I'd seen clips of the Mark Williams teatime drama show Father Brown on TV, so I was interested to see this film (alternatively titled The Detective) featuring the popular character from the G. K. Chesterton books, directed by Robert Hamer (Dead of Night, Kind Hearts and Coronets). Basically, one night a priest, Father Ignatius Brown (Alec Guinness), is arrested for seemingly stealing from an open safe, he explains he is replacing the money for a parishioner and proving how easy it was to break into. He is released when The Bishop (Cecil Parker) confirms who he is, and his side career as an amateur detective. After being released, Father Brown meets the parishioner in question, Bert Parkinson (Sid James) who drives get-away cars, the priest convinces him to become a chauffeur and work for Lady Warren (Joan Greenwood). Sometime later, Father Brown is asked to go to Rome carrying a 1,200-year-old priceless crucifix; he is sure that his rival, established criminal Gustav Flambeau (Peter Finch), may try to steal the holy relic. He crosses the channel to France then catches a train, first stopping in Paris. He is accompanied by a priest he met on the ship, and they become aware that police inspectors are watching them, but they manage to evade them. The excursion goes to the catacombs. Father Brown realises that the priest with him is Flambeau in disguise, nevertheless, the criminal overpowers him and steals the cross, leaving Brown tied up. Flambeau changes disguise and manages to avoid the two police officers waiting at the entrance to the catacombs. Father Brown convinces his friend, Lady Warren, to auction an important gold chess as bate to lure Flambeau into stealing it. They expect him to appear in disguise at the auction. Flambeau does appear at the auction, but not as a bidder, but as a porter, and he steals the chess set as the bidding concludes. But Flambeau returns the set to Lady Warren to prove a point. Police arrive at the venue, but Flambeau and Brown questionably work together to sneak onto a milk van and create a diversion to escape together before the criminal gets away again. Brown starts researching Flambeau in the library. He is unfortunate to break his glasses, he cannot see anything without them, but he eventually gets a new pair from an optician. In his research, Brown finds a link Fleurency in the Burgundy region of France and travels there. He finds Flambeau at a wine festival, but the criminal again manages to slip away. The next day he finds the old chateau and is looking for "the duke" but is told he is not home. He slips into the inner courtyard disguised as an old woman. Entering the dilapidated chateau, he sees signs of habitation, and discovers a secret door in the back of the big kitchen fireplace. Flambeau asks him to enter and reveals a priceless art collection. He gives Brown the stolen cross. The police arrive and Flambeau flees through the window. The art collection is recovered by the police and displayed in the Louvre. Back in England, Father Brown gives a sermon, with Flambeau entering and sitting next to Lady Warren. Also starring Bernard Lee as Inspector Valentine, Gérard Oury as Inspector Dubois, Bride of Frankenstein's Ernest Thesiger as The Vicomte, Ernest Clark as the Bishop's Secretary, Austin Trevor as The Herald, John Horsley as Inspector Wilkins, Noel Howlett as Auctioneer, and The Man with the Golden Gun's Marne Maitland as Maharajah. Guinness is really likeable as the eccentric sermonising sleuth who sets traps for the crooks he wants to catch in the act, Finch is alright as the villain, Greenwood as the huskily seductive Lady is fine, and there is memorable support from Parker and Thesiger. I will be honest and say that I possibly didn't pay the fullest attention to the film when I was watching it, apparently the time period the story was supposed to be set was slightly changed, I wouldn't know. Anyway, what I did pay attention to was amusing and intriguing enough, the religious stuff is only slight, for me it was all about Guinness's charming performance, all in all, it is a reasonable comedy thriller. Good!
Review of The Detective
