Little Red Monkey (1955)
1h 11m | PG-13
Several murders of nuclear scientists, that baffles Scotland Yard, occur in London about the same time that Bill Locklin, a special officer from the United States State Department, arrives to oversee the transfer of Professor Leon Dushenko, a Russian scientist who as fled the U.S.S.R. An attempt is made on Dushenko's life with a monkey's paw-print found at the scene.
Director: Ken Hughes
Studio: Merton Park Studios
Genre: Crime
Video: 720p
Cast
Richard Conte
as Bill Locklin
Rona Anderson
as Julia Jackson
Russell Napier
as Supt. John Harrington
Sylva Langová
as Hilde Heller, chief spy
Colin Gordon
as Harry Martin - reporter
Donald Bisset
as Editor Harris
Reviews
Richard Conte is the visiting American actor for this decent enough British-made thriller. He, "Locklin", is charged with ensuring the safe transfer of a defecting Soviet nuclear scientist "Dushenko" (Arnold Marlé). Simultaneously, a spate of murders is occurring in London and Scotland Yard (Russell Napier) initially baffled, soon discovers that there is a connection and so he and "Locklin" have to work together to thwart the daring plot - starting with just a monkey's paw print for a clue! It's a bit formulaic this, there is a journalist (Colin Gordon) in on the search too; a kidnap and some good old fashioned thumb-screw techniques as the baddies try to elicit the location of their prey. At times it can look little better than a filmed radio play, but at just over the hour, it doesn't hang about. The writing and the acting do their jobs, and though we know pretty early on who is who, it's still quite an enjoyable cold war drama.