Moment of Indiscretion

Moment of Indiscretion is a low budget 1958 British second feature ('B')^[1] crime film directed by Max Varnel and starring Ronald Howard and Lana Morris.^[2] It was written by Brian Clemens and Eldon Howard and produced by The Danzigers.

Moment of Indiscretion
British quad poster
Directed by	Max Varnel
Written by	Brian Clemens Eldon Howard
Produced by	Edward J. Danziger Harry Lee Danziger
Starring	Ronald Howard Lana Morris
Cinematography	James Wilson Nicolas Roeg (camera operator)
Music by	Edwin Astley Albert Elms Leon Young
Production company	Danziger Productions
Distributed by	United Artists Corporation (UK)
Release date	September 1958 (1958-09)
Running time	71 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English

Plot

Janet Miller is accused of the murder of a woman. Janet's handkerchief and spare house key have been discovered at the crime scene, and she is cagey about her whereabouts on the night in question. It turns out she was a witness to the murder, but has her own reasons for keeping quiet. Her lawyer husband John leaps to her defence and attempts to track down the real killer.

Cast

• Ronald Howard as John Miller
• Lana Morris as Janet Miller
• John Stone as Eric Stanton
• Denis Shaw as Inspector Marsh
• Piers Keelan as Detective Sargeant Field
• John Witty as Brian
• John Van Eyssen as Corby
• Ann Lynn as Pauline
• Totti Truman Taylor as Mrs. Cartier
• Robert Dorning as Mr. Evans
• Mark Singleton (actor) as the Jeweller
• Judy Bruce as Vicki

Production

Two discrepancies occur in the film. First, Janet Miller positively identifies the murderer and tells the police she'll never forget his face; yet, when witnessing the murder, she only ever sees his back – just as her character is depicted in the theatrical release poster. Second, the film was made and set in 1958^{[citation needed]}; yet the pawnshop ticket, which provides the final evidence of an event which was supposed to have occurred just a few months before is dated "February 1956".

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "This low-budget thriller lacks all conviction and vitality, and the valiant acting of the cast is unable to overcome the handicap of a feeble script. Direction makes no attempt to compensate for the deficiencies of the material, but is otherwise adequate to the demands of unambitious second feature production."^[3]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "poor", writing: "Inept thriller, passably acted but weakly written."^[4]