''Change Partners'' is a 1965 British crime drama directed by Robert Lynn and starring

Anthony Dawson Anthony Douglas Gillon Dawson (18 October 1916 – 8 January 1992) was a Scottish actor, best known for his supporting roles as villains in films such as Alfred Hitchcock's '' Dial M for Murder'' (1954) and '' Midnight Lace'' (1960), and pla ...

Zena Walker Zena Cecilia Walker (7 March 1934 – 24 August 2003) was an English actress in film, theatre and television. Biography Walker was born in the Selly Oak district of Birmingham, the daughter of George Walker, a grocer, and his wife Elizabeth Lo ...

and

Kenneth Cope Kenneth Charles Cope (14 April 1931 – 11 September 2024) was an English actor and scriptwriter. He was best known for his roles as Marty Hopkirk in '' Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)'', Jed Stone in ''Coronation Street,'' Ray Hilton in '' ...

. It was written by Donal Giltinan and made at

Merton Park Studios Merton Park Studios, opened in 1929, was a British film production studio located at Long Lodge, 269 Kingston Road in Merton Park, South London. In the 1940s, it was owned by Piprodia Entertainment, Nikhanj Films and Film Producers Guild. Peter M ...

originally as a

Warner-Pathé Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970 when it was absorbed into EMI. ABPC also owned appro ...

release, prior to being included as a part of the long-running series of

Edgar Wallace Mysteries The ''Edgar Wallace Mysteries'' is a British second-feature film series mainly produced at Merton Park Studios for Anglo-Amalgamated. There were 48 films in the series, which were released between 1960 and 1965. The series was screened as ''Th ...

Plot

Ben Arkwright and (Cedric) Ricky Gallen are partners in the firm of Arkwright and Gallen; however, Ricky is having an affair with Ben's wife, Anna. Anna talks Ricky into killing her alcoholic husband, but things do not go according to plan.

Cast

as Ben Arkwright *

as Anna Arkwright *

Basil Henson Basil Henson (31 July 1918 – 19 December 1990) was an English actor. He appeared on film, television, and the stage, where he was particularly known for his work at the National Theatre. Early life Henson was born in London in 1918. He was ...

as (Cedric) Ricky Gallen *

as Joe Trent *

Jane Barrett Jane Barrett (1922 – 1969) was an English actress. Barrett was born in Highgate, left school aged 14 and studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She worked extensively in radio, theatre and television. It was estimated she appeared in o ...

as Betty Gallen *

Pamela Ann Davy Pamela Ann Davy (7 September 1933 – 3 June 2018) was an Australian actress, best known for her roles on British television during the 1960s. After graduating from RADA in 1960, and after early repertory experience, she appeared in many popula ...

as Jean * Peter Bathurst as McIvor * Graham Ashley as police constable * Josephine Pritchard as Sally Morrison * James Watts as waiter * Vivien Lloyd as secretary

Critical reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin The ''Monthly Film Bulletin'' was a periodical of the British Film Institute published monthly from February 1934 until April 1991, when it merged with '' Sight & Sound''. It reviewed all films on release in the United Kingdom, including those wi ...

'' wrote: "Zena Walker is no

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympatheti ...

, but then director Robert Lynn is no

William Wyler William Wyler (; born Willi Wyler (); July 1, 1902 – July 27, 1981) was a German-born American film director and producer. Known for his work in numerous genres over five decades, he received numerous awards and accolades, including three Aca ...

. None the less, she puts up an intelligent display of growing malevolence in this absurdly compelling, up-dated Warners-type melodrama, and is virtually the film's only raison d'étre. Actors like Basil Henson and Anthony Dawson haven't the resource to subdue the stilted, stereotyped dialogue, and the direction only rises above the mediocre in two chillingly staged murders, and one or two nicely composed shots of Zena Walker machinating."

References

External links

Film page
at BFI * {{Edgar Wallace 1965 films British crime drama films 1965 crime drama films Edgar Wallace Mysteries British black-and-white films 1960s English-language films 1960s British films English-language crime drama films