Sapphire Reviews

Good detective yarn starring Patrick and Craig as detectives of Scotland Yard who are investigating the murder of a young black woman whose light-colored skin allowed her to pass as white. Suspects range from Massie, as the girl's white boyfriend, and his parents, who feared for their son's career, to the black youths the girl tosses aside when she is accepted by whites. Craig's prejudice, as well as just about everyone else's, adds a good deal of tension to the sleuthing, which Patrick pursues in a highly dignified, professional manner despite the additional obstacles. Material stays on safe ground about shedding light on the problem of racial prejudice which was rampant in England in the late 1950s. The picture was made shortly after race riots occurred in London and Nottingham.