Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Absolutely brilliant

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

Confidently directed by Jacques Tourneur and ably portrayed by a fine cast, "Circle of Danger" is a relatively unknown film that is worth finding if you can (maybe through CD purchase or on TV). You won't regret looking it up.Ray Milland is the perfect choice as an American who efforts to discover exactly what happened to his brother in WWII. Not an easy task to discover details about a death during a commando raid, obviously a chaotic and deliberately secret event by nature. Although the American's motivations remain a bit fuzzy to everyone, he is doggedly determined. The result is an ending resolution that I found to be rewarding and finely done. The radiant Patricia Roc portrays a young woman who tries to balance career and emotional involvements with as much wisdom as possible in view of fast-moving and evolving events. Marius Goring ("The Red Shoes") expertly essays a complex character with style and aplomb. Former movie "Saint" Hugh Sinclair is solid as a rock and excellent in his portrayal of a truly selfless aristocrat. All of the characters in this film are conveyed with some depth, surprisingly so for a modestly made sort of movie.1950 Britain is really featured throughout the film and nostalgically captured in black and white which seems somehow appropriate for the date and era.They just don't make them like this anymore- so you will feel lucky to have found "Circle of Danger".

Ray Milland is not entirely comfortable as a no-nonsense American who crosses the Atlantic to investigate the mysterious death of his brother, who'd served as a commando in the British army in World War 2. He eventually finds himself at the end of a rifle wielded by the man who fired the fatal shot, which presumably accounts for the title.The credits, including a screen play by acclaimed detective author Philip MacDonald, lead you to expect rather more than is on offer here. A bit more of Britain is acknowledged than usual in films of this era, and Milland's enquiries take him to the Scottish Highlands (though actually filmed in Devon) and a brief visit to a Welsh mining community, though it's a pity they didn't use genuine Welsh actors. It's all a bit lethargic for the first fifty minutes or so as Director Jacques Tourneur concentrates on the various protagonists, including another ex-commando, now a ballet director, whom is clearly gay, played by Marius Goring. A major compensation for the duller moments is the glamorous Patricia Roc, as charming and lovely as ever.

A tale of mystery and a quest for the truth make this quite the journey. An American (Ray Milland) sets out to find how his younger brother died in service. Along the way he meets a lovely Scottish lass (Patricia Roc) and falls for her. However his quest is so obsessive he may get the truth and lose the girl. This is a nice film with twists and turns that will make you want to go along for the ride. The last portion of the film is tense and we wonder if Douglas (Milland) will survive his walk with Hammish the man who killed his brother. Too bad that this film has such lousy transfer, the quality is very poor. However it is worth watching again, and again.

Although I had not intended this current noir marathon to be a tribute to any one particular actor, this will be my fourth Ray Milland movie in a row! Originally hailing from Wales, this sees the Hollywood star making a welcome return to his homeland (and its environs) – albeit playing an American! – for a rather unusual Hitchcockian post-war thriller. The story deals with a salvage captain leaving Florida to go all over the United Kingdom (Wales, Scotland and London) – the roundabout nature of the route anticipating the Hitchcock classic NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959) – to seek out the surviving members of a commando team who operated in France during WWII and unravel the mysterious events surrounding his younger brother's death.This largely reticent and unhelpful bunch includes a wonderful turn by Marius Goring (who has now become a celebrated ballet choreographer), Hugh Sinclair (the former commando leader who is now a brooding baronet), Naunton Wayne (a clear nod toward Hitchcock right there, having acquired a reputation playing one of two cricket-crazy twits in THE LADY VANISHES [1938] – now a chatty, crooked car salesman) and Edward Rigby (playing a Welshman, thus obviously a miner!). Notable support, then, is provided by the lovely Patricia Roc (as Sinclair's intended, and whose 'meeting cute' with Milland precipitates a bumpy affair – again a' la NORTH BY NORTHWEST – but with the expected happy ending) as well as the ever-reliable Reginald Beckwith (from director Tourneur's later NIGHT OF THE DEMON [1957], as Goring's long-suffering partner).Despite the rather glum aura of the proceedings, this is less a noir than a whodunnit and, as if to emphasize that very difference, we are regaled with celebrated cinematographer Oswald Morris (and equally notable camera operators Gilbert Taylor and Arthur Ibbetson)'s breathtaking location shooting – the downbeat revelation at the climax, taking place in an open field, is particularly masterfully handled – as opposed to the claustrophobic studio sets usually associated with the former genre. For the record, Milland himself had starred in Fritz Lang's superb wartime thriller MINISTRY OF FEAR (1944) boasting a famously inaccurate Hollywood rendition of London! Another link to "The Master Of Suspense" is the presence of co-producer Joan Harrison (a longtime Hitchcock collaborator), even if the 'whistled tune' giveaway device immediately reminds one of Lang's child-murdering masterpiece M (1931)! In the end, one should be grateful Jacques Tourneur's first working trip to England here worked as well as it did – since, in six years' time, this would be followed by his last great (and one of his best-ever) film i.e. the afore-mentioned NIGHT OF THE DEMON.