and written by Michael Carreras, and the still-shapely Miss Goddard may find herself collecting the pieces of a career."
Leonard Maltin called it "Muddled."
In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "average", writing: "Strength of character sees well-worn, fairly suspenseful thriller through."
