Directed by Jacques Tourneur and written by Philip MacDonald, in the 1950s, an American comes to Britain to investigate the murky circumstances of his brother’s death that occurred during a WW2 commando raid in Nazi-occupied France. Starring: Ray Milland, Patricia Roc, Marius Goring, Hugh Sinclair, Naunton Wayne, Edward Rigby, Marjorie Fielding, John Bailey, Colin Gordon, Dora Bryan and Reginald Beckwith.

The key question with Circle of Danger is what does it want to be? A murder mystery or a classic romance, but as it turns out, it wants to have its cake and eat it too. The trouble is that the two don’t gel, it’s entirely common with classic cinema to shoehorn in a romantic entanglement anywhere possible. Yet here, it takes over so much of the story that it’s almost like they’ve lost interest in the mystery, until the film’s final moments. The main consequence being that it makes the big final conflict pretty disappointing.

Even having said that, the film does hold a familiar, comforting charm and a suave confidence. Ray Milland has a big presence as Circle of Danger’s leading man Clay, an imposing and persuasive character. Although, despite the great performance from Milland, there’s one key moment where it becomes hard to look at him the same way, and that’s a massive injection of homophobia. It’s not entirely surprising given that the film was made in the early 1950s but there’s something so unnecessary about it. Added to the fact that it comes back several times almost as a plot point, that it leaves a bad taste.

Whereas Patricia Roc is a delight, she’s fiercely independent and even when leaning into the romance, she still holds onto that which is not always a given. She builds a strong personality and makes for a good match for Milland. Hugh Sinclair also gives a superb antagonist feel, the romantic rival who has a strongly bitter energy but Sinclair evolves the character well as time goes on. The constantly changing dynamic they create as a love triangle is possibly stronger than the film’s mystery.

Circle of Danger can’t seem to decide whether it wants to be a romance or an unravelling tale of murder and secrets. It focuses so much on the budding love story, at times feeling as though it has forgotten the bigger picture. The performances are strong, it’s a fantastic ensemble but the progression and plot strongly call out to be Hitchcockian and fall short.

Verdict: ✯✯✯ | 6/10

Brand new 4K restoration available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital from 5 February