| The Squeaker | |
| Director: | William K. Howard |
| Producer: | Alexander Korda |
| Based On: | novel and play by Edgar Wallace |
| Music: | Miklós Rózsa |
| Cinematography: | Georges Périnal |
| Editing: | Russell Lloyd |
| Studio: | London Film Productions |
| Runtime: | 77 minutes |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
The Squeaker is a 1937 British crime film directed by William K. Howard and starring Edmund Lowe, Sebastian Shaw and Ann Todd.[1] Edmund Lowe reprised his stage performance in the role of Inspector Barrabal.[2] It is based on the 1927 novel The Squeaker and 1928 play of the same name by Edgar Wallace. Wallace's son Bryan Edgar Wallace worked on the film's screenplay. The Squeaker is underworld slang for an informer.[3] The film is sometimes known by its U.S. alternative title Murder on Diamond Row.
London's thieves are at the mercy of a super fence, who is in on every big jewellery robbery in the city. If the thieves won't split the loot with him, 'The Squeaker' shops them to the Police. A disgraced ex-detective believes there may be an opportunity to clear his name if he can capture 'The Squeaker'.
TV Guide wrote, "(it) has its moments, but is bogged down by the unnecessary characterizations, some occasionally inept lensing, and slow-paced direction";[4] while the Radio Times wrote, "Edgar Wallace's classic whodunnit has been reworked into an efficient crime story by producer Alexander Korda...Confined within starchy studio sets, William K Howard directs steadily, but the removal of that touch of mystery leaves him with precious little to play with, to the extent that he has to bolster the action with protracted love scenes between Lowe and Ann Todd. Robert Newton and Alastair Sim put in pleasing support appearances"; and Leonard Maltin wrote, "classy cast in first-rate Edgar Wallace mystery."[5]