"The Sleeping Tiger" is a film so flawed by its premise that no matter how good the picture is, it is automatically cursed to be second- rate. Think about it...a thug with a gun breaks into a psychiatrist's home and the doctor then invites the criminal to live in his home! The only way this MIGHT have worked had they made there a latent homosexual undertone to all this. But there wasn't and the film often makes no sense at all!
Dirk Bogarde plays the crook, Frank, and he plays him very well. This is no surprise, as Bogarde played many sociopathic creeks and played them well during this era. He does his best with the material. As for Alexis Smith, her character as the Doc's wife is terrible--and clichéd. And, the husband, played by Alexander Knox, is the worst of all...a man who makes himself a virtual eunuch in his own home!
The bottom line is that while the film has its moments, the plot is simply hopeless and a couple dumb characters make it all the worse. You could do a lot better and I'd recommend you try some of Bogarde's better written sociopath films such as "Cast a Dark Shadow".
Dirk Bogarde plays the crook, Frank, and he plays him very well. This is no surprise, as Bogarde played many sociopathic creeks and played them well during this era. He does his best with the material. As for Alexis Smith, her character as the Doc's wife is terrible--and clichéd. And, the husband, played by Alexander Knox, is the worst of all...a man who makes himself a virtual eunuch in his own home!
The bottom line is that while the film has its moments, the plot is simply hopeless and a couple dumb characters make it all the worse. You could do a lot better and I'd recommend you try some of Bogarde's better written sociopath films such as "Cast a Dark Shadow".