The Dummy Talks

The Dummy Talks is a 1943 British crime film directed by Oswald Mitchell and starring Jack Warner, Claude Hulbert and Beryl Orde.[1] It marked the film debut of Jack Warner.[2]

The Dummy Talks
Directed byOswald Mitchell
Written byMichael Barringer
Based onthe story by Jack Clifford & Con West
Produced byWallace Orton
Starring
CinematographyJames Wilson
Edited by
Music byKennedy Russell (uncredited)
Production
company
Distributed byAnglo-American Film Corporation (UK)
Release date
25 October 1943 (UK)
Running time
85 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Synopsis

Set over the course of one night, the story takes place in and around a London theatre. A series of contemporary acts are seen both performing on stage and socialising backstage. The murder of a ventriloquist takes place and two policemen, who happen to be at the theatre tracking a banknote forger, set to work finding the culprit. Ultimately, the key suspects are rounded up and a mind-reader puts on a show to reveal the killer. He's helped by a midget dressed as the dummy, hence the title.

Cast
  • Jack Warner - Jack
  • Claude Hulbert - Victor Harbord
  • Beryl Orde - Beryl
  • Evelyn Darvell - Peggy
  • Hy Hazell - Maya (credited as Derna Hazell)
  • Manning Whiley - Russell Warren
  • Charles Carson - Marvello ("The Man With the Radio Mind")
  • G.H. Mulcaster - Piers Harriman
  • John Carol - Jimmy Royce
  • Gordon Edwards - Marcus
  • Max Earl - Yates
  • Ivy Benson and her all Ladies Band - Themselves
  • Frederick Sylvester & Nephew (Eric Mudd also played the "dummy") - Themselves
  • Tommy Manley & Florence Austin ("Music Hath Charms") - Themselves
  • Cecil Ayres with the Skating Avalons - Themselves
  • Mann & Read ("Jugglers with Fun")- Themselves
  • Five Lai Founs (" Modern Chinese Wonders") - Themselves
  • Jeannie White and her Stepsisters - Themselves

Critical reception

Britmovie noted "a number of genuine variety acts add a flavour of the period, although they provide rather too much of the film’s running time" ;[2] and TV Guide called it "a weird but engaging second feature."[3]

References
  1. "The Dummy Talks (1943)". Archived from the original on 17 January 2009.
  2. "The Dummy Talks 1943 | Britmovie | Home of British Films". www.britmovie.co.uk. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
  3. "The Dummy Talks".

Bibliography
  • Murphy, Robert. Realism and Tinsel: Cinema and Society in Britain 1939-48. Routledge, 1989.


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