The Spider and the Fly *** (1949, Eric Portman, Guy Rolfe, Nadia Gray, George Cole) – Classic Movie Review 7750

Director Robert Hamer’s little-known 1949 British romantic comedy thriller The Spider and the Fly is of considerable interest and entertainment value, even if it fails to deliver fully on any of the three counts as a comedy, or a romance or a thriller.

Eric Portman stars as a French police inspector called Fernand Maubert who releases a gentleman master-thief named Philippe Lodocq (Guy Rolfe) from jail to crack a German safe in 1914. Nadia Gray plays criminal Madeleine Saincaize, who is in love with the thief and is loved by the inspector, so an unusual love triangle develops.

Cult director Hamer (Kind Hearts and Coronets, Pink String and Sealing Wax) and the amiable British cast work very hard to please and amuse, and to a certain extent they do. Portman and Rolfe make excellent adversaries.

Also in the cast are George Cole, Edward Chapman, Maurice Denham, John Carol, Harold Lang, James Hayter, Jeremy Spenser, Sebastian Cabot, John Salew, Madge Brindley, Arthur Lowe, Philip Stainton, May Hallatt, Patrick Young and Hattie Jacques.

The Spider and the Fly is directed by Robert Hamer, runs 95 minutes, is made by Mayflower Productions and Pinewood Films, released by General Film Distributors, is written by Robert Westerby (screenplay and story), is shot in black and white by Geoffrey Unsworth, is produced by Maxwell Setton and Aubrey Baring, and is scored by Georges Auric.

The sets are designed by art director Edward Carrick and the period costumes are partly designed by Elizabeth Haffenden. Future director Seth Holt is the film editor.

It is shot at Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, and on location in Paris. Costing £120,000, it is the first film from producers Maxwell Setton and Aubrey Baring’s company Mayflower Pictures.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7750

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