Dr. Morelle: The Case of the Missing Heiress (1949)

I wanted to but couldn't!

Fantastic!

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

DR MORELLE: THE CASE OF THE MISSING HEIRESS is another early mystery/thriller from the team at Hammer Films, produced by Anthony Hinds with the usual crew visible in the credits. Plot-wise it's almost exactly the same as another Hammer film of the same year, CELIA, with the exception that a woman is missing in this instance, rather than kept locked in her bedroom. The film is a showcase for radio star Valentine Dyall, who also appeared in Hammer's THE MAN IN BLACK made in 1949 as well. This film is a little slow and a little creaky, but it has some good mystery elements and a little atmosphere. The female protagonist is somewhat goofy but this helps to make her human and thus sympathetic. Dyall has an extended cameo and does well with it. The film's climax fits the bill nicely too and makes up for some routine moments earlier on.

The entity that later became Hammer Films (the acclaimed House of Horror) started out as Exclusive Films, producing a mix of mysteries and thrillers, some based on popular radio and television productions of the time. The Case of the Missing Heiress is derived from a radio original and features Valentine Dyall as Doctor Morelle.Dyall had a unique sepulchral voice, deep and full of foreboding. It made him an excellent narrator and voice-over artist. His height also provided a commanding presence and he brings these actor's tools to the fore in this production bringing gravitas and assurance to the film.The plot is a traditional missing woman mystery but the climax provides more than one plot twist that uses the economy of characters present to advantage. Technical credits are also high with dimly lit, suspenseful scenes though the version I saw came from a very muddy print.A special note needs to be made about Hugh Griffith's performance as the butler. On paper this is a nonsensical role of a servant who is so deluded that he takes his ten-years dead dog for regular walks. As played by the talented Griffith the character is a figure of great empathy and sympathy.This was overall a surprising film that managed to overcome its low budget and limited resources.

Although this is a rather threadbare effort it does have a fairly entertaining and well thought out ending.The voice of Valentine Dyall permeates the whole film giving the clue to the film's origins.At that time many BBC radio programmes were being turned into films,often with unlikely titles such as The 20 Questions Murder Mystery.I have to say that I cannot remember a similar climax when the tables were so neatly turned on the murderer with no less than two further twists giving a very neat and ingenious ending>Too often endings seemed contrived and unsatisfactory ,but such concerns definitely do not apply to this thriller.

The popular detective Dr. Morelle played by Valentine Dyall is our protagonist who stars in the Case Of The Missing Heiress. The story is told in flashback and in this case a bad idea because we know that the good doctor's assistant Julia Lang has had no harm befall her. Not good especially for those not familiar with the character on British radio who knows that she would have to be back for next week's episode.Morelle fancies himself Sherlock Holmes and he has the weapon of hypnotism at his command unlike Holmes. He also has Lang as a faithful scribe of his adventures, but Watson would have walked out if Holmes had ever treated him the way that Morelle treats Lang.In any event Lang gets a call for help from an old friend who is being kept prisoner by her stepfather and unable to see her boyfriend. The friend stands to inherit a considerable fortune, but the friend after making the call disappears. Stepfather Phillip Leamer doesn't want publicity and neither does boyfriend Peter Drury.We find out that the butler didn't do it when butler Hugh Griffith turns up dead as well and a frantic Lang calls Dyall for help. Of course when he comes to Devonshire where the spooky estate of Leamer is located, he solves the whole mess. Griffith is best in the cast with his performance of a slightly daft butler who walks an imaginary dog. But the film itself looks like it was slapped together rather quickly no doubt to take advantage of the radio show's popularity.