Publisher: CinemaSerf June 20, 2022
Now, I thought that the Airbus A380 was an impressive airliner but the one used in this 1937 murder mystery makes it look like a Sopwith Camel! It has all the facilities of an ocean liner (though not quite an entire promenade deck to enjoy at 35,000 feet)! Anna Lee ("Annie") witnesses a murder and gets framed for theft for her troubles. Once released from a London prison she discovers than an innocent man is to go to the gallows in New York for the murder, so tries to persuade a somewhat sceptical "Insp. Grant" (John Loder) to intervene - but to no avail. So, she stows away on our luxury airliner to New York in a race to stop his execution. By chance (?), Francis L. Sullivan is also on the plane - impersonating an Uruguayan general and Desmond Tester (whom you might recall is Sabu's pal in "The Drum") as the annoying virtuouso child musician with a penchant for the saxophone - alongside our doubting Scotland Yard Inspector. Sullivan's accent is a bit distracting but he is still quite a sinister character as he sets about to try and kill "Annie" and escape. Athene Seyler also brings some charm as the fusspot "Aunt Veronica". The plot is reasonably complex and at around 70 minutes there is enough to keep us going until the last 5 minutes which, I'm afraid, border on the ridiculous.