Former Academy Award winning editor Robert Parrish cut his teeth as a director on this gritty, hard-broiled, black & white, Dick Powell urban thriller. Powell plays a hard-luck guy fresh out of prison after serving five years of a life term for a $100-thousand dollar robbery. No sooner has Rocky (Dick Powell of "Murder, My Sweet") gotten out of stir courtesy of a lame Marine, Delong (Richard Erdman of "Objective: Burma"), who has provided an alibi about clearing Rocky of a crime that our hero didn't commit. Meantime, a Los Angeles Police Lieutenant, Gus Cobb (Regis Toomey of "The Big Sleep"), tells Rocky that he plans to maintain tabs on him twenty-four/seven until he recovers the stolen loot. Rocky checks in with a shady bookie, Louie Castro (William Conrad of "The Killers"), who gives him $500 to place a bet on a horse that he claims will pay off 18-to-1. Naturally, Rocky demands more money to make up for the $100-thousand that he lost because he went to jail and couldn't hold down his $20-thousand dollar a year job. Everything goes smoothly for Rocky and Castro's long-shot horse pays off. Rocky picks up five grand from another bookie (Hy Averback), but he learns to his chagrin that he was paid off with dough from the robbery.
Cobb pulls Rocky in, and Rocky cannot prove where he got the race horse money. As it turns out, Cobb has been following Rocky so he knows that Castro is lying when Castro tells him that he hasn't seen Rocky. Rocky hooks up with a friend's wife, Mrs. Nancy Morgan (Rhonda Fleming of "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral"), whose husband Danny is up for parole. The villains shoot up a car that they believe is being driven by Rocky, but he isn't behind the wheel when the bullets blast holes in an innocent bystander, Delong's part-time model girlfriend Darlene (Jean Porter of "Bathing Beauty"). Delong winds up in the hospital, and Rocky packs a pistol and goes after Castro. He plays an interesting game of Russian roulette with Castro and convinces him to spill his guts to Cobb. When Castro calls the police, he is actually calling his own henchmen. Rocky calls Castro's bluff and forces him to ring up the police. The cops show up just as Castro's gunsels are coming to his rescue.
"Cry Danger" isn't the best movie that Powell ever made, but this atmospheric RKO release holds its own until the final revelations. Conrad makes a sturdy villain. This complicated movie qualifies as a film noir because the heroine isn't on the level and the heroine is treacherous. She has been lying all-along to our soft-touch protagonist. Of course, Rocky gets away without having to go back to jail, and Cobb collects the loot. Powell and Fleming never generate sparks. Nevertheless, "Cry Danger" has some strong moments, and the Los Angeles setting is terrific. Interestingly enough, future James Bond credits creator Maurice Binder served as an assistant to the producer.
Cobb pulls Rocky in, and Rocky cannot prove where he got the race horse money. As it turns out, Cobb has been following Rocky so he knows that Castro is lying when Castro tells him that he hasn't seen Rocky. Rocky hooks up with a friend's wife, Mrs. Nancy Morgan (Rhonda Fleming of "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral"), whose husband Danny is up for parole. The villains shoot up a car that they believe is being driven by Rocky, but he isn't behind the wheel when the bullets blast holes in an innocent bystander, Delong's part-time model girlfriend Darlene (Jean Porter of "Bathing Beauty"). Delong winds up in the hospital, and Rocky packs a pistol and goes after Castro. He plays an interesting game of Russian roulette with Castro and convinces him to spill his guts to Cobb. When Castro calls the police, he is actually calling his own henchmen. Rocky calls Castro's bluff and forces him to ring up the police. The cops show up just as Castro's gunsels are coming to his rescue.
"Cry Danger" isn't the best movie that Powell ever made, but this atmospheric RKO release holds its own until the final revelations. Conrad makes a sturdy villain. This complicated movie qualifies as a film noir because the heroine isn't on the level and the heroine is treacherous. She has been lying all-along to our soft-touch protagonist. Of course, Rocky gets away without having to go back to jail, and Cobb collects the loot. Powell and Fleming never generate sparks. Nevertheless, "Cry Danger" has some strong moments, and the Los Angeles setting is terrific. Interestingly enough, future James Bond credits creator Maurice Binder served as an assistant to the producer.