The Man Who Haunted Himself

1970 / UK / 94 min. / Colour

Director: Basil Dearden

Roger Moore, Hildegarde Neil, Kevork Malikyan, Anton Rodgers, Freddie Jones, Charles Lloyd-Pack

Of the fifty-nine films Roger Moore made between 1945 and 2016, this psychological Doppelgänger thriller remained his personal favourite. Given that it is also taught, gripping and satisfying with a great retro feel, it seemed the obvious choice to mark Moore’s unique career. It also demonstrates just how good an actor he really was. In 2004, Moore said of the film: “It gave me the opportunity to demonstrate a wider versatility than the role of Simon Templar had allowed. It was one of the few times I was allowed to act. Many say this was my best role. Being a modest actor, I won’t disagree.” Sometimes if you make something look easy, as Moore always did, some people will think it actually is. And the same could be said of Basil Dearden, whose last film this was.