Investigating the murder of a young woman in a small English town, a brusque Superintendent (John Mills – Hobsons Choice, Ice Cold in Alex, Young Winston) discovers that virtually everybody he encounters has something to hide. Setting the template for British crime thrillers for decades to come, director John Guillermin’s audacious, often salacious, drama is untypical of mainstream British cinema of its time, and can be seen as both a direct antecedent of the Italian giallo and a blueprint for David Lynchs Twin Peaks. Town on Trial is a rare treat which is ripe for rediscovery.
