23 Paces to Baker Street

Some might find Henry Hathaway’s 23 Paces to Baker Street a bit slow and stagey (actually, it’s based on a novel by Philip MacDonald), but this is part of what makes the film uniquely enjoyable. We follow along as recently blinded, bitter playwright Phillip Hannon (Van Johnson), having relocated to London to escape his old life, finally finds something to live for: after overhearing (but not seeing, obviously) two people in a local pub plotting a murder and/or kidnapping to take place on the tenth of the month, Hannon becomes obsessed with preventing the crime, recruiting the assistance of Inspector Grovening (Maurice Denham) of the police, Hannon’s former fiancée Jean Lennox (Vera Miles) who is visiting from America, and his butler Bob Matthews (Cecil Parker) who adds (unnecessary) levity on occasion. With blindness a not-so-subtle symbol of alienation, Hathaway clearly borrowed elements and themes of Hitchcock’s Rear Window two years earlier, including both the skeptical police and the trio of characters sharing mutual excitement for solving the mystery. While it may not be bathed in the low-key B&W noir lighting we’ve come to love, it nevertheless is a visually gorgeous film shot in CinemaScope, which allows for dramatic, widescreen, full-color shots and panoramic views of the city of London. The noir aesthetic crawls onto the screen whenever characters go outside at night; in fact, the city suddenly appears Victorian with fog, lamplight, and wrought-iron gates in silhouette. The sequence in which Janet Murch (Natalie Norwick) slips into the night to find a telephone booth, swarmed by cerulean moonlight and black shadows, is particularly stunning. At 103 minutes, the film is on the longer side for a film noir, and Johnson is a fairly bland performer, which may make the film seem even longer. Take note of Leigh Harline’s gorgeous orchestral score, which weaves in swelling strings in a style reminiscent of the great Bernard Herrmann.