How about that, then? I was prepared to write off The Executioner of London as plodding and stupid, but the twists at the end made me re-evaluate it, and that's the mark of good plot twists.
The revelation that the idiot journalist, who I thought was just supposed to be a poor copy of Eddi Arent's characters in the Wallace Sr. Films, was actually an undercover agent justified that he was always so well-informed and in the thick of things.
And the revelation that our "hero" policeman was the Executioner explained his willingness to, first of all, bring a civilian along to look at a decapitated body, and then, second, allow her to undertake a ridiculously dangerous mission acting as bait to lure in the killer. I'd like to think he was purposefully, but indiscernibly, pushing his lovestruck female friend into offering herself for this foolhardiness.
I still don't understand why the doctor was also involved in everything and acting, to all intents and purposes, like a fully-fledged policeman, but I'm a big admirer of the actor, Harry Riebauer, so I can let that slide.
More puzzling is how the the other doctor, the crazy old medical revolutionary, was able to apparently so easily pick up all these young women and get them to come back to his place. Then he wasted his golden opportunity each time by killing them. Oh well, I guess first dates can be difficult.
Extremely pleased that Maria Perschy's ravishing but badly lacking-in-taste Ann was saved, despite her best efforts, from ending up coupling with what must be the world's most boring lead.
So, score raised from a mundane 5 stars to a very respectable 7 by a good, surprising ending. I suppose they do say that all's well that ends well.
The revelation that the idiot journalist, who I thought was just supposed to be a poor copy of Eddi Arent's characters in the Wallace Sr. Films, was actually an undercover agent justified that he was always so well-informed and in the thick of things.
And the revelation that our "hero" policeman was the Executioner explained his willingness to, first of all, bring a civilian along to look at a decapitated body, and then, second, allow her to undertake a ridiculously dangerous mission acting as bait to lure in the killer. I'd like to think he was purposefully, but indiscernibly, pushing his lovestruck female friend into offering herself for this foolhardiness.
I still don't understand why the doctor was also involved in everything and acting, to all intents and purposes, like a fully-fledged policeman, but I'm a big admirer of the actor, Harry Riebauer, so I can let that slide.
More puzzling is how the the other doctor, the crazy old medical revolutionary, was able to apparently so easily pick up all these young women and get them to come back to his place. Then he wasted his golden opportunity each time by killing them. Oh well, I guess first dates can be difficult.
Extremely pleased that Maria Perschy's ravishing but badly lacking-in-taste Ann was saved, despite her best efforts, from ending up coupling with what must be the world's most boring lead.
So, score raised from a mundane 5 stars to a very respectable 7 by a good, surprising ending. I suppose they do say that all's well that ends well.