Guy Green (1913–2005)

"The Snorkel" is an under-appreciated Hammer suspense film that revolves around 14-year-old, Candy (Mandy Miller), her guardian, Jean (Betta St John) and Candy’s stepfather, Paul Decker (Peter van Eyck). Candy is convinced that Decker drowned her father and murdered her mother making it look like suicide. Unfortunately, neither the police nor Jean take Candy seriously leaving the young girl to prove Decker’s guilt while avoiding becoming his next victim. Writers Peter Myers and Jimmy Sangster cleverly open the film with Decker going about the elaborate murder of his wife. This removes any element of whodunnit and leaves director Guy Green free to concentrate on the cat-and-mouse games between Mandy and Decker. He does this with aplomb and develops a number of imaginative and gripping sequences where the pair try and outsmart each other, before arriving at a slightly contrived but still satisfying double conclusion. The film is beautifully shot by regular Hammer cinematographer Jack Asher with some superb, beautifully framed night-time photography. Mandy Miller is fine as the strong-willed youngster while Betta St John provides good support acting as a pivot between Candy and Decker. It is interesting that both women have plenty of agency, with Candy in particular, driving the narrative and forming the focus of the story. This is a completely different approach to the Hammer style of the period where their Gothic horrors invariably portrayed the majority of female characters as weak-willed and in need of rescue. German actor Peter van Eyck is excellent as Decker and makes for a chilling villain who is cold-blooded, efficient and arrogant in equal parts. Overall “The Snorkel” is a nicely structured and highly effective little thriller that delivers plenty of tension and nice performances while leaving scope for plenty of imaginative directorial touches.… (mehr)