Snowball (1960 film)

Monthly Film Bulletin said "Though Pat Jackson's direction misses a few opportunities, this is a fascinating little second feature. The unsophisticated plot, given a few coincidences too many, is well developed and followed through, the everyday characters apart from a naive portrayal of a cub reporter being convincingly interpreted by a well-chosen cast. Zena Walker and Gordon Jackson as the parents, and especially Kenneth Griffith and Daphne Anderson as the accused bus conductor and his loyal wife, play with a minimum of decoration and a maximum of effect in a way that underlines the strength of the film's whole approach."^[3]

Kine Weekly said "The picture, which illustrates the saying 'O what a tangled web we weave when we first we practise to deceive, 'occasionally leans on the long arm of coincidence, but, paradoxically enough, the few theatrical tricks sharpen rather than blunt its point. Dennis Waterman is natural and keeps one guessing as Mickey; Zena Walker and Gordon Jackson register as Mary and Bill; and the supporting characters, too, are convincingly drawn. Atmosphere and detail are flawless, and the dialogue flows smoothly. In short, Snowball is the ticket."^[4]

Filmink argued the film was "from Independent Artists, who’d just made another child-orientated drama Tiger Bay. Like that, this uncovered a future child star (Dennis Waterman), and it’s a decent movie which builds its tension slowly, but it didn’t meet with Tiger Bay’s success, perhaps because it lacked a juicy murder to give the story stakes from the get-go."^[5]

• Snowball at IMDb