The Third Alibi (1961) User Reviews

A cracking little mystery, more twists then a roller-coaster.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 29 August 2016]

What a clever little mystery this is, it is incredible how many of these forgotten gems are out there. I would have imagined this was made as a low budget b movie, but it is fully deserving of praise. Very good performances all round, Laurence Payne and Jane Griffiths are both very good, but it's the performance of Patricia Dainton that stole the show in her final on screen performance, a truly natural beauty, she plays a very soft, frail and dutiful wife, who possesses more then is shown on the surface. I love how complex the plot is, it is full of knots, twists and turns, it's a film you watch and have no idea which way it's going to go, you are guessing until the very (shock) end. It features a small cameo for Cleo Laine.

The plot is so good it could quite easily be remade into some cosy modern day mystery. It starts fairly slowly, and you could be forgiven for losing interest, but it's one of those that if you stick with you will totally get caught up in, the ending is so good too. I love a good mystery and this ticks all the boxes.

I'm glad I found it, 8/10

The perfect murder mystery

[malcolmgsw · 8/10 · 31 May 2016]

The British film industry made hundreds of thrillers in the 1950s but very few are memorable,but this is definitely one.I have just seen this again after some years.I consider it the perfect murder mystery for a number of reasons.Firstly every detail of the plot has a crucial impact in the climax,not least the hit and run accident.Every piece of the plot falls neatly into place.Patricia Dainton is able to use the details of the conspiracy to her advantage.The plot itself is uncomplicated and the story very well written.Well worth viewing when contemporary films have faded from view.Can be viewed on TV again for the first time in years.

Payne plays a skunk

[nova-63 · 6/10 · 17 December 2011]

Laurence Payne plays a skunk composer who is married to a beautiful woman (Patricia Dainton) but he decides that she isn't enough. So he starts a torrid affair with his wife's sister (Jane Griffiths). How low can you go? Although Payne loves no one but himself he decides to ask for a divorce so to please a nagging Griffiths. When his wife refuses to give him a divorce Payne and Griffiths concoct a murder plan to get rid of Dainton for good. Unfortunately for the pair, Dainton learns of their plan and sets out with a little plan of her own. As one would expect there are a few twists and turns to the finale that keep the viewer entertained.

There are tons of these low budget British crime films from this era. This one is slightly above the average with a nice screenplay and good performances across the board.

Excellent small scale b-pic crime thriller with a twist that comes as completely unexpected - something all too rare for this kind of thing.

[jamesraeburn2003 · 16 May 2016]

A composer called Norman Martell (Laurence Payne) is trapped in a loveless marriage with Helen (Patricia Dainton) and is having an affair with her half-sister Peggy (Jane Griffiths). One night when Norman is driving Peggy home after a party, he accidentally runs down an elderly gentleman and fails to stop despite Peggy imploring him to. Has he killed him, or will this incident come back to haunt him later? When Peggy becomes pregnant with his child, Helen refuses to give him a divorce and she also controls all the money he earns from his music royalties. In order to escape he devises a foolproof murder plot. He arranges for Peggy to telephone his house at 6:30pm and to play a pre-recorded tape of his voice to the operator in order to establish an alibi. When the phone rings he will shoot Helen as she goes to answer it. It is arranged that Peggy will have an unshakable alibi by visiting the cinema and, in order to ensure that the staff remember her being there, she will make a nuisance of herself by accusing the cashier of short changing her. She will then slip out of the cinema during the film and make the call and then slip back in again unnoticed. And, to further establish her presence at the cinema, she will ask the staff to help her find a lost glove that she has deliberately hidden in her seat. They go ahead with the plot, but things do not go according to plan and the end result is tragedy...

Excellent small scale b-pic crime thriller with director Montgomery Tully - who made scores of quota-quickies and thirty minute shorts during the fifties and sixties (most notably for the Scotland Yard series) after his 'A' feature career stalled in the late forties - making maximum use of what was clearly a modest budget to wring out every bit of suspense and tension from the surprisingly excellent screenplay which he co-wrote. Payne is quite good as the successful composer who is trapped in a boring, loveless marriage while Dainton and Griffiths offer the standout performances as the two sisters who neatly contrast with each other. The film offers a nice twist at the end, which comes as completely unexpected and that is something all too rare for a large number of films from this area of British filmmaking. Anybody who has watched many second features will agree that they often suffer from predictable plot development and their endings can usually be seen coming from a mile off. In addition, the awesome Cleo Laine (a popular singer of the day) makes an appearance singing 'Now and Then' which, arguably, is only an average song but Cleo's talent could lift the most mediocre material into hit parade status.

The Third Alibi has been released on DVD by Renown Pictures as a triple bill with Michael Anderson's Night Was Our Friend and Stranger In Town, which was the directing debut of George Pollock who would go on to direct the Margaret Rutherford Miss Marple films.

Neat little British thriller with a great twist ending

[last-picture-show · 7/10 · 27 December 2006]

Neat little British thriller directed by Montgomery Tulley, who was perhaps best known for the Merton Park Edgar Wallace and Scotland Yard crime dramas. A good story, well directed with an impressive cast, especially Laurence Payne as philandering songwriter Norman and the ever-reliable John Arnatt as the police inspector. There's a neat twist at the end (NB: don't read on if you haven't seen the film) where the old man Norman thinks of as a nosey neighbour (Arthur Hewlett) who will confirm his alibi, as an eyewitness, turns out to be blind. This is poetic justice because he was the old man who Norman and Peggy knock down in the hit-and-run accident we see at the start of the film and is only blind because of the accident. A few criticisms: the plot doesn't quite make sense in that there's no explanation as how Norman's wife Helen (or Hel-in as the doctor insists on calling her) knows that her sister made a fuss at the Cinema confectionery kiosk (as part of her fake alibi) because Norman and Peggy hadn't discussed that part when Helen overheard the plot to kill her. Also, at the end, there's no reason given why Norman (Laurence Payne) doesn't make any attempt to use the doctor's arrival at the house to confirm his real alibi. I guess this was so he relies completely on the old man to support his alibi but it's almost as though he wants to be arrested for murder. Also check out Peggy's living room, although it has windows from the outside the set designers forget to put any windows on the interior set! Watch out for Dudley Moore in an uncredited role as pianist in the stage scenes accompanying Cleo Laine (in real life Dudley Moore was pianist with Johnny Dankworth's band at the time, just prior to his success with Beyond The Fringe).

Forgotten but intriguing British thriller

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 18 June 2016]

An interesting murder mystery that plays havoc with a conventional narrative, THE THIRD ALIBI is one of those intriguing, long-forgotten British thrillers that's well worth a watch for modern audiences. The plot involves the thorough scoundrel Laurence Payne and his efforts to do away with his lovely but ailing wife, played by the eternal Patricia Dainton, so that he can be with lover Jane Griffiths.

There's a neat preamble to the central murder as the characters go through rehearsals; the COLUMBO writers would be proud of the painstaking attention to detail here. In the second half, things become more confused when they don't go exactly to plan, and the film becomes both unpredictable and appealing. My only real complaint is with the moral code of the time which means that certain plot events are easily guessable and quite contrived.

The film was made by the short-lived Eternal Films, who seemed to routinely employ the workmanlike Montgomery Tully as director. They mostly put out low rent crime films although they also dabbled in horror (THE HOUSE IN MARSH ROAD) and comedies (THE CUCKOO PATROL). Dainton gives a fine, fragile performance in this movie, and Griffiths (TREAD SOFTLY STRANGER) does well as the third party involved. Watch out for cameos from singer Cleo Laine and the one and only Dudley Moore, the latter uncredited, but you can see him playing the piano in one scene.

"Anything to do with the heart is serious"

[hwg1957-102-265704 · 7/10 · 28 November 2018]

A composer of musicals Norman Martell is having an affair with Peggy, his wife Helen's half-sister. Eventually he tells his wife the situation but Helen, who is suffering from a heart complaint, won't countenance a divorce. Norman and Peggy plot to murder Helen. But things don't quite go according to plan. This is an excellent low-budget film, based on a stage play, with an engrossing plot and an unexpected but satisfying conclusion. Director Montgomery Tully keeps it moving smoothly to the finish.

Laurence Payne as Norman is aptly clever but weak and Patricia Dainton is appealing as Helen, changing subtly as the film unrolls. Jane Griffiths is also fine as Peggy. John Arnatt is entertaining as the dour Superintendent Ross but unfortunately isn't in it much. You also get the bonus of Cleo Laine doing a song in her rich and lovely voice. It's a tale of domestic murder simply filmed but quietly gripping to the last shot.

Patricia Dainton is Just Splendid!!

[kidboots · 9/10 · 21 September 2018]

Just a terrific little movie, with an absolutely crackerjack performance from Patricia Dainton as a dutiful but troubled wife who finds when her back is against the wall that she has reserves of pure steel!! She is married to self centred composer Norman (Laurence Payne) who, frustrated with what he feels are the confines of a stuffy middle class marriage has started an affair with his wife's sister Peggy (Jane Griffith). Once again it is Dainton as Helen who propels the plot, Peggy seems one dimensional but in a confrontational scene Helen reveals that Peggy has always been the spoiled darling of the family - the scene also gives a Freudian clue to Helen's own psyche as well.

While driving Peggy home from a family dinner Norman runs over an elderly pedestrian and even though he doesn't give another thought to whether the old bloke is dead or alive, this is only the beginning of his problems. The plot twists come thick and fast - Peggy reveals her pregnancy but Helen refuses to give a divorce. Helen is coping with her own crisis - a bad heart which is not going to give her a long life. After some soul searching she visits Peggy to consent to a divorce but then overhears Norman and Peggy hatching an ingenious plot to murder her, with alibis a plenty!! There is also a strange old gent in a caravan over the way who seems to spend a lot of time observing the family's comings and goings!!

And as if that wasn't enough you have the added treat of hearing Dudley Moore's jazzy be-bop piano style and a super rendition of the film's theme "Now and Then" from Cleo Laine, both in their film debuts. From the sure and practised directorial hand of Montgomery Tully who had moved to a company called Eternal at the end of his cinema career in a burst of creativity.

Highly Recommended!!

Half Sisters Aren't Loyal

[boblipton · 7/10 · 25 June 2020]

Laurence Payne is unhappily married to Patricia Danton. He's also carrying on an affair with her half-sister, Jane Griffiths. Jane coyly tells him she's enceinte. So he asks Miss Danton for a divorce. She refuses.

Well, this is a problem. He works out an elaborate murder scheme with Miss Griffiths, involving a tape recorder and exact timetables. It's a perfect scheme, except that Miss Danton is listening behind a door. As a result, when Miss Griffiths is murdered, all the rest of the evidence points to him.... except for one crucial piece.

It's a sick and twisted and very amusing murder mystery, with John Arnatt as one of those stolid, slow-talking and hardworking police inspectors. More like an expanded episode of THE ALFRED HITCHCOCK SHOW than anything else, it's a beautifully constructed, cheap little thriller.

A Classic Murder Mystery, Which Is Near Perfect...

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 8/10 · 6 February 2018]

This is now one of my favourite films. As a writer, you come across a story once in a while that you wish you wrote... this is one of mine.

Marriage isn't going well for Norman Martell (Payne), though his wife, Helen (Dainton), has no idea about how he feels. Norman is so discouraged that he has an affair with Helen's stepsister, Peggy Hill (Griffiths). Upon hearing the news that Peggy is pregnant he tells Helen he wants a divorce. Unfortunately for Helen, when he can't get a separation he and Peggy form a plan to kill her...

Even though the twist is telegraphed early on it's not the climax, that you know is coming, that sells this film. It's the story, acting, and direction. All the cast give solid, credible and realistic performances. No one actor or actress is better than the rest. And even though the pace is steady throughout it's the combination of timing, writing, and great characterisations that makes the ending perfect. All the pivotal and important elements weave together at precisely the right time.

One of the best things for me is the ending itself which is delivered like a punchline. Which is fitting, especially if you like dark humour and believe in karma. I admit to actually saying, "Oh Yeah," out loud, along with the closing line, which is really easy to figure out... with a huge grin on my face.

I loved this film... actually, loved this film.

It's with that affirmation in my heart that I recommend this murder mystery to all out there. If you don't enjoy it then there's summat up wit'ya.

You even get a free song from the marvellous voice of Cleo Lane - you can't get any better.

Everything was timed down to the last second ,but...

[ulicknormanowen · 7/10 · 16 March 2021]

Its outline may remind you of "sudden fear" starring Joan Crawford,Jack Palance and Gloria Grahame : the victim knows her husband and his mistress are going to kill her for she eavesdropped on their conversation which revealed their ominous plans.Besides ,a tape recorder plays a prominent part in the plot.But it's a good murder mystery on its own :the screenplay (based on a play) is well constructed ,and even the manslaughter on the road has its raison d'être(the final picture packs a real wallop) .Even the title is well chosen .

The sisters ' feud is a little derivative: it's once again the "my kid sister was spoilt , they had only eyes for her " well-known tale ;but the film is short , tense ,and there's never a dull moment .Directing is not very inventive ,but the suspenseful script will keep you glued to your seat till the very end.

Perfect

[evans-15475 · 9/10 · 17 March 2019]

One of the best plotted films I've ever seen although not much actually happens the plot twists are outstanding

Above average murder mystery

[geoffm60295 · 6/10 · 26 August 2020]

A musical composer, Norman Martell, wants to divorce his wife Helen and marry her half sister Peggy. The problem for Norman, is that his wife refuses a divorce and it's then that Norman begins to entertain dark thoughts of murdering his wife, after he discovers he has made Peggy pregnant. It's a tightly constructed film (running to 68 minutes) which moves along at a business like and brisk pace. Laurence Payne, playing the weak and vain Norman, hatches a scheme involving a tape recorder, but it all goes horribly wrong, leaving the police without too much to do, since the overwhelming circumstantial evidence puts Norman clearly firmly in the frame. It's a tidy and tense thriller, which has lots of twists and turns. However, I found the character of Norman Martell, a little too over wrought and neurotic for my liking. Indeed, I found none of the characters sympathetic, including the doctor, played by Edward Underdown, who comes across as somewhat dull. The female characters of Helen and Peggy, are a bit too 'straight laced' and show little in the way of emotion. At no time do the two leading female characters show any sexual sparkle or 'attitude' and so never get out of 'emotional first gear.' The dialogue and setting looks 'theatrical' as if it was a stage play. Nevertheless, it's a film worth watching.

Tightly-plotted mystery

[kmoh-1 · 5 December 2020]

As many reviewers have noted, this is a neat and tightly-plotted thriller set in suburban Surrey, probably no more than a couple of miles from the studio at Walton-on-Thames, with a hissable villain, and a 'what's going to happen next' feel to it. Good performances all round, and a good script, with much credit going to the original story from Pip and Jane Baker.

However, it is worth pointing out that Norman could have weaselled out from under the charge at a couple of points. First, had he simply pretended to the police who arrive sharp at 7.00 at Peggy's bungalow that he had knocked on the door but not gone in, he might have given himself the basis for a far more convincing story. Second, he would actually have had his alibi if he had only told the police that Dr Murdoch arrived at his house at 6.30 and that he had not let him in. As it was, Dr Murdoch tells the police of his arrival, in Norman's hearing, and so deprives Norman of that route to safety.

Also, much of the plot is served by the singularly unobservant neighbours on Peggy's estate, who seem to be unable to corroborate or deny any of the various narratives offered to the police.

Even so, it's good fun thinking about how things might have changed, and the final twist alone is worth the price of entry. Altogether a far better film than we had any right to expect.

One of the best of the British B's.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 13 April 2024]

It's too bad that the Edgar Wallace series of British crime dramas wasn't even close to as good as this. In watching those several dozen movies, I'm surprised by their low budget mediocrity, while this one (even on a low budget) is nearly excellent. The three leading characters are fascinatingly amoral, and while there's sympathy for the wronged wife (Patricia Dainton), she's really nobody to be messed with.

Husband Laurence Payne chooses the wrong woman to be unfaithful with: Dainton's step-sister (Jane Griffiths), misidentified initially as her sister, then half sister, then step, indicating that at one point, they were close. The correct relationship is wrongly referred to later on when a shocking twist in Payne and Griffith's plans go haywire. Griffith is a nasty sort so what she gets won't elict any tears, and Payne's not likeable either.

Still for a film where the main characters (and a handful of minor ones) aren't ones to cheer on, the melodrama and the mystery are fascinating, and all three performances quited layered so the plot never seems forced. Griffith is deliciously nasty to the pesky concession stand girl and even more so to the ticket clerk, making her someone fun to hate. The cameo by Cleo Laine performing at the rehearsal of Payne's musical is memorable, but you have to look closely at the extra playing the piano, a young Dudlet Moore.

You can't have your cake and eat it

[jimjamjonny39 · 7/10 · 19 January 2023]

I realised about 20 minutes into the movie that I had seen this before, well it was on in the background and I was only watching parts that caught my interest. Anyway I'm glad I got to see it in full this time as it was a really good movie. The plot is to murder his wife (as he is having an affair with her sister). He has asked for a divorce from her and even offers a reasonable settlement but she will not divorce him even when he informs her that it's her sister that he has been having a relationship with.

"The best laid plans schemes of mice and men". Never seem to follow the design created.

The Thied Alibi 1961

[sjanders-86430 · 10/10 · 29 November 2020]

Starts out with a hit and run which ties in to the plot. Patricia Dainton is wonderful as the cheated on wife. The half sister, Jane Griffiths, is pregnant with husband of Dainton, Lawrence Payne. He and Griffiths plan her demise. At that point the plot heats up and is a thriller until the end. No problems! This plot works like a swiss watch! Montgomery Tully directed.

Delectable

[ummehaniamir · 8/10 · 28 March 2021]

It's one of those movies gives you a thrill cosying on the sofa you can watch with popcorn and tea and makes you feel so comfortable.

A cracking little thriller

[denise-882-139023 · 8/10 · 28 September 2021]

For all its obviousness and downright silliness this was great fun to watch.

A perfect little gem. Lively pacing. Never waned.

The downtrodden wife, played brilliantly by Patricia Dainton, is now my hero, a somewhat amoral one as it turns out. Mind you all the main characters easily slipped into dubious behaviour.

It's only 65 minutes long, goes well with a cuppa and a biscuit.

A Spider's Web of Intrigue

[rbrb · 8/10 · 25 April 2023]

This is a super thriller!

First rate story, with an excellent cast and a well devised plot, from beginning to end.

A writer of musicals is in a troubled marriage, so he plots a way to get rid of his wife so he can continue his relationship with her sister.

Some outstanding performances especially from the errand husband, his wife and the policeman in charge of the investigation.

Modern film makers should study the way this movie is presented: no unnecessary sub-plots yet a spider's web of intrigue with a climax that is brilliant.

Many of these so-called British B movies are far better than most modern-day new releases: 8/10.

The twist of fate

[Vinny37 · 10/10 · 6 May 2023]

This centres around three people. Intended Murderer 1 (Norman), Intended Murderer 2 (Peggy, lover to Norman), and Intended Victim (Helen, wife to Norman). Alibi 1 is Norman's. At 6.30 pm it will seem that he telephoned a thirty minute drive away from a 6.30 pm murder. And he can play a misleading witness to imply his 6.30 pm absence or to confirm his 6.30 pm presence. Alibi 2 is Peggy's. Earlier than 6.30 pm she will have been seen entering a cinema, and later that 6.30 pm she will have been seen leaving it. However fate is twisted. Alibi 3 is Helen's. Earlier than 6.30 pm she will have been seen entering a cinema, and later that 6.30 pm she will have been seen leaving it.

It is a cleverly thought out minimalist story, step-by-step rather than who-dunnit. A murderous and adulterous couple get their comeuppance as tables are turned. It ends implying that a miscarriage of justice will be good justice, and that better detective work might have resulted in lesser justice. It might leave the question of, had their plan worked, Helen's death could have been confirmed to have been at 6.30 pm, instead of, say, 6.00 pm.