Garard and Filton are two escaped convicts. Filton seems relatively unthreatening but that certainly can't be said for Garard who is a certified psychopath and a great danger to the public. To make matters worse Garard soon steals a shotgun and the pair go looking for a hideout, killing two police officers along the way. The place they find is occupied by a distinguished doctor and his partner. Garard makes it quite clear that blood will be spilled if either of them raise the alarm. Meanwhile a young American journalist - Tracy Loxton - is heading to visit the doctor's wife to discuss her priceless collection of poster art. She could not be calling at a worse time...
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| Garard (Anthony Valentine) threatens Dr Henson & Hilary (Denholm Elliott & Claire Nielson) |
Checking recently I discovered that on the Internet Movie Database this is the third highest-rated episode of Thriller, surpassed only by A Coffin for the Bride and The Double Kill. It's clearly then made a strong impression upon viewers and those high-ratings aren't based on just a handful of votes but over a hundred. This is one of those cases where my rating differs a little - for me it is a strong outing but not one of the very best - but there's no right or wrong with ratings and it's fascinating to compare with the wider cohort of viewers. While I'm not quite as won over as the general audience it is certainly a highly impressive episode and quicker-paced and more gripping than the previous week's Won't Write Home Mom - I'm Dead, also penned by Dennis Spooner from a story by Brian Clemens.
One of the key features here is the appearance of two proletarian convicts as villains. Thriller occupied a predominantly middle-class world - perfectly exemplified by the wealthy Hensons - and even its villains were usually middle class, refined and well-spoken. That is certainly not true of Garard and Filton whose accents mark them out as intruders in a social as well as a physical sense. Garard clearly likes the luxuries that Henson has to offer such as silk ties and linen shirts but he is an outsider. Later in the story Tracy's unexpected arrival leads Garard - equally unexpectedly - to impersonate a role as Henson's butler and it is a role he clearly enjoys, as well as being a quietly entertaining diversion for the viewer. A villain brandishing a shotgun a la Garard is a sight more typical of The Sweeney than Thriller. Working class villains resurfaced with a vengeance a year later in Kill Two Birds. In the later story gang leader Gadder bears some similarity with Garard - both are dominating and happy to use violence. However the psychopathic Garard is cut more from the traditional Thriller cloth; Gadder by contrast is a professional acquisitive villain with a very rational mind.
Garard has already killed before arriving at the house. The Hensons will be next if they slip up. He is a truly intimidating figure. Even his sidekick Filton is not safe from his brutality. Filton comes across as a rather pathetic personality. It isn't exactly clear why the pair are together - maybe they are friends, although Garard's behaviour towards him is often anything but friendly. Perhaps Filton is along for the support or skills he can offer (for example he does show some electronic know-how to tune into police communications). Whatever the reason his position is a precarious one. He is described as "small fry" and his offending background is not clear. However his rather disturbing remark to Hilary that he is inside for "looking after the ladies - a little too well" - suggests he is a sex offender and may be rather more dangerous - at least towards women - than his shambling demeanour implies. Indeed both he and Garard at times respond to Hilary in ways that suggest that sexual violence is a possibility - or a threat. The two are a neatly contrasting pair. Anthony Valentine is excellent as Garard while Juan Moreno, returning from his mute role in A Place to Die, performs well as Filton.
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| Hilary finds herself uncomfortably close to a shotgun |
The hostage scenes are extremely tense and very well done. Much credit goes to Denholm Elliott for a first-class acting display as Dr. Henson. Claire Nielson is also very impressive as his partner Hilary. The pair are on a knife edge, knowing that an indiscretion could be fatal. Our sympathies are with them but maybe the opening scene should have signalled that these are more complex characters than might be supposed. Later excellent writing backed by excellent performances brings an extraordinary twist and we see them - and indeed Garard and Filton - in a very different light.
Into all this has stumbled American journalist Tracy Loxton, aiming to interview Mrs. Henson. She is unaware of the danger of Garard until well into the action while Dr. Henson and Hilary are very clearly at risk. Later though the risk to Tracy becomes all too clear and it takes an unconventional course. Tandy Cronyn as Tracy is not the most memorable of Thriller heroines - indeed it is clear that Denholm Elliott and Anthony Valentine are the stars and the captivating performers here - but she gives a sound display and makes a particularly good impression in her later scenes, particularly with Denholm Elliott.
The police enquiries take up quite a large part of this story, as they do in The Colour of Blood and File It under Fear. The police characters are nothing exceptional but there are some notable aspects. Brook (played by Alan Browning) is one of the few conventional, competent detectives in the show. He is a tough, straight-talking, authoritative man in traditional police drama mode. However even he has a weakness with attacks of malaria about which he is clearly sensitive. His Inspector is all too happy to seize on this matter and more generally question his judgement. The dissension within the senior police ranks is a fascinating sight rarely seen but probably quite realistic. The Inspector clearly resents the intervention of Brook and the consequent loss of authority. However Brook proves to be correct while he is shown up as complacent and petty. The Sergeant snipes at the Inspector in an obvious attempt to curry favour with Brook who takes him to task for this attitude. The constables get on with their jobs without getting embroiled in such politics. The deaths (off-screen) of two of their colleagues bring them together but their superiors remain at odds. Although these aspects are fascinating they are not sufficiently compelling, particularly given the amount of time devoted to the police characters.
These reservations do not prevent this being a very engaging and tense outing. Maybe it would have been useful to have had another Dennis Spooner story in the final series to reduce Brian Clemens' workload and show if he could build further on this fine script.
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