The Straw Man (1953)

There's something of the "Armchair Theatre" about this production, much of it seems to be conducted from the sitting position - there is virtually no action at all! Clifford Evans is "Jeff Howard", an insurance investigator who finds himself investigating a murder so his company doesn't have to pay up on a policy held by the man convicted of the murder once he is hanged. Aside from the rather obvious assumption that any policy would be null and void if the bearer were actually executed for a capital offence, the story is a fair one as he has to try and discover the truth! It transpires that the unfortunate felon "Saville" (Link Hunter) had been on his honeymoon when his ex-girlfriend turned up dead. The police, somewhat hastily, put two and two together and ended up on his doorstep. "Howard" is not convinced, so sets about disproving the police case and with the help of local PI "Mal Ferris" (Dermot Walsh). Now it gets a little more clever, with a few interesting twists and turns - and some cheese - and the story hots up nicely for a fitting finale. It's chronically under-directed though; and the pace, such as it is, is glacial. That's a pity because it's a good short story from Doris Miles Disney that deserved much better care.