Man from Tangier 1957 This is a cosy and yet intriguing drama from the stable of Butcher Films and features American actor Robert Hutton. It’s warming to know that so many of these entertaining supporting features from the days of your local movie house are now preserved and presented on disc from such companies as Studio Canal, Renown Pictures, Freemantle and many more. I first owned a copy some years back, again on the old system VHS and was pleased when Renown issued it on disc. Butcher Films were used to fill out a cinema showing by supporting the main feature, a combination you rarely get nowadays as modern films are longer in length. Back in those days film producers took the view that the average audience would not sit for anything longer that two hours, unless it was an American production of magnitude, such as Gone with the Wind and others of big budget. Even American studios took the same view when it came to run-of-mill production, although at the time, more dollars were being put into these, as opposed to some British productions where backing was a difficulty.
Anyway, getting back to our Man from Tangier. This sweet little plot involves the mix-up with two identical overcoats in a Barber shop at a London Rail Station. This, without me spoiling the plot for you, leads to the unravelling of a master smuggling racket headed from abroad.
Butcher Films may have been considered second rate by some of my friends involved in film production, and yet today, you can find wonderful little gems in their wide range of screenplays. Nostalgic locations that perhaps no longer exist and character actors starting out to become household names. So why not take a trip down ‘Memory Lane’ you’ve nothing to lose.
