Green for Danger

Green for Danger is a 1946 British thriller film directed by Sidney Gilliat and based on a novel of the same name by Cyril Hare. The film takes place during World War II, with a backdrop of constant Nazi air raids on England. The story revolves around a postman named Arthur Willis who dies during an operation at the rural hospital in the Oxfordshire village of Stornton. As the investigation into Arthur's death begins, the hospital's chief administrator, Dr. Edmond Radcliffe, becomes the central figure in unravelling the mystery. The doctor summons several nurses who work at the hospital to give their versions of events leading up to Arthur's death on the operating table. The doctor is aided by Inspector Cockrill, a seasoned detective, who was a patient at the hospital for a minor operation and is recovering on the ward while waiting for the train home. Nurse Barrett, an older woman with a sharp tongue, becomes the main suspect in the investigation after she claims to have been left alone with the patient during surgery. She describes a minor disagreement with the operating team due to her concern that a novice surgical nurse was being allowed to participate in the procedure. Cockrill begins to ask questions, initially focusing on the hospital's procedures and protocols. Nurse Barrett's account is corroborated by Sister Frances Bingham, a middle-aged woman who had been working at the hospital for many years. The sister claims that the operating team, led by Dr. Radcliffe, had left the operating theatre in a hurry without properly cleaning the equipment, leaving it at risk of infection. The sister mentions that a new nurse, Miss Wilson, had been on duty but seemed inexperienced and overeager. The hospital's medical team is not without its own internal politics and personal agendas. Dr. Peter Willoughby, one of the operating team members, seems particularly affected by Arthur's death, and Cockrill becomes suspicious of him. Meanwhile, Sister Bingham begins to reveal further discrepancies in the hospital's practices and her own experiences with Dr. Radcliffe's leadership. As Cockrill delves deeper, he starts to notice that the hospital staff are hiding information from him, and various details begin to contradict each other. Nurse Barrett is eventually revealed to have been less than truthful about her role in the events leading to the patient's death. When Cockrill visits the hospital laboratory to investigate the presence of green for danger, a medical term that refers to a potentially deadly anesthetic, he finds evidence of a cover-up. He realises that the hospital staff were trying to conceal a tragic mistake that had led to the patient's death. Cockrill uncovers a series of disturbing facts that reveal the true cause of Arthur's death. The patient was given an overdose of a new anesthetic, chloroform, a decision made without sufficient knowledge of the correct dosage. Dr. Radcliffe, who had introduced the anesthetic into the hospital, initially denies any wrongdoing but eventually reveals the truth when confronted with overwhelming evidence. As the film unfolds, the hospital's staff members are shown to be complex characters with their own motivations and personalities. Their actions, as they navigate the crisis and their responses to the detective's questions, slowly reveal the intricate web of relationships and cover-ups that had led to Arthur's death. Through its intricate plot and its character-driven approach, "Green for Danger" presents a gripping and thought-provoking exploration of medical ethics and the consequences of human error in a high-pressure environment.