GB 1940 1hr 17mins Dir: Herbert Mason Starring: Michael Redgrave and Sally Gray
A construction worker thinks he sees a murder from a train
This decent little thriller includes a number of scenes on the sections of London Underground that are shared by Piccadilly and District Line services in the areas around Barons Court and Earl’s Court, as well as the Lillie Bridge dive under. Good shots of Underground trains feature, and these include a couple of shots of the older 1920s-built clerestory-type sets, a more modern oval-window unit, a shot of an R stock train, and a glimpse of 1923 ‘Standard’ stock on a Piccadilly Line service. Filming took place between Earl’s Court and Barons Court stations (the apparent murder taking place in a window of a flat overlooking the lines near Barons Court) and there are shots of the frontages of Westminster, Chiswick Park and Earl’s Court Underground stations. The shots of the train interior are studio sets. The opening scenes depict aerial shots of Hungerford Bridge and the elevated signal box of Charing Cross station is visible. Finally, the film makes excellent use of the construction site for the new Waterloo Bridge and there are a couple of shots of the narrow-gauge railway built to aid construction and a little Simplex diesel can be seen shuttling up and down. The film was a remake of the 1939 French movie Metropolitan and was released in the US in 1942 under the title Lady in Distress.
In this view of the Thames, Hungerford Bridge is in the foreground with Charing Cross station signal box a prominent feature. This is a common view that appears to have been filmed from the Savoy Hotel.
This shot is looking out of Westminster Underground station towards the Houses of Parliament. Note the Underground sign on the left hand wall announcing ‘Frequent Electric Trains to all parts of London’.
Patricia Roc outside Chiswick Park Underground station. This shot appears twice in the film, and it isn’t the only shot to be repeated.
Chiswick Park again, this time with Michael Redgrave in attendance
Michael Redgrave grabs the attentions of a police officer outside the entrance to Earl’s Court Underground on Warwick Road
A partly cropped image of a District Line train coming out from beneath the Lillie Bridge dive under near Earl’s Court
Another District Line train near Barons Court. The tracks diving down on the right are the Piccadilly Lines just before they enter the tunnel section through central London. The camera is mounted on the area directly above the tunnel mouths.
This is about the best you can expect of the little narrow-gauge loco working on the construction of Waterloo Bridge. The engine appears to be a Simplex design.
The shots of the Underground trains are a little confusing as they are repeated, only in reverse to give the impression that the are filmed at different locations. Here we see another District Line train passing the Piccadilly Line tunnel entrances at Barons Court.
Whilst here we see the Lillie Bridge dive under again. The train may well be going in the opposite direction to the first shot shown here (i.e. away from the camera) but the shot itself is shown in reverse.
Quite a large percentage of the film is shot in this flat that has a balcony overlooking the tube tracks. Sally Gray stands by the open doors as a train of Standard Stock passes on a Piccadilly Line service.
The audience is left to wonder whether she has been murdered or has simply passed out, either way, that is a District Line train passing outside
