Tread Softly Stranger
George Minter Productions (1958)
Crime
In Collection
#13226
0*
Seen ItYes
IMDB   6.9
1 hr 30 mins USA / English
DVD  Region 1   NR
Diana Dors Calico
George Baker Johnny Mansell
Terence Morgan Dave Mansell
Patrick Allen Paddy Ryan
Jane Griffiths Sylvia
Thomas Heathcote Sgt. Lamb
Russell Napier Potter
Norman Macowan Danny
Maureen Delaney Mrs. Finnegan
Wilfrid Lawson Holroyd
Betty Warren Flo
Chris Fay Eric Downs
William Kerwin Michael
Joseph Tomelty Joe Ryan
Timothy Bateson Fletcher
Director
Gordon Parry
Producer Denis O'Dell
George Minter
Writer Denis O'Dell
George Minter
Cinematography Douglas Slocombe

This is not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination. But it IS fun, lots of fun. The characters are real people with all the frailties and peculiarities that make them interesting. Even though I half expected the outcome it didn't really matter because the way there was so much fun to watch. Nobody was perfect, all good or all bad, just real. Of the two brothers one began as shady and questionable character and the other as an upright citizen but as the film progressed they switched places. The transition was believable and based on facts clearly brought out in the script. Diana Dors was the fulcrum about whom the entire exercise revolved and she did an excellent job playing a woman who is confident of her appeal, willing to use it, but is anything but one-dimensional.

So what's not to like? I can't help but think that in the hands of a better director this could have been much, much better. Those same elements that made it fun could have made it great had they been handled more expertly. Dors' sensuality was shamelessly exploited and don't get me wrong, I just as shamelessly enjoyed every bit of it. But there were some superfluous shots that did nothing to advance the plot and appear to have been inserted just to give us another look at this gorgeous woman. And then there was the theme song, played to distraction. I for one, don't get the connection. What do the words "Tread Softly Stranger" have to do with the relationship between two brothers and a woman?

But in the long run, even though I can't rate it any higher, I heartily enjoyed this film and will gladly do so again. For those who haven't yet seen it do so immediately.
Edition Details
No. of Disks/Tapes 1