So Long at the Fair is one of those rare treats offered at film festivals, an old British film not available in the states but well worth the look on the big screen.
Fair is a 1950 suspense thriller said to be a favorite of Hitchcock's. It incorporates an old legend about a disappearing room. Directed by Terence Fisher, who went on to direct most of the classic Hammer horror films of the 1960's and 70's, Fair stars Jean Simmons as Vicky Barton, a woman attending the 1889 Paris exhibition with her brother when inexplicably he disappears. Upon making inquiries as to his whereabouts she is told by the hotel staff that not only did she arrive in Paris alone, but that her brother's room, number 19, does not exist. Indeed, there is no room 19 and Vicky is unable to find anyone in Paris who has any memory of him.
So Long at the Fair is a solid thriller, and holds up fairly well. While it lacks the flair of a Hitchcock film, it benefits from numerous unexpected turns of plot and a truly creepy hotel owner who may know more than she's letting on.
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