The Scapegoat

The Scapegoat is a 1959 film, directed by Robert Hamer, that stars Alec Guinness in a double role. It is a somewhat engaging but ultimately slight film that shows off Guinness' ability if little more.

Guinness plays a discontented teacher who vacations in France. He is not sure if he will ever go back to England. While in Paris people he doesn't know act like they know him. He ultimately finds out why--there's another man who looks exactly like him (played also by Guinness). They even sound alike.

This man is a businessman who owns a chateau in the country but is struggling with problems. The two have drinks and the businessman drugs the teacher and takes off, leaving the teacher (Barratt), to be in the clothes of the man. Everyone, including the servants and the family, mistake him for the disappeared man. This stretches credulity a bit, as certainly there must be features, such as a birthmark or what have you, that would distinguish the two.

But Barratt comes to accept his situation, and even enjoy it. The other man (Jacques) was a horrible man, so the family enjoys the change. He has a young daughter, a much put upon wife (Irene Worth) and a mistress. The business, a glass making company, is failing, but Barratt decides to renew the contract with his workers.

Then Jacques comes back in the picture, thinking to murder his wife to gain her money and framing Barratt for the crime.

The Scapegoat is a pleasant time-waster, but doesn't really explore the notion of stepping into another man's shoes and his life with any great detail. Even if we accept on face value that two unrelated men could look that much alike, the plot is pretty flimsy (only the mistress is able to figure out that he is not who he is supposed to be, leaving us to wonder if she did see some birthmark, wink wink). Guinness, though, is effortlessly smooth in either role, and as always is a joy to watch.