Seven Days to Noon
                       
Director: John and Ray Boulting
Year:  1950
Rating: 7.0
This is an excellent tense little British film that was very timely back in 1950 and in some ways it is still timely today. In 1950 the world was going nuclear and we were at the beginning of the Cold War with Communism. England tested its first nuclear weapon in 1952 while the Soviet Union had done so a year before this film. So nuclear obliteration was a subject on people's minds. This film goes straight for those fears in as calm a manner as possible. English straight upper lip sort of thing you know chap.



Hopefully security has tightened up in the last 68 years but in certain countries it can be a scary to think about. A British scientist (Barry Jones in a very low-key smart performance) who heads the research department for nuclear weapons has decided that his work is evil and that England must stop its development of these weapons. So one day he just checks out a nuclear weapon like a library book and takes it out of the office. Except he doesn't plan on returning it. He sends a letter to the Prime Minister saying that he will explode it in a week at noon in the middle of London unless the PM has declared England a non-nuke country.



Scotland Yard Inspector Folland (Andre Morell) soon realizes it is not a hoax and a search is on. The use of London is terrific and especially when the city is evacuated and the streets are empty. The film switches back and forth from the search to the Professor keeping one step ahead of the police. Good British acting all around - for Miss Marple fans look for a much younger Joan Hickson as the first landlady - with some great touches like a man watering his flowers right before he evacuates or the pets left behind. I had never heard of this so the film came as a very nice surprise.