Gritty noir thriller from director Joseph Losey. When Losey was blacklisted during the McCarthy era, he came to England to work. This was the first film he directed under his own name since the blacklist. It tells the tale of David Graham (Michael Redgrave), an alcoholic writer who has 24 hours to save his son Alec (Alec McCowan) from being hanged for murdering his girlfriend. Tyrannical car dealer Robert Stanford (Leo McKern) knows the truth of the matter, but keeps Graham on the defensive. As the hours count down, Graham must fight against both Stanford and his own addictions if he is to save his son"s life.