Blood Orange
Something is afoot in the offices of prestigious London based fashion house Pascal, a pair of shady gentlemen dressed for stealth rather than the catwalk as they blow the safe, making off with £50,000 of jewels on loan from Mister Mercedes and accost the night watchman on the way out, the police investigating but former FBI agent Tom Conway also taking an interest in both the case and the lovely models who work there.
His interest piqued when he hears wealthy client Lady Marchant state that she recognised one of the rubies taken, the very same stone with its milky hue having been stolen from her two years previously, matters take a turn when Chelsea, modelling the blood orange dress which the ruby was intended to compliment, falls through the bannister damaged during the robbery the night before.
A 1953 British crime drama directed by Terence Fisher from a script by Jan Read, Blood Orange is atypical, set in the murderous world of fashion and high society and the parasites who feed off it, with Mila Parély as designer Helen Pascal, tougher than she looks and tolerating her business partner Captain Colin Simpson (Andrew Osborn) flirting with the models, the beautiful Gina (Naomi Chance) dismissed when it becomes too much.
The millinery on the floor below run by Madame Fernande (Eileen Way) who has clawed her way up and has connections to street thug Eddie (Michael Ripper), to Conway (Cat People’s Tom Conway playing a character of the same name) she is a figure of interest, but why does Mercedes (Eric Pohlmann) wish the investigation to be suspended as soon as it has begun?
A convoluted but entertaining tale of duplicity and reversals, Blood Orange, known as Three Stops to Murder in America, is lively and entertaining though occasionally frustrating, with more than one significant development in the case occurring offscreen and simply reported to or by the characters after the fact, yet somehow the raw edges of fabric draw together to create a flawless finish in which the false leads and red herrings become features.
Restored in 4K from the original negatives, Hammer’s new edition of Blood Orange is accessorised with two new commentaries, a discussion of producer Michael Carreras’ work at the studio, Timestalker and Prevenge director Alice Lowe on female representation in British cinema, a look at Hammer’s B-movie output and historian Liz Tregenza giving insight into the fashion industry.
Blood Orange is available on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray from Hammer now
