8/10
William Castle Before the "Gimmicks"...Good Cast...Some Surprises...Snappy Crime-Noir
22 June 2023
During the Film-Noir Zeitgeist it Seems Almost Every Film was Influenced by an Undeniable Ethereal Entity Pushing Hollywood Movies in a More Expressionistic and Entertaining Direction.

Giving the Films a "New-Coating" that Rendered them Different and a bit More Artistic than the Pre-Noir-Movement,

Obvious that a New Form of Creativity had Arrived Unannounced and Undefined, but Unarguably Injecting some Kind of Magic.

Witness this Under-Card, B-Movie Programmer, Directed by the Flamboyant William Castle.

A Gifted Film-Artist that Delivered More than Expected when Helming His "Little" Movies...

Honing His Skills with Low-Budget Efforts. Other Directors were Doing the Same, with the Likes of Don Siegel, Budd Bottichier, among Others.

Like the Castle's "Whistler" and this one, a Cracker-Jack Crime Caper that Bristles with Location and Costuming, Plugged-In Actors Throughout,

and an Overall Sizzling Entertainment that Delivered, Always More Bang for the Buck.

Notice How the Story's Quick-Pace seems Effortless and Snaps from One-Scene to Another with just the Right Amount of Lightning-Fast Set-Ups before Moving On.

The Actors Decked Out in Noticeable Flashy Outfits, John McEntire the Most Obvious with His 2-Guns Attracting Attention and Shelly Winters B-Girl Stealing Scenes.

Howard Duff the Most Pedestrian, Along-With the Electric Dan Duryea.

Then a 24 Year Old Tony Curtis Shows Up and Puts On a Show that Mesmerizes with His Muted Scenes with Eyes that Probe Underneath a "Drop-Dead" Handsome Exterior.

Only His 3rd Movie and Another Very Short-Screen-Time but Attention Grabbing Nonetheless.

The Ending at the Airport is a Wow and Proves Yet Another Unanticipated Image Enhanced Climax for this Endlessly Fascinating Film, Shot on a Shoe-String.

Definitely...

Worth a Watch.
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