AllMovie

Mystery/detective film fans will have a great time with The Man on the Eiffel Tower -- but so will those who aren't necessarily devotees of the genre. Eiffel is a real corker of a movie, the kind of film that's a lot of fun to watch and is put together so well that one is unlikely to notice the holes in it, and likely to not care even if one does notice them. Harry Brown's screenplay moves swiftly from one moment to the next, artfully filling each scene with just the right amount of information, delivered in ways that are often simple and straightforward but always effective. As director, Burgess Meredith has done an excellent job of pulling the elements together, keeping the pace fast without it being hurried, and distracting the viewer from concentrating too hard on any plot tangents that might prove troublesome if they are examined too closely. He's also given cinematographer Stanley Cortez ample opportunity to photograph the city of Paris, and his work is simply stunning; the location shooting shows the city off to great effect but without turning the film into a travelogue -- and the work on the Eiffel Tower itself is first-rate. (If possible, catch the film in a clean print; the gorgeous colors in many versions are criminally washed out.) The cast is also in great form, with Charles Laughton a perfect Maigret and a haggard Franchot Tone a marvelous villain. Director Meredith also directs himself with skill, and the supporting cast is quite fine. Although not unknown, Eiffel is not as familiar with viewers as it well deserves to be.