Footsteps in the Fog (1955) User Reviews

Loved it

[blanche-2 · 8/10 · 22 July 2009]

"Footsteps in the Fog" is a truly excellent Victorian drama starring husband and wife team Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons. Granger plays Stephen Lowry, a man who has murdered his wife and gotten away with it; Simmons plays his maid, Lily, who knows he did it. There are two different paths he can take to keep her quiet. He prefers one way; she prefers the other. Meanwhile, Lowry has fallen for a beautiful woman, Elizabeth Travers (the luminous Belinda Lee) of his own class, and, after a suitable period of mourning, wants to marry her. The fly in the ointment there is a solicitor, David MacDonald (Bill Travers) who is also in love with Elizabeth and very suspicious of Lowry's behavior. When Lowry is accused of a crime, Elizabeth asks David to take the case.

This is a really neat film with a surprise ending. The acting is wonderful, as is the atmosphere, which captures not only the danger in certain scenes but the whole ambiance of Victorian London. Jean Simmons to my mind has always been underrated. She does an excellent job here as the quietly wily Lily. Granger is attractive and plays the fairly unflappable Lowry very well.

Sadly, the gorgeous Lee would die a few years later, at the age of 26, in a car accident. Not only is she lovely in the role, but no expense was spared for her costumes, especially that blue gown.

Filmed in color. Highly recommended. A real buried treasure.

Twists and turns in this excellent thriller

[Star5 · 7/10 · 27 November 2002]

Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger are brilliant in this murder thriller. There are so many twists and turns that you'll never guess what is going to happen next. I wasn't particularly taken with the film the first time I saw it but after several more viewings it is now a firm favourite. Simmons in particular shines as the manipulative girl in love with Granger and this is probably their finest teaming together on screen. See if you can guess how it's all going to end - a clever ending to an enjoyable movie.

The Interruption.

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 6 May 2012]

Footsteps in the Fog is directed by Arthur Lubin and collectively written and adapted by Lenore J. Coffee, Dorothy Davenport & Arthur Pierson. It is based on the short story, The Interruption, written by Gothic novelist W. W. Jacobs. It stars Stewart Granger, Jean Simmons, Bill Travers, Belinda Lee and Ronald Squire. Music is by Benjamin Frankel and Technicolor cinematography by Christopher Challis.

Stephen Lowry (Granger) is found by the house maid, Lily Watkins (Simmons), to have poisoned his wife. She promptly uses the information to blackmail Lowry. But with an attraction there they begin to have a relationship, however, motives and means are far from clear...

A darn cracker of an Edwardian thriller that's redolent with Gothic atmosphere and film noir tints, Footsteps in the Fog also features nifty story telling that's acted considerably well by the then husband and wife team of Granger & Simmons. The plot features murder, betrayal and dangerous love, with warped psychology the order of the day, all done up splendidly in Technicolor by Powell & Pressburger's favourite cinematographer, Challis. Characterisations are deliberately perverse, Lily knows Stephen is a murderer, but is not afraid of him, she loves him on the terms of love that only she understands. Stephen is a dastard, dangerously so, but he's not beyond remorse either, and shows it. Both homme and femme are connivers, a recipe for disaster. These facts mark this particular coupling out as one of the most skew whiff in 50s thrillers. And thankfully when the denouement comes, it's a kicker, a real throat grabber that perfectly crowns this deliciously crafty picture. Support comes from a number of established British thespians like William Hartnel, Finlay Currie and Ronald Squire, while the art department have come up trumps for the period design. All told it's a film deserving of a bigger audience and easily recommended to classic melodrama/thriller fans. 8/10

Fun thriller

[ctomvelu1 · 7/10 · 9 June 2013]

A great cast makes this Victorian thriller a near-classic, hampered only by a low budget. Stewart Granger stars as a recent widower who is in fact a murderer. This fact is known only to one of his his servants (Jean Simmons), who uses this knowledge to improve her station. When the wily widower ends up in a romantic relationship with a woman of his own class, he decides to put an end to the servant. From this point, everything that can go wrong does, and the clever twist ending is a real hoot. A young Bill Travers plays a barrister in love with the woman the widower has his eyes (an lips) on. Since the movie is working with almost no budget, the action is played out on basically three sets, so that it feels a bit like a theatrical play. No harm done in the end, as it is well written and wonderfully acted. Simmons absolutely shines.

Bonnie Jean, just too beautiful...

[derekcreedon · 27 January 2010]

She died last weekend aged 80, a great star whose career never seemed to find a summit, forestalled by middling films and imprecise casting. While this Edwardian Gothic gave her one of her more intriguing roles I've always felt she was too beautiful for it. If Lily the blackmailing housemaid had been less attractive the dangerous affair with her murderous employer would have felt a lot darker, seamier and her final pathos - the little skivvy whose dream-world collapses around her - more acute. When the Grangers are together they look perfectly suited - a married star-team of their day. Full marks to their performances, though.

While one or two plot-twists are far too facile - the brother-in-law mistaking the barrister for Lowry just because he comes out of a room, for instance - Arthur Lubin's direction gets the points across clearly and efficiently though lacking the Hitchcock intensity and lingering touches which might have made this a minor classic. A solid Technicolor production there's nonetheless a certain aura of rush and tweaking here and there with odd continuity slips and scenes that suddenly trail away in mid-sentence. Some bad processing is evident when the rather wet second-leads go driving together in the new horseless-carriage, which at least provides some topically amusing light-relief. But it's a memorable little show overall, good to watch with a last glimpse of Granger that's quite clammy - and now to be cherished more than ever as another movie-icon slips away from us in the dark.

Perfect "Late Late Show" British thriller

[ChorusGirl · 7/10 · 7 February 2011]

Fascinating British drama, notable for having two depraved, totally unlikeable protagonists--a murderer and the blackmailer who loves him. All the trimmings are here for perfect Late Late Show credentials: Gothic mansion, bickering servants, thick fog, the portrait over the fireplace, poison, blood stains, secret letters, a clueless blonde ingénue, a hooded figure in the dark...but filmed in lush Hammer-style color, rather than a more appropriate b/w, which gives the film a ghoulish modern edge. Stewart Granger and Gene Simmons get high marks for underplaying this vile pair...particularly Simmons, who nails her final scene. What a great, unsung actress.

*****POSSIBLE SPOILER AHEAD*****Good Victorian melodrama from the gaslight era...

[Doylenf · 6/10 · 6 December 2007]

JEAN SIMMONS plays a housemaid who takes advantage of the fact that she knows the truth about STEWART GRANGER's wife--and the fact that he murdered her, then pretended to be the grieving husband.

She uses this knowledge to blackmail him into making her head of the household staff--and the schemes continue, by both of them, with the cat-and-mouse game leading up to a satisfying ending. Both Simmons and Granger are at their best, completely in charge of their roles and well cast as the conniving leads.

And yet, something is missing. Instead of building suspense, under Arthur Lubin's limp direction, the film wanders slowly toward the conclusion, a few surprises along the way and the main thrust of suspense being the question it poses: how is he going to get rid of Simmons when her hold over him becomes even stronger after a second murder committed by him on a foggy night, presuming the woman was Simmons.

While the fascination lies in the handsome production values and the performances of the two leads, the film itself lacks the impact a melodrama of this sort should have by the time we reach the diabolical ending. A tighter script and stronger direction would have helped. BILL TRAVERS is completely wasted in a supporting role.

A wonderful Victorian thriller

[dimandreas · 9/10 · 30 May 2002]

This movie is certainly one of the best victorian-era thriller melodramas ever made. The atmosphere is perfect (at least according to what we expect victorian atmosphere to be). Both Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons give wonderful performances, each being ideally cast in his/her role. The suspense builds up perfectly, answering the viewers question as to how the katharsis will come at the end. And it is a very satisfying solution - with the exception perhaps of the last words said by Jean Simmons. All in all an excellent movie that deserves much wider recognition than it actually enjoys.

Gambling with Death and losing!

[brogmiller · 7/10 · 20 November 2020]

W. W. Jacobs was a master of the short story and 'The Interruption' is one of his most compelling. It is basically a two-hander in which recently widowed Spencer Goddard is locked in a battle of wills with his cook Hannah who knows his dreadful secret. So as to be rid of her he resorts to drastic measures.........

To say that the bare bones have been fleshed out in this film adaptation would be an understatement.

Spencer Goddard has here become Stephen Lowry whilst Hannah is now Lily Watkins. They are played respectively by husband and wife Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons. The beautiful and diminutive Miss Simmons is a far cry from the tall, angular figure with the 'lean, ugly throat' of Jacobs' imagining.

By it's very nature film is all to do with 'compromise' and this is essentially a vehicle for one of the most glamorous couples of the time. Whereas in the original the cook is loathed by her master, here the sexual chemistry between the two is palpable.

Both Granger and Simmons are excellent in this and although Granger, as prickly as ever, did not attempt to disguise his dislike of director Arthur Lubin, he turns in one of his best performances as a narcissistic sociopath. Miss Simmons is both enchanting and touching enough to make us forgive her trespasses.

The 'added' characters are too numerous to mention and include what are usually termed the 'juvenile leads' played by Belinda Lee and Bill Travers. He loves her but she of course is mad about the cad Lowry. Miss Lee here is still fulfilling her duties as a Rank starlet before going off to Europe. She has what Byron called 'the fatal gift of Beauty' and one would hope it brought her at least a measure of happiness before her death at just 25. Travers was a crummy actor and his continued career in films remains one of life's mysteries.

Nice to see inveterate scene stealers Ronald Squire and Finlay Currie.

Apart from 'The Phantom of the Opera' of 1943 this is probably Arthur Lubin's most prestigious film and he has done a pretty good job. One could pick a few holes in the plot but that does not lessen its entertainment value. The device of the incriminating letter in the original is developed here to great effect. There is a good courtroom scene and in keeping with the title, a splendid pea-souper.

Great sense of period with atmospheric cinematography by Christopher Challis and an entrancing score by Benjamin Frankel.

I would recommend your reading Jacobs' original if only out of curiosity. It won't take you long!

Footsteps into legend.

[t.mcparland-2 · 10/10 · 16 September 2000]

Forget the alliterative title that was meant at the time for American markets. A story by W. W. Jacobs provides one of the unsung triumphs of moviemaking. To call this a 'British' movie is a misnomer. Yes, it was made in Britain. But with American money and direction- Arthur Lubin. This is important, because a studio-made movie, set in Victorian England, to look convincing for Cinemascope photography takes big dollars. Thankfully, advantageous 1950's American-British exchange rates and tax breaks meant moviegoers were the ultimate winners. From the evocative photography, hauntingly memorable Benjamin Frankel score to the starring of the then 'hot' husband-and-wife team Stewart Granger [ruthless Stephen Lowry] and Jean Simmons [the ambitious above-her-station maid Lily Watkins], there's everything right about this movie. The sexual tension between the two is tangible throughout. The plot is Victorian murder, portrayed with period ambience by a distinguished British cast. Like all great movies the plot, though watertight, is not important. The movie is. Its stentorian elegance dwarfs its audience. They just know that this one was, and still is, a biggie. If you haven't seen it yet- lucky you!

Excellent Potboiler

[PartialMovieViewer · 7/10 · 16 January 2015]

Who did what to who? Well it is sort of obvious...duh. I cannot believe the suspense is spine-tingly good. Stewart Granger is always the outstanding professional, he never let me down in the past, and didn't let me down this time. Of course, the rest of the cast were super, no complaints coming from me. I will have to admit, the is not the best movie I have ever seen, but it sure is a lot better than the doo-doo I pay top-dollar for now-a-days. The quality of writing alone stands sky-high above present day fodder. With no special affects or CGI, the camera work in this production is so well put together. I really love these older movies...not much flash, just so much class. Excellent

Atmospheric Victorian melodrama

[lorenellroy · 8/10 · 16 April 2008]

When we first see Stephen Lowry (Stewart Granger)he seems to be a grieving widower as he stands beside his late wife's grave in Victorian London .The truth is another thing altogether and we soon learn that he has murdered his wife ,by poison ,and concealed the evidence .Unfortunately for him he was observed by the ambitious and put upon parlour maid Lily Watkins (Jean Simmons)who blackmails him into giving her the job of housekeeper and takes possession of the deceased's jewels .She is also in love with Lowry and he strings her along with promises of marriage while plotting to kill her and marry the dutiful Elizabeth (Belinda Lee)the daughter of his business partner Alfred Travis(Ronald Squire).much to the consternation of straight arrow lawyer David Mcdonald (Bill Travers)who is in love with Elizabeth and who harbours the gravest suspicion about Lowry.

This is a well made movie ,with lavish interiors ,some striking Tecnicolor photography and a moody score .It is strikingly well acted especially by Granger who always appeared at ease in period roles .Simmons struggles a tad with the Cockney accent but still manages to convince as an opportunistic female with a pathetically unrequited love for Lowry .Strong support from Marjorie Rhodes as her nagging boss ,Peter Bull as a prosecuting attorney and William Hartnell as an oily blackmailer also boost proceedings .The whole thing is lushly and slickly made melodrama that stands out from the run of the mill studio product of its time

Entertaining viewing for those prepared to overlook its occasional absurdities

[JamesHitchcock · 6/10 · 17 June 2010]

Victorian melodramas were popular in the cinema during the forties and fifties, and "Footsteps in the Fog" is a good example of the genre, although I would agree with the reviewer who pointed out that it should more correctly be described as an Edwardian melodrama. (David's motor-car is distinctly post-1901). The film's star, Stewart Granger, had already appeared in another film of this type, "Blanche Fury". Although the film is set in Britain, with an all-British cast, and was shot at Shepperton Studios, it was made by an American company (Columbia Pictures), with an American director (Arthur Lubin). There was clearly a market for films of this type on both sides of the Atlantic, and possibly to an American audience a film about early twentieth century London had more exotic appeal than one set in Boston or New York during the same period. The title refers to the fact that London, both during the 1900s and during the 1950s, was notorious for "pea-souper" fogs.

Stephen Lowry, a wealthy London businessman, thinks that he has got away with the perfect murder after he poisons his wife and the doctors attribute her death to gastro-enteritis. One person, however, has realised the truth, Lowry's maid Lily Watkins, who uses her knowledge to blackmail him, demanding promotion to the position of housekeeper. Lily even harbours the ambition to marry him, and thus to attain the position of her late mistress. Anxious to rid himself of the hold Lily has over him, Lowry attempts to murder her, only to kill an innocent woman by mistake. Although she knows full well that she was her master's intended victim, Lily gives perjured evidence at his trial which secures his acquittal, as she also knows that, should he be hanged for murder, she will lose her meal-ticket for life.

There is also a sub-plot involving a love-triangle between Lowry, Elizabeth (the daughter of his business partner) who is in love with him and David, a young barrister who is in love with Elizabeth; it is David who acts as Counsel for the Defence at Lowry's trial. Although Lowry is attracted to the beautiful Elizabeth, he cannot return her affections for fear of alienating Lily. (Elizabeth is played by Belinda Lee, one of the loveliest young British actresses of the period, who was to die tragically in a car crash a few years later).

As one might gather from the above synopsis, "Footsteps in the Fog" was never intended as a piece of social realism; melodramas of this type often relied upon improbably lurid plot lines. Nevertheless, it is a well-made example of the genre with two good performances from Granger and Jean Simmons (married to one another at the time) as the two main characters. This was the third and final film in which they starred together, the others being "Adam and Evelyne" and "Young Bess". Because of her innocent looks, Simmons usually played the heroine, but those same looks could also make her very effective as a villainess or femme fatale as here or in "Angel Face". Even today, "Footsteps in the Fog" can make entertaining viewing for those prepared to overlook its occasional absurdities. 6/10

Incidentally, Jean Simmons' Cockney accent is not as inauthentic as one reviewer complains. An Edwardian maid would not necessarily have sounded like one of the cast of "East Enders". Domestic servants, particularly those who aspired to rise to higher positions in the household, would often affect a genteel accent, and if they could not manage that would at least try to tone down the more obvious features of their regional dialect. This phenomenon is illustrated in the film "Relative Values" where Stephen Fry's butler speaks to his employers in perfect Received Pronunciation but reverts to his native Estuary English with his fellow servants.

Victoria Cross

[writers_reign · 5/10 · 22 July 2014]

This is a case of yer pays yer money yer takes yer choice. If you have a penchant for Victorian melodramas a la Gaslight then this should be right down your street. The source material is a story by W.W. Jacobs, best known for The Monkey's Paw, and it's the one about the chancer who marries for money and slowly poisons his wife. Alas, a servant in the household is on to him and blackmails him to elevate her position. She has to go too, of course, but suffering a touch of the Lord Lucans he kills the wrong girl, strengthening the position of housemaid Simmons. Meanwhile he lines up affluent Belinda Lee and hatches a plot to make it seem that Simmons has been poisoning him. Pure hokum not made more palatable by a wooden performance by Bill Travers that has to be seen to be believed. Ham Peter Bull phones in a turn as Crown Prosecutor and William Hartnell turns up as another blackmailer. Nothing, alas, can save it.

Both twisted and pedestrian period thriller

[gridoon2024 · 6/10 · 21 January 2018]

A twisted (if not airtight) story (co-written by two women) which goes to some dark places and arrives at an ironic conclusion, but Arthur Lubin's direction, though impeccable, is mostly pedestrian. The film is good for a foggy night in, but it's no classic. **1/2 out of 4.

Chained through murder and perjury

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 4 February 2013]

The then husband and wife team of Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons star in this Edwardian era melodrama about a man who poisons his wife and the servant who blackmails him into a permanent place in the household and the comforts that brings. Granger plays your typical Edwardian era upper class gentleman who admits he married his first wife for her money and then slowly poisoned her. Simmons is the servant who finds the incriminating poison, but instead of going to the cops she holds it for blackmail.

Granger for one of the few times in his career plays one pathetic loser. He tries to murder Simmons and ends up killing another woman who was wearing a similar outfit. When he's brought to trial Simmons gives evidence for him and when charges are dismissed he's more in her clutches than ever.

It all goes downhill from there for both of these people now chained to each other through murder and perjury. If there's a hero in the proceedings its Bill Travers who despite misgivings as a lawyer defends Granger at a preliminary hearing and gets charges dismissed. Travers is also in love with Belinda Lee who is another rich girl who Granger is now courting, but he has this Simmons problem.

As for Jean, she's playing with dynamite here and now she's bound to a man she knows wanted to murder her. You can safely assume it doesn't work out too well for either of them.

A nice period atmosphere characterizes Footsteps In The Fog with Granger and Simmons giving good performances and being well supported by a choice cast of players.

Restrained and refined--not necessarily the best things in a thriller

[secondtake · 7/10 · 13 December 2014]

Footsteps in the Fog (1955)

Some kind of cross between a Bronte drama (like Jane Eyre) and a British crime film. And it falls a little flat for that very reason, being neither one very well.

It also suffers a little from the bland performance of the leading man, Stewart Granger, who is never as chilling, or duplicitous, or charming as he needs at various stages to be.

Jean Simmons, on the other hand, is fabulous, playing both coy and cunning equally well—sometimes at the same time. The situation is seemingly simple: Granger's character is a rich widower and Simmons, playing his housekeeper, has some serious dirt about him. What might seem like a blackmail situation gets sticky fast, however, and there are emotional twists and some more desperation before it all levels out.

I hate to paint a whole industry with one color, but this strikes me as a typically British way of handling a juicy, suspenseful dilemma. It's restrained and refined, and it tries for nuance rather than splash. Imagine, five years earlier, an American film noir version of this (there are several, including the 1946 Deception which might have parallels). Some might prefer the dramatic style here, which practically owes something to earlier Paramount productions—25 years earlier, that is. For me it made me feel as polite watching as the whole enterprise must have seemed to the participants.

It's good, it's totally worth watching, but it's also revealing about style and intent in the industry in this fuzzy period between classic Hollywood and the 1960s.

Quirky, inventive oddity

[Leofwine_draca · 8/10 · 3 February 2013]

At first glance, FOOTSTEPS IN THE FOG looks to be a traditional Gothic mystery about a maid becoming involved with her sinister master, who may or may not have contributed to his wife's demise. Once you start watching it, though, you quickly realise that this film is anything but traditional. Instead it's a uniquely quirky black comedy, an exploration of some of the seedier aspects of the human condition; the '50s version of VERY BAD THINGS, if you will.

Stewart Granger, who has the capacity to be wooden (see SODOM & GOMORRAH), is a good fit as Stephen Lowry, a shifty aristocrat who thinks nothing of poisoning his wife when he tires of her. Even better is Jean Simmons as his timid maid who decides to take on her master. The whole film hinges on this central relationship, and it's a real zinger.

Excellent production values, plenty of tongue-in-cheek humour, and a finely-judged humorous supporting role for William Hartnell (HELL DRIVERS) all help to provide the interest, and by the end of it FOOTSTEPS IN THE FOG has become a thoroughly engrossing and atypical mystery story with plenty of twists you'll never see coming. A gem, in other words!

A pre - Hammer feast of Edwardian skullduggery has period charm

[ianlouisiana · 6/10 · 12 February 2010]

The adorable Miss Jean Simmons sparkles as a scheming cockney housemaid who blackmails her murderous master (the deuced handsome Mr Stewart Grainger)when she comes to realise he had poisoned his late wife. When he tries to bump her off too,he mistakenly kills the wife of the local Bobby and servant and master scheme for ascendancy in the aftermath. "Footsteps in the fog" is a solid movie featuring one of British cinema's favourite couples of the time.It is full of enjoyable cameos from stalwarts like Miss Marjorie Rhodes,Mr Victor Maddern and Mr William Hartnell and features a splendid brilliantly splenetic performance from Mr Grainger's old chum Mr Peter Bull.When they face each other across the Courtroom it must have been hard for either of them to have kept a straight face,particularly if Mr Bull was wearing Mr Grainger's crocodile shoes as he was wont to do given the slightest opportunity. Unfortunately Mr Bill Travers is a bit too flouncy for the barrister who is a rival with Mr Grainger for the fair hand of the ill - fated Miss Jill Day. In 1955 no one would have been surprised for Miss Simmons to have ended up with the hangman's noose although evidence her guilt was as slender as Miss E.Thompson's a quarter of a century earlier. Notable mainly now for its cast,"Footsteps in the fog" comes over as a pre - Hammer Grand Guignol feast,with Mr Grainger over - acting like mad and Miss Simmons gallantly attempting Estuary English.But it certainly pulled 'em in in 1955.

I thought this was a great movie

[ptrubey-1 · 10/10 · 3 March 2005]

Another wonderful Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger movie. It takes place in the early 1900 or late 1800. Granger is married to a very wealthy woman & Simmons is a lowly maid. Granger married this woman only for her money & decides to kill her, which he does. After the funeral he totally takes over the house & the money. But Simmons finds the bottle of rat poison he used to kill his wife. She decides to take advantage of this. She lets him know she found the poison & will keep quite if she can become the house keeper. He figures that this will keep her quite. She doesn't get along at all with the other help. She gets more demanding & he decides to kill her. But instead he killed another girl that he thought was her. She figures this out & now she is really in control.

Good thriller. I would have loved this more in black and white

[dbborroughs · 7/10 · 6 December 2009]

Stewart Granger poisons his wife but is found out by maid Jean Simmons who begins to play a deadly game of blackmail with her boss. Gothic color widescreen film noir set in the 19th century is a pretty good little thriller. Its nice to see Granger, normally the hero, and Simmons, forever the heroine playing against type. Its a good little film that only suffers because the film was made at a time when everyone was going for wide screen and color. The widescreen would have been fine, but the color seems to diminish things a bit. I think this would have bee better known had it gone for the black and white which the material cries out for. Worth a look.

Excellent variation of "Gaslight" is a melodramatic gem.

[mark.waltz · 8/10 · 11 December 2012]

This is "Angel Street" as seen from the viewpoint of the maid. Jean Simmons takes over the scullery maid role from "Gaslight's" Angela Lansbury and basically kicks the rest of the servants to the curb after discovering that the master (Stewart Granger) was responsible for the poisoning death of his controlling wife. Simmons utilizes this information to become the housekeeper with the goal of eventually becoming the new mistress. This causes the nasty cook and gardener to quit in protest, and Simmons insists to Granger that they do not need anybody else. But Granger, who finds out that the pretty Belinda Lee is in love with him, sets out to silence Simmons, and that's where the English fog comes in handy on a dark night where Granger sets out to commit more mayhem.

Attractively photographed in color and featuring one of the most lush musical scores (by Benjamin Frankel) I've ever heard that nobody else seems to know, "Footsteps in the Fog" is a great movie in practically every aspect. It reminds me also of the types of movies Granger and James Mason did with Margaret Lockwood in the mid 40's such as "The Wicked Lady" and "A Place of Ones Own". Simmons, playing a seemingly nervous waif at first, really rises above her station to stand up for her dignity, and gives it good to the dashing villain Granger, handsome with his salt and pepper hair and magnificent speaking voice. It is obvious what ends up happening between them; The script leaves pretty much nothing to the imagination.

Cleft-chinned Bill Travers (who grew a beard later when he starred in the classic "Born Free") plays the young attorney, in love with Lee, who defends Granger but suspects that there is something sinister about him. Margery Rhodes is delightfully nasty as the crass cook who harasses Simmons unmercifully until Simmons snaps and gets her revenge in the most delicious way. Barry Keegan is touching as the constable on Granger's beat who suffers a tragedy yet continues to patrol the same beat in order to solve the crime which took his wife away from him and their two sons. William Hartnell also scores in a small role as Simmons' brother-in-law who uses information he gets to his own advantage which ultimately backfires on him yet twists the plot to its delightful conclusion. Fans of "Downton Abbey" and "Upstairs, Downstairs" should find this to their liking with its scandals of the well-to-do told in glorious color with gorgeous costumes and scenery and the portrait of the dead mistress looking very much alive and in control beyond the grave.

The Best Part Is The Title

[GManfred · 22 June 2011]

I found "Footsteps In The Fog" a bit of a disappointment. It was handsomely mounted and with an attractive cast - maybe too handsomely mounted, as the film lacks suspense and tension, and is more of a melodrama than a thriller which is how the website classifies it. There is nothing sinister or compelling to the picture as the title would suggest.

Having said all that, I always liked Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger, two good actors who were man and wife in real life. She was too refined for her role here and his performance lacked the requisite menace of a double murderer. It could be the picture needed another director as Arthur Lubin was best-known for the Francis The Talking Mule series.

As is, I felt "Footsteps In The Fog" was another bland trudge through the landscape, which is a shame. It could have been a gripping Edwardian murder mystery. Maybe the title and the synopsis promised too much.

Its an Edwardian, not Victorian Melodrama

[howardmorley · 6/10 · 11 February 2009]

I disagree with other reviewers who persistently label this a Victoria melodrama.This historically would be anytime between 1837 (Victoria's accession) until her death in January 1901.In fact judging by Bill Travers' second hand motor car seen in a couple of scenes, this is most definitely an Edwardian melodrama.Victoria's eldest son ruled briefly from 1901-1910 as his mother had ruled for 64 years which is still the record; (although I suspect it will be broken by our present monarch who is now in her 56th year.

Now that historical point is out of the way, I awarded this film an above average 6/10 for acting, direction and other film credits including production values.Jean Simmons was miscast playing a lowly maid much as Audrey Hepburn did not in my opinion convince for the same reason as Eliza Doolittle.Jean as an actress was too refined and middle class and as another reviewer noted she could not affect a convincing working class cockney accent; (See "Eastenders" TV soap if you want authenticity).In 1955 when this film was made, drama schools were mainly run by a leftish middle class who trained often middle class actors for a mainly middle class audience and tended to drum out the regional vernacular accents of their charges during their training.How different now (post kitchen sink drama) when for example Sean Bean was told at R.A.D.A. to keep his broad Yorkshire vowels for a succession of working class roles.I did not feel Stewart Granger and Jean Simmons had much chemistry together, surprising considering they were married at the time.

Bill Travers was rather wasted as the lovelorn barrister and the actress whom he wished to be affianced was rather a lacklustre character.However Finlay Currie relished his small part as the police inspector.Finlay was often cast in myriad different character roles in his long career and when Hollywood producers wanted someone who looked old and wise the casting request would often land in Finlay's agent's in tray.Another small character part was well played by William Hartnell (who played the first Dr.Who in 1963).He played an oily blackmailer whom the police should have thanked for putting them on the trail of the dastardly Stewart Granger.

The film somewhat lacked tension, pacing and suspense although it was filmed adequately, hence my rating of 6/10.

It should have been better

[theowinthrop · 5/10 · 21 August 2005]

This film should have been better somehow. It has a lot going for it, in terms of the cast (with Stewart Granger and then wife Jean Simmons cast in roles which generate friction, not love). This is like the negative to their relationship in YOUNG BESS. In that story the plot of Admiral Thomas Seymour to grab control of England's throne through forcibly marrying Princess Elizabeth was twisted into a romantic tragedy (the first of many for the "Virgin Queen"). But the story held one's interest, and the script was well written (in particular giving that rising talent Deborah Kerr her first pathetic victim part as Katherine Parr Tudor Seymour).

This is set in Victorian times, and is based on a story by W.W.Jacobs. Don't confuse him with his rival late Victorian/Edwardian/Georgian short story writer H.H. Munro. The latter, ever recalled by the nickname "Saki" is remembered for his impudent and brilliantly sardonic stories of life in the early 20th Century in Europe, like "Tobermory" and "Shredni Vasthar" and "The Interlopers". Jacobs was always W.W.Jacobs, and is principally recalled for one masterpiece of suggestive horror: "The Monkey's Paw". If one looks at his spot on the IMDb board, many films (mostly forgotten) were based on his short stories (mostly forgotten). One that did get made was based on "The Money Box", and was turned into Laurel & Hardy's comedy about two sets of twins, OUR RELATIONS. And there was this film. If it is not as good as a film with Granger and Simmons as YOUNG BESS, it is not as good a movie based on a tale by Jacobs as OUR RELATIONS.

Briefly it is the story of two connivers who's goals run into each other. Granger is seen at the beginning returning from the cemetery, having buried his wife. Only when we are alone do we realize that far from mourning the loss he is very satisfied. Naturally this raises suspicions in our minds - and in the mind of an ambitious maid in the house played by Simmons. She finds proof that the wife did not die naturally, but was poisoned. She proceeds to force Granger to marry her. This was not in his scheme of things, and so he decides that Simmons must go. But in their scheming and counter-scheming others get hurt, and suspicions begin to recirculate concerning both of them.

The story's resolution resembles an Eric Portman film of a few years before (not based on the Jacob story) called DEAR MURDERER. Oddly enough, that film was a better movie about an ill-mated pair of vipers. Whether the flaw here was that the script seemed to drift along, or the directing was not as crisp as it should be is hard to tell. For the sake of the cast, starting with it's two leads, I have given it a five. However, DEAR MURDERER would have gotten an eight.