The Hand – 1960 | 60 mins | Thriller | B&W

Plot Synopsis

A grisly crime chiller oddity shot on a low-budget by Henry Cass for b-movie producer Bill Luckwell. This Ray Cooney scripted post-war revenge thriller opens promisingly enough but soon all tension and mystery is lost due to the predictable plot development and clumsy editing.

Three British soldiers are captured in Burma and incarcerated in a Japanese PoW; Corporal George Adams (Bryan Coleman), Private Mike Brodie (Reed De Rouen) and Captain Roberts (Derek Bond). Brodie and Adams are interrogated by the exasperated Japanese officer, who severs their right hands when they refuse to talk. Having heard their cries from his cell, Roberts decides to cooperate with the enemy and retains his hand.

Years later in London, Inspector Munyard (Ronald Leigh-Hunt) investigates the murder of a drunk who claims to have sold his amputated hand for £500. The drunkard claimed the offer was made by a man called Roberts and performed at a private hospital. The procedure was performed by Nurse Geiber and Doctor Simon Crawshaw, but before he can be questioned about the irregular operation, Crawshaw commits suicide. The trail then leads the police to Crawshaw’s cousin, Roberts, and his old wartime comrades Brodie and Adams.