Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

This movie tries so hard to be funny, yet it falls flat every time. Just another example of recycled ideas repackaged with women in an attempt to appeal to a certain audience.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Directed by JOHN GUILLERMIN. Screenplay by Jonathan Latimer. From the play by Philip Mackie. Assistant director: Ronald Spencer. Director of photography: Wilkie Cooper. Art director: Tony Masters. Film editor: Gerry Hambling. Production manager: Jack Hicks. Camera operator: Hughie Wilson. Set continuity: Yvonne Richards. Sound recordists: F. Ryan, Bob Jones, John Aldred. Sound editor: Teddy Darvas. Make-up: Roy Ashton. Hairdresser: Bill Griffiths. Wardrobe supervisor: Bridget Sellers. Music composed by Mischa Spoliansky; conducted by Lambert Williamson; played by Johnny Dankworth and His Orchestra. Produced by Jack Clayton. A Romulus Film. A Columbia Picture.A Romulus Production. London trade show: June 1958. No New York opening. U.S. release through Columbia: September 1958. U.K. release through Columbia: 3 August 1958. Australian release: 7 May 1959. 86 minutes.SYNOPSIS: An American film producer is accused of murdering his star. Setting: the French Riviera.COMMENT: Crisp thriller screen-played by Jonathan Latimer (who worked with director John Farrow on such classics as The Big Clock, Beyond Glory, Night Has a Thousand Eyes, Alias Nick Beal, Plunder of the Sun, etc., and also authored interesting mystery novels on his own account, featuring private detective Bill Crane) with an interesting movie-making background on the French Riviera. Splendid performances by the principals and taut, inventive direction by John Guillerman keep the viewer almost constantly on the edge of his or her seat. Production credits are first-rate.

Stewart Granger looks for "The Whole Truth" in this 1958 film also starring Donna Reed, George Sanders, and Gianna Maria Canale. The exotic Canale plays the star of producer Granger's film. He once had an affair with her when his wife (Reed) briefly left him. It's over, but she wants to start it up again. At man (Sanders) visits Granger posing as a Scotland Yard detective and informs him that his star is dead. Except she's not - she shows up at a party at Sanders' house. He drives her home, leaves the car, and when he returns to it, she is indeed dead. Granger must then prove that he was framed.This film is a little disjointed. It has some neat twists and is told with some humor, but somehow, it doesn't hang together. Reed, normally quite good, isn't much of a presence. The rest of the acting is better. Granger is very believable as a producer, and we've seen George Sanders do elegant sinister many times. I actually enjoyed Canale the most. She kind of reminded me of Gina Lollabrigida.

"The Whole Truth" breaks a number of murder mystery conventions, making it pleasantly unpredictable. It's almost Hitchcockian (in the lighthearted vein of "Rear Window"), with a good measure of humor, suspense, and romance. While the film may lack megastars, its cast's performances are faultless. George Sanders is at his oily best in the film as Mr. Carliss, while Stewart Granger is a worthy leading man. Its brisk pace is complimented by a fantastic, upbeat jazz score, more typical of '60s spy films. Its aesthetic sense --cinematography, set direction-- isn't particularly fabulous, and it fails to capture the beauty of its French Riviera setting, but that fortunately doesn't detract from the delightfully suspenseful story.Ultimately it's a fun bit of suspenseful entertainment --not iconic but definitely worth watching.

It's a pity that Granger wasn't teamed up against George Sanders in the same way that he was against James Mason. I think their standoff would have made a good fight sequence in a swashbuckler like 'Moonfleet'.A good yarn, but disposable after the first watch.