Man Hunt

Tired of four-legged prey, legendary hunter Captain Thorndike (Walter Pidgeon) sets his sights on bigger game, sneaking behind German lines to acquire Hitler’s 'tache for his trophy cabinet. His silly buggers plan is scuppered and, once in Nazi hands, he’s threatened to 'fess up as a British assassin. Made of stern stuff, Thorndike won’t play ball. And when his captors realise this and throw him off a cliff, the man plain refuses to die. Our hero escapes back to England with ze Germans hot on his tail – determined he sign their papers. What ensues is more an elaborate game of hide 'n' seek than a man hunt. And Thorndike seems to forget he’s playing – visiting his bro for tea and taking his squeeze out to buy a pin for her ‘at. The casualness of the chase is made more ridiculous by Dick Van Dyke accents and ham-fisted dialogue. Metropolis director Fritz Lang missed the mark with Man Hunt. [Alistair Roy]