Suspect (1960 film)

Suspect (The Risk in the U.S.)

Company type	Film
Industry	Film industry
Founded	1960
Founder	Roy Boulting, John Boulting
Products	Thriller film

Suspect (known in the U.S. as The Risk) is a 1960 British 'B' thriller film directed and produced by the Roy and John Boulting. The cast includes Tony Britton, Virginia Maskell, Peter Cushing, Ian Bannen, and Donald Pleasence. The movie adapts Nigel Balchin's 1949 novel A Sort of Traitors.

Plot

Professor Sewell heads a research group that uncovers a technique capable of eradicating illnesses such as the bubonic plague. The government intervenes to prevent the findings from being published, concerned about their misuse in biological warfare. While Sewell begrudgingly accepts this censorship, young researcher Bob Marriott resists the government's stance and seeks assistance from the mysterious Brown, who is introduced to him through Lucy’s former fiancé.

Cast

• Tony Britton as Bob Marriott
• Virginia Maskell as Lucy Byrne
• Peter Cushing as Professor Sewell
• Ian Bannen as Alan Andrews
• Raymond Huntley as Sir George Gatling
• Thorley Walters as Mr Prince
• Donald Pleasence as Brown
• Spike Milligan as Arthur
• Kenneth Griffith as Dr Shole
• Robert Bruce as Levers
• Anthony Booth as Parkin
• Basil Dignam as Dr Childs
• Brian Oulton as director
• Sam Kydd as Slater
• John Payne as Iverson
• Margaret Lacey as Mr Prince's secretary
• Bruce Wightman as Phil, the barman
• Ian Wilson as pin-table man
• Murray Melvin as Teddy Boy
• Geoffrey Bayldon as Rosson
• André Charisse as Heller

Production

Filming took place at Shepperton Studios, completed within a constrained budget and a seventeen-day schedule. The film’s sets were crafted under the direction of art designer Albert Witherick.

Critical reception

Penelope Houston, writing for The Monthly Film Bulletin, observed that Suspect represented an attempt by the Boulting Brothers to raise the quality of supporting features. Despite its brief production period and financial limitations, the film resembled a high-caliber television drama, heavily reliant on dialogue and conventional cinematography. Houston critiqued its shallow exploration of themes surrounding scientific freedom and national security, concluding that although improved low-budget films are necessary, this was not an effective approach.

According to Variety, Suspect was a modest yet competently made secondary feature produced on a minimal budget. The Boulting Brothers defied expectations that such films were inherently inferior, delivering an engaging and intelligent thriller with commendable performances from Tony Britton, Donald Pleasence, Virginia Maskell, Kenneth Griffith, Raymond Huntley, Peter Cushing, Thorley Walters, and Ian Bannen. Technical aspects including cinematography, set design, and editing met satisfactory standards. Variety applauded the polished production values despite financial constraints and suggested that such efficient filmmaking should be more widespread.

The Times described it as a competent effort by Roy and John Boulting based on a similarly competent source novel.

In The Radio Times Guide to Films, the movie received 2 out of 5 stars. The review criticized lead performances by Tony Britton and Virginia Maskell but highlighted strong supporting roles from Peter Cushing, Donald Pleasence, Raymond Huntley, and Ian Bannen. It remarked that the Boulting brothers failed to generate the necessary claustrophobic suspense typical of spy narratives, with Spike Milligan’s casting noted as the only distinctive element.

TV Guide acknowledged meticulous planning but noted that the rapid shooting schedule and limited budget gave it a television-like quality. Despite tight direction, it remained a conventional thriller.

Film historian Leslie Halliwell characterized it as an enjoyable yet conventional spy melodrama produced on an experimental low budget and intended for lower-tier cinema bookings.