Paul Decker (Peter Van Eyck) kills his rich wife at their lavish Italian villa by drugging her, making her room airtight by taping up the doors and windows before turning all the gas on and pressing the empty roll into her hand to make it look like suicide. He solves the tedious problem of remaining in the room without being seen and succumbing to the fumes himself by hiding under the floorboards and breathing air through a snorkel. He establishes an alibi by checking into a hotel just across the French border and swims back into Italy unseen by using the snorkel. However, his clever plot is threatened by his stepdaughter, Candy (Mandy Miller), who believes him to be guilty despite the police being satisfied that it was suicide, and carries out her own investigation in which she works out exactly how he committed the crime...One of those late 1950's Hammer suspense thrillers that has been long forgotten and unjustly so. I was reminded of that classic American b-movie The Window in the way that the child knows her stepfather is a ruthless murderer - in this case, not only of her mother, but also her real father on a fishing trip a few years ago where she saw him hold his head under the water until he drowned. Now, just like then, nobody believes her dismissing her as a naughty little girl with an overactive imagination who dislikes her stepdad so much she makes hideous accusations against him.Jimmy Sangster and Peter Myers' screenplay allows for some very suspenseful sequences and the direction by cinematographer turned director Guy Green rises wonderfully to the occasion. The level of tension starts off very moderately and gradually becomes more intense until the finale where it reaches fever pitch. There is a standout sequence on a beach where Paul, Candy and Jean (Bella St John), her companion, have gone for a picnic. They spot a swimmer wearing a snorkel and Candy taunts her stepfather by singing "Under water, can breath all the time, go anywhere from town to town". Jean thinks she is up to her old tricks, but Paul realises that he has to act quickly and to hide his alarm so that he doesn't give himself away. He sees his opportunity when Candy goes for a swim and gets out of her depth. He swims after her supposedly to rescue her, but really he plans to drown her by holding her head under the water only he is interrupted by Jean who swims out after them. Again, she refuses to believe Candy when she says he tried to kill her and starts to think that she is mentally unbalanced and needs care. Could Paul's prayers now have been answered and will he need to make another attempt on Candy's life? Or, will Candy come out on top by convincing Jean and the police that she is not disturbed and that her stepfather is really the monster she says he is? I can assure you that your sympathy will be with Candy and you will be kept on the edge of your seat hoping the evil stepfather will come unstuck.The film benefits from Guy Green's background as a top cinematographer who works with Jack Asher (himself a fine cameraman) to exploit the exotic Italian riviera locations to full effect. Eyck is good as the villainous stepfather while Mandy Miller is very good as Candy and possesses the sufficient dramatic range as an actress so that we can sympathise with her plight. Bella St John as Jean and William Franklyn as Wilson, a family friend and an official from the British consulate, are competent but they don't exactly inspire.

Paul Decker (Peter Van Eyck) has come up with a unique way to murder his wife. He drugs her drink, seals the room she's in from the inside, and turns on the gas. Decker then puts on a snorkel connected to fresh air and hides in a crawlspace under the floor. Once his wife's body is found and the police complete their investigation, he climbs from his hiding spot and goes on as if nothing happened. Everything seems to be going perfectly for Decker until his stepdaughter, Candy Brown (Mandy Miller), starts to question Decker's role in her mother's death. Everyone tells Candy she's imagining things, but she's certain Decker is a killer. Can she prove it in time?Hammer is known for their vibrant color films, but when they did black and white (Paranoiac, Scream of Fear, and Nightmare for example), the results were just as solid. The Snorkel is an excellent little thriller. While there's no question as to whether or not Decker killed his wife, the fun comes in watching Candy try to prove it before Decker does her in. van Eyck is amazing. He does more with a look than most actors can with a page of dialogue. You can just see how bad he wants to kill Candy without ever having to say a word. I also enjoyed the supporting performance of Betta St. John. I'm really surprised to see she didn't do more with her career. Technically, the film is also rock solid. The cinematography is stunning. Guy Green's direction is what I'd call professional. He keeps the film moving at a nice pace. And the locations are beautiful. Most Hammer films seem so much more stage-bound than The Snorkel. Finally, I love the film's finale. I won't spoil it, but it's brilliant. Overall, it's a terrific film. My biggest complaint comes from the lack of thoroughness displayed by the police. Had the police spent more than five minutes at the crime scene, they absolutely would have found Decker hiding under the floor. It's a real lack of logic that hurts the overall movie. Still, a solid 7/10 from me.

One of my worst fears in life is being trapped in a confined space with a dwindling air supply and no one to hear you scream. I won't give you any details as one of my other worst fears is giving away spoilers on IMDb(he said sarcastically), but you will find a scene like this in the 1958 classic, yet nearly forgotten nail biter, "The Snorkel", which is probably one of the main reasons why I'm giving it such a high rating. But the film has many other merits besides having one scene of unrelenting suspense;it also has a leading female character whom you can root for, who seems weak as a flower in her sanity, yet tough as nails as her tormentor pushes her to the edge. Our bad guy( I know there's a better word for bad guy out there, but I'm too tired to think of it now) is devilish, yet deserving of some sympathy by the end of the film. "The Snorkel" is a simple yet well played suspense film, one that can be enjoyed by hardcore Hammer fans and anyone looking for a good, solid suspense flick.

The beginning of this film is very strange with a man, Paul Decker, (Peter Van Eyck) crawling around in a dark room and turning off various connections and inserting hoses and then you see him wearing a snorkel. As the film moves on you begin to realize just what is going on and discover that Paul Decker is up to no good and has caused many deaths. There is a daughter who becomes suspicious of her father Paul Decker and she is constantly watching him and even goes to the police, but no one believes her. Jean Edwards, (Betta St. John) tries to help Paul's daughter because she also has a love relationship with Paul, and the daughter and father definitely do not get along. This film will hold your interest and entertain you right to the very end, which is really funny. Enjoy