Floods of Fear

Floods of Fear is a 1958 British thriller film directed by Charles Crichton and starring Howard Keel, Anne Heywood and Harry H. Corbett.

Floods of Fear
British quad poster
Directed by	Charles Crichton
Written by	Charles Crichton (screenplay) Vivienne Knight (additional dialogue)
Based on	A Girl, a Man, and a River by John Hawkins and Ward Hawkins
Produced by	Sydney Box
Starring	Howard Keel Anne Heywood Cyril Cusack
Cinematography	Christopher Challis
Edited by	Peter Bezencenet
Music by	Alan Rawsthorne
Production company	Rank Organisation
Distributed by	J. Arthur Rank Film Distributors (UK) Universal (US)
Release dates	18 November 1958 (1958-11-18) (London, UK)
Running time	84 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	£300,000

Plot

During a flood, prison convict Donovan escapes while helping build a barrier for an impending flood. He gets swept away in the waters, along with his prison guard, Sharkey, and a fellow prisoner, Peebles. They wash up at a farm house of Dr Mathews, who is away helping victims of the flood.

The trio are alone until Dr Mathews' daughter Anne arrives. Conflict ensues which results in Donovan leaving with Anne and Peebles fleeing Sharkey.

Donovan and Anne fall in love. He reveals that he framed for murdering the wife of his former business partner, Jack Murphy, and is seeking revenge against Murphy.

Cast

• Howard Keel as Donovan
• Anne Heywood as Elizabeth Matthews
• Cyril Cusack as Peebles
• Harry H. Corbett as Sharkey
• John Crawford as Jack Murphy
• Eddie Byrne as Sheriff
• John Phillips as Dr. Matthews
• Mark Baker as watchman
• James Dyrenforth as mayor
• Jack Lester as businessman
• Peter Madden as banker
• Guy Kingsley Poynter as deputy sheriff
• Gordon Tanner as Lt. Colonel
• Robert Mackenzie as police captain
• Vivian Matalon as farmer
• Gordon Sterne as farmer
• Bill Edwards as 1st deputy
• Graydon Gould as 2nd deputy
• Kevin Scott as 3rd deputy
• Ed Devereaux as sergeant

Production

The film was made at a time when the Rank Organisation starred a lot of non-English actors in their films with a view to appealing to the international market.

Filming started in London on 23 April 1958.

Howard Keel recalled the filming in his autobiography Only Make Believe: My Life in Show Business: "All the flood scenes were filmed on one of the large stages at Pinewood Studios. The water had to be both dirty and cold, and it was. They couldn't heat it for fear it might get rancid. That was another tough picture. Anne Heywood never once protested about the water. [Charles] Crichton, who had a great sense of humor, had directed some very funny pictures. Cyril Cusack and I were good friends. We had a little contest over Anne. He was a real cutie, as well as a hell of an actor, but I won out."

Crichton said he was "not proud of the picture" but was proud of the fact "that it looks like the Mississippi in flood and it was all shot in the studio at Pinewood." He said he had to make the film "because I wanted money" and that he had to rewrite the whole film.

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "Repetitive and violent – at least two thirds of this film are taken up with fights and attempted rape – Floods of Fear is a blood-and-guts melodrama on the starkest and toughest lines. Characters are drawn with bold, uncompromising strokes and none of the actors is required to give more than a sketch of a performance. Audiences who can become involved in the story may find it exciting; for those who are not prepared to believe in the reality of what is happening it may carry less conviction."

Variety called the film: "one of Britain’s most determined Attempts to woo the U.S. market. Not only does it have Howard Keel as its male star, but the meller is unabashedly set in the U.S. The film has a novel setting, but an old idea, and corny dialog doesn’t help the characters to develop overmuch. However, there is some sound acting and the production quality is tops. It adds up to reasonable entertainment, but it is one of those annoying pix that should – and could – have been much better. It is questionable whether its marquee value is sufficiently strong to lure Yank patrons".

TV Guide wrote, "Heywood is a joy to watch as she stands up to the impending aquatic doom."

The Radio Times wrote, "well performed by an able cast Dallas star Howard Keel, Steptoe and Son's Harry H Corbett, Cyril Cusack and, in particular, damsel in distress Anne Heywood this is typical, and unremarkable, British 1950s B-movie fare."

External links

• Floods of Fear at IMDb