Robert Aldrich is an old favourite; he has more films on Moviedrome than any other director. On this occasion we don’t see so many of his stock company since the cast is quite small and there is only one setting - the mansion of a narcissistic Hollywood movie star. As you might deduce from the above, The Big Knife is based on a stage play - fortunately a good one. It takes us deeper and deeper into the twisted history of its protagonist and the studio’s increasingly vicious machinations. Its author was Clifford Odets, who also wrote None but the Lonely and Sweet Smell of Success.