The Snorkel (1958)

Directed by Guy Green; produced by Michael Carreras

A man (Peter van Eyck) carries out an elaborate scheme to murder his wife, using gas to make her death appear as suicide. It fools the police, the local British consul and a close family friend – but not the victim’s daughter (Mandy Miller), who is adamant in both her claim that her step-father is a killer and her demand that justice be done - by herself, if need be. Will the murderer silence her before anyone decides to believe her?

This Hammer Production is typical of the company’s early works: low-budget, black-and-white, not a horror film but a thriller. Also typical is the fact that it is a successful small movie worth one’s time.

The story is straightforward, and in the tradition of the ‘Dr Thorndyke’ series of books, in which the criminal is described committing his crime; the tale then centres on the investigator discovering the truth. This format was followed very successfully in the popular ‘Columbo’ series of tv movies. The suspense comes less from frightening situations than from the tension created by Miller’s relentless inquiry into her parent’s death, and the growing determination of Eyck to do something to stop her.

The writing is good, though not quite realistic; the murder-method is one which is rather improbable but which a confident, perhaps over-confident, criminal might perpetrate, even though it is too elaborate for his own good. As well, Eyck’s motive is left unstated, though the viewer may infer it. He is, in fact, likely a double-killer, his first crime being for money, his second for love, or perhaps just lust. The interaction of the characters is well-handled and credible, and the ending excellent, though one could debate whether the film should have ended two minutes before it did.

The acting by the two leads is essential for the movie to work. Eyck convincingly portrays sympathy, with cold, black stone underneath; his heartless execution of his plan in the film’s first scene shows his real character. Miller’s performance can’t be faulted, even if, though only fourteen at the time, she gives the impression of being older. This may be due to the fact that children were much more mature in past decades, as anyone will know who has read children’s literature – or literature in general that features children – of the past.

The location filming helps raise The Snorkel above the level (often good already) of the well-made low-budget picture. The story is set on Italy’s Ligurian coast, which is where the movie is shot; the proximity of the French border is a key point in the plot. This setting may, in fact, have raised the budget out of the era’s ‘low’ category.

This movie is one of the reasons I enjoy exploring little-known films from decades ago. One doesn’t know quite what to expect and, best of all, the ending, even if one thinks one can guess its direction, cannot be quite assured. Anticipation of the unknown is the essential of a thriller, not fear or gore or monsters, and in this aspect The Snorkel is a thriller to recommend.