Dick Barton: Special Agent

For the radio serial, see Dick Barton.

Dick Barton: Special Agent
Opening title
Directed byAlfred J. Goulding
Written byAlfred J. Goulding
Alan Stranks
Based onthe BBC radio serial
Produced byHenry Halstead
StarringDon Stannard
George Ford
CinematographyStanley Clinton
Edited byEta Simpson
Music byJohn Bath
Production
company
Distributed byExclusive Films
Release date
  • 10 May 1948 (1948-05-10)
Running time
71 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Dick Barton: Special Agent (released in the USA as Dick Barton, Detective) is a 1948 British second feature ('B')[1] spy film directed by Alfred J. Goulding and starring Don Stannard.[2] It was written by Goulding and Alan Stranks, adapted from the BBC radio serial Dick Barton – Special Agent. It was the first of three films that Hammer Film Productions made about the British agent, followed by Dick Barton at Bay 6and Dick Barton Strikes Back.[3]

Plot

Dick Barton and his colleagues Snowy and Jock are investigating smuggling when attempts are made on his life. It turns out there is a neo-Nazi plot to contaminate Great Britain's water supply.

Cast

  • Don Stannard as Dick Barton
  • George Ford as Snowey
  • Jack Shaw as Jock
  • Gillian Maude as Jean
  • Beatrice Kane as Mrs Horrock
  • Ivor Danvers as Snub
  • Geoffrey Wincott as Dr Caspar
  • Arthur Bush as Schuler
  • Alec Ross as Tony

Release

Though critically unpopular, the film's commercial success prompted Hammer to make a number of movies based on radio and/or TV shows. It was released in the USA as Dick Barton, Detective.[4][5]

Critical reception

Sky Cinema noted "schoolboy shenanigans from slick Dick and his (badly miscast) aides Jock and Snowy. More laugh-a-minute than thrill-a-minute, this was British 'B'-film making at its grimmest."[6]

DVD Talk wrote "the picture has an Ed Wood-like ineptitude."[7]

Allmovie blamed "too much comic relief and terrible pacing".[3]

References

  1. ^ Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 74. ISBN 978-1-8445-7319-6.
  2. ^ "Dick Barton: Special Agent". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Don Stannard - Biography, Movie Highlights and Photos". AllMovie.
  4. ^ Pitts, Michael R. (10 March 2019). Famous Movie Detectives III. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810836907 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ Dick Barton Special Agent Archived 17 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine at Hammerfilms.com
  6. ^ "Dick Barton - Special Agent". Find and Watch.
  7. ^ "The Dick Barton Trilogy - Dick Barton, Special Agent / Dick Barton at Bay / Dick Barton Strikes Back (Region 2)". DVD Talk.