The List of Adrian Messenger

The List of Adrian Messenger
VHS cover for The List of Adrian Messenger
Directed by	John Huston
Written by	Anthony Veiller (screenplay)
Starring	George C Scott Dana Wynter Jacques Roux John Merivale
Music by	Jerry Goldsmith
Distributed by	Universal International Pictures
Release date(s)	1963
Language	English

The List of Adrian Messenger (1963) is a black and white thriller about a retired British colonel (George C. Scott) investigating a series of apparently unrelated deaths. The film is based on the 1961 novel of the same title by Philip MacDonald.

1 Plot
2 Commentary
3 Production Notes
4 References
5 External links

Plot

When a writer named Adrian Messenger (John Merivale) stumbles upon a series of apparently unrelated deaths, he asks his friend, Anthony Gethryn (George C. Scott), who is retired from MI5, to help clear up the mystery. Later Gethryn's old World War II French counterpart Raoul Le Borg (Jacques Roux) becomes involved as well. Following Messenger's list of names, they eliminate possible suspects to identify the killer and the motive behind the murders. The murderer is always one step ahead of them until near the end.

Commentary

The List of Adrian Messenger is a relatively modern-day Golden Age type of mystery with an additional gimmick of its own. A number of prominent Hollywood actors are advertised to appear in the film heavily disguised in makeup: Tony Curtis, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster, Frank Sinatra, and Robert Mitchum.

Production Notes

There were several screenplay drafts written -- one by Vertigo co-writer Alec Coppel -- prior to the final draft by Anthony Veiller, who receives sole screen credit.^[1]
The role of Derek Bruttenholm is played by Walter Anthony Huston, the son of the film's director, John Huston (who also puts in a cameo appearance as a member of the fox hunt). ^[2]
Elizabeth Taylor was offered a disguised role but turned it down because the make-up would be uncomfortable.
John Merivale, who plays Adrian Messenger, was the stepson of Gladys Cooper who also appears in a small role as Mrs. Karoudjian. They share no scenes.
Character actor Jan Merlin portrays several of the disguised roles in the film, despite attribution to stars such as Kirk Douglas. Merlin later incorporated his experiences working on this production into a thriller novel, Shooting Montezuma (ISBN 1-4010-2823-3). ^[3]
Famous voice-over artist and actor Paul Frees performed lines of dialogue for several of the characters, including the disguised role attributed to Frank Sinatra.
Several plot points in the film are similar to The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle. These include the references to hounds, the motive of the killer, the references to Canada, and the unmasking of the killer by means of a ruse.
Get Smart did a 1970 parody of this movie called "The Mess of Adrian Listenger" starring Pat Paulsen ake Adrian Listenger alias Ace Weems.

References

External links

v • d • e Films directed by John Huston

1940s	The Maltese Falcon • In This Our Life • Across the Pacific • Report from the Aleutians • The Battle of San Pietro • Let There Be Light • The Treasure of the Sierra Madre • Key Largo • We Were Strangers

1950s	The Asphalt Jungle • The Red Badge of Courage • The African Queen • Moulin Rouge • Beat the Devil • Moby Dick • Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison • The Barbarian and the Geisha • The Roots of Heaven

1960s	The Unforgiven • The Misfits • Freud the Secret Passion • The List of Adrian Messenger • The Night of the Iguana • The Bible: In the Beginning • Reflections in a Golden Eye • Casino Royale • Sinful Davey • A Walk with Love and Death

1970s	The Kremlin Letter • Fat City • The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean • The Mackintosh Man • The Man Who Would Be King • Wise Blood

1980s	Phobia • Victory • Annie • Under the Volcano • Prizzi's Honor • The Dead

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