They Drive By Night

No, this is not an earlier British version of the 1940 American film of the same name. (In fact, this film has more right to the title since it’s named after a source novel by James Curtis while the American film is based on a novel called The Long Haul, which, adding further confusion, is the name of a 1957 British noir based on yet a third novel.) The premise is about as noir as it gets: just out of prison, Shorty Matthews (Emlyn Williams) pays a surprise visit to his girlfriend only to find her strangled in her bed; terrified of being thrown back in the clink, he runs away and hops a ride north with a trucker as a mysterious killer continues strangling women back in London. With the feel of an adventure tale at times, the film jumps from set to set as Shorty searches for help from his old contacts, including former flame Molly O’Neill (Anna Konstam) who works as a high-end taxi dancer at the Palais, a bright, elegant nightclub that serves as Molly’s home base and contrasts starkly with Shorty’s dank, cramped hiding places. The film takes place entirely at night, exterior scenes often pummeled by rainstorms, the wetness adding a reflective sheen to each set. Woods and prolific cinematographer Basil Emmott create moments of genuine suspense using framing and deep focus, especially after creepy criminal psychologist Walter Hoover (Ernest Thesiger) enters the picture.