Let's be realistic.

A Masterpiece!

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

BLACK ORCHID 1953A fast moving murder mystery played out like a 1930's whodunit. The film stars Leslie Howard's son, Ronald. Ronald Howard is a top end medical type married to, Mary Laura Wood. Wood is not amused with how Howard seems more interested in his work than him. Wood is stepping out with other "gentlemen" behind Howard's back. Olga Edwardes is now introduced to the plot. Miss Edwardes is the younger sister of Wood. Edwardes is also a medical type and she and Howard strike it off. Howard tells Edwardes that he had asked his wife, Wood, for a divorce but the cow refused. Also in the mix is Wood's maid, Sheila Burrell, novelist, John Bentley and his publisher, Patrick Barr. Howard and Edwardes are in love and wish to marry. The only thing in their way is Wood. Wood suddenly decides she is moving home to South Africa. She is also willing to grant Howard a divorce. She thinks this is most humorous. Wood tells Howard that there is a UK law that forbids a man to marry the sister of his ex. Next thing you know, Miss Wood is creamed by a handy passing truck and killed. Now Edwardes and Howard are free to wed. That is till the coroner says Wood had been poisoned before the truck got her. Needless to say who is at the top of the suspect's list. Wood's maid, Sheila Burrell, never liked Howard and put a bee in the Police's bonnet about him as a suspect. The Police gobble up Howard when they find that the poison used, is the same substance Howard is experimenting with. Miss Edwardes, along with Howard's pal, writer, John Bentley, do a bit of detective work of their own. They turn up evidence of Wood's affair with another man. And what a surprise they get when they discover that the man is Bentley's own publisher, Patrick Barr. (This is pushing it a bit story wise)Barr is not happy with being outed and now tries to eliminate Edwardes and Bentley. A spot of sabotage on the brakes of Bentley's car damn near works when Bentley and Edwardes crash. Bentley is hauled in for a bit of repair work at the emergency ward. Edwardes, silly girl that she is, tries to tackle Barr by herself. She ends up at the wrong end of a choking and is only saved by maid Burrell arriving with a pistol. (Another stretch, story wise) Howard is now released from jail and into Edwardes' arms. The Black Orchid of the title is how Barr had poisoned Miss Woods. He had covered the flowers he sent Woods with poison. The film moves right along and at only 58 minutes, it does not over stay its welcome.The director was Charles Sanders. Sanders made quite a few mystery, crime and noir during his 30 plus years directing. These include, DEATH OF AN ANGEL, A TIME TO KILL, THE NARROWING CIRCLE, NAKED FURY, JUNGLE STREET and KILL HER GENTLY

BLACK ORCHID is a quickie of a British mystery running almost an hour. Well paced with fine acting. Dr. John Winnington(Ronald Howard)seems very trapped in a loveless marriage. His wife(Mary Laura Wood)feels he is more interested in dinner parties than his duties at the hospital. And he seems to ignore and neglect his wife with no shame. Mrs. Winnington's younger sister Christine(Olga Edwardes)comes into the picture and flirtation and lust commences. The doc's wife is wise to the attraction and has enough; she leaves him with a sly warning that British law will not let him marry her sister...that is as long as she is alive. Guess what? Winnington will soon become the prime suspect in his wife's tragic murder. Christine and John's best friend Eric(John Bentley)will set out to clear his name.This Black & White film is short and sustainable. The best acting comes from Wood. Other players: Sheila Burrell, Russell Napier, Patrick Barr and Mary Jones.

This is a B-movie from the UK. Like a typical B, it clocks in at about an hour and has a breezy pace from start to finish. The story idea's pretty good but some sloppy writing here and there prevent this from being better.Dr.John Winnington (Ronald Howard) is a doctor married to a horrible woman. Sophie Winnington (Mary Laura Wood) is very demanding and selfish and doesn't do well being at home when her husband sees his patients. So, she runs around on him and goes to parties--and has a very, very strained relationship with her husband. Sophie's sister, Christine (Olga Edwardes), comes to live with them. She also starts working for John on his research. Soon Sophie announces that John is boring and she wants a divorce--something John has been begging her for years. Later, when Sophie comes back to get her things after the divorce, she announces she's leaving with another man AND if John and Christine want to marry because apparently the law says you cannot marry your sister-in-law if your wife is still alive. This is an obviously telegraphed plot point--and soon the wife is dead. The police assume the husband did it in order to marry Christine--but Christine and her friend decide to investigate the case for themselves.Quite a bit of the film makes little sense and shows shoddy writing--like the script was hurriedly slapped together. When the pair are investigating the crime, then man they think is responsible for the murder leaves them alone with his wife for a while. Then, as they leave, he recommends they go back to London by a shortcut--down a bit hill. IMMEDIATELY, I thought 'he's cut the brakes--don't go that way'. Did this occur to these two characters? Nope. Later, after this car crashes, the man is shaken up and taken to the hospital. What does the woman do? Yup, she goes back to investigate the man's house...ALONE. And, when the guy wakes up and calls for the nurse to bring the police, he tells the copper that Christine is in danger and might be killed and he tells them who the murderer is. The policeman and the nurse AND the people at the local police station announce that he is crazy and refuse to investigate!!! I would sure as h#&& think that if a person woke up after an accident that MIGHT have been caused by sabotage AND the person says a murder is about to be committed, I would have reacted!!! Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy--and a bit of common sense would have make the film better.

Black Orchid (1953)A smart, crisp, and very British kind of drama with a touch of murder thrown in. It has a flavor of a classic whodunit, but it's never quite seen from the point of view of someone who has to solve the crime. Rather, we are wrapped up in this upper class world (at one point a woman says, as an apology, that she has just one gardener), and the crossed loves of two or three or maybe four of the characters becomes the meat of it. It is a deceptively noir titled movie, directed by British workaday director Charles Saunders, but it's not a noir one bit.For movie buffs there is the wonderful Leslie Howard's son, Ronald, who has an amazing resemblance (and something less of a presence) on the screen. Ronald Howard had a middling career, and many less than stellar performances on stage, and then screen, and then lots of telly, including a series of 39 episodes as Sherlock Holmes. More impressive by far is his wife, played by Mary Laura Wood, an even lesser known actress of mostly 50s era dramas and some t.v. Here she is sharp and alive, so taut you are never sure what she's about to do or say next. And she was in almost nothing else you can get your hands on, so enjoy her for what she's worth. There are several good secondary performances, as well, and indeed, if anything lifts this movie up a bit, it's the committed, convincing acting all around.And the clever, if formulaic, plot.