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The Safecracker
The Safecracker
Directed by	Ray Milland
Written by	Lt Col. Reginald Danbury 'Rhys' Davies; Bruce Thomas; Paul Monash
Produced by	David E. Rose; John R. Sloan
Starring	Ray Milland; Barry Jones; Jeanette Sterke; Victor Maddern
Cinematography	Gerald Gibbs
Edited by	Ernest Walter
Music by	Richard Rodney Bennett
Production; company	Coronado Productions
Distributed by	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release dates	5 March 1958 (London); March 5, 1958 (NYC);
Running time	96 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	$471,000
Box office	$855,000

The Safecracker is a 1958 British crime film noir directed by Ray Milland and starring Milland, Barry Jones and Victor Maddern.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Plot

Colley Dawson lives a quiet life at home with his mother, but he is an expert safecracker at weekends, breaking into wealthy homes and stealing valuable art. When he is eventually arrested and convicted, Colley is approached in prison by Major Adbury, who offers him a deal in exchange for helping with the war effort. Colley will be given his freedom if he uses his safecracking expertise to perform a mission behind enemy lines. The dangerous mission is to breach a difficult safe in a Nazi chateau and steal a list of German spies operating in England. Colley agrees and is trained as a commando and parachuted into Belgium for the mission.

Cast

Ray Milland as Colley Dawson
Barry Jones as Bennett Carfield
Jeanette Sterke as Irene
Victor Maddern as Morris
Ernest Clark as Major Adbury
Cyril Raymond as Inspector Frankham
Melissa Stribling as Angela
Percy Herbert as Sergeant Harper
Barbara Everest as Mrs. Dawson
Anthony Nicholls as General Prior
David Horne as Herbert Fenwright
Colin Gordon as Dakers
Clive Morton as Sir George Turvey
John Welsh as Inspector Owing
Colin Tapley as Colonel Charles Mercer
Ian MacNaughton as Thomson
Charles Lloyd-Pack as Lambert
Ferdy Mayne as Greek Ship Owner
Arnold Bell as Detective
Bernard Fox as Shafter
Jackie Collins as Fenwright's Secretary ^[5]
Basil Dignam as Air Vice Marshal
Sam Kydd as McCullers
Hilda Fenemore as Mrs. McCullers
David Lodge as Parachute Instructor
Richard Marner as German N.C.O

Production

The film was originally known as The Tale of Willie Gordon. Ray Milland left for England in June 1957.^[6]

In December 1957, producer David E. Rose announced that he and Milland would produce a second film together, but the project did not materialise.^[7]

As a curiosity: German soldiers wear helmets with Afrikakorps insignia, probably remnants from a film about Rommel.

Reception

Critical

In The New York Times, Bosley Crowther called the film "a good, not great, suspense thriller," adding, "The film is full of those tense situations in which the hero slips into a room and opens a safe in terrifying silence. Mr. Milland is good in it. So is Barry Jones."^[8]

Box office

According to MGM records, the film earned $280,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $675,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $59,000.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
^ mamalv (1 October 1958). "The Safecracker (1958)". IMDb.
^ "The Safecracker (1957)". BFI. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012.
^ SAFECRACKER, The Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 25, Iss. 288, (Jan 1, 1958): 48.
^ imdb.con
^ 'Wine of Youth' Follows 'Written on Wind;' New Zanuck Films Readied Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 19 June 1957: 23.
^ Pioneer Idea Luring Lana: Clown Kelly in 'Everglades;' Keel Will Star With Martin Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 14 Dec 1957: B3.
^ "Movie Reviews". The New York Times. 3 September 2021.