IMDb RATING
6.3/10
1.2K
YOUR RATING
During the 1950s, a man's car trip from L.A. to Texas turns into a Cold-War espionage drama after his car breaks down and he accepts a lift from a stranger.During the 1950s, a man's car trip from L.A. to Texas turns into a Cold-War espionage drama after his car breaks down and he accepts a lift from a stranger.During the 1950s, a man's car trip from L.A. to Texas turns into a Cold-War espionage drama after his car breaks down and he accepts a lift from a stranger.
Karl Ludwig Lindt
- Kissel
- (as Karl Lindt)
John Frederick
- Sheriff
- (as John Merrick)
Leonard Bremen
- Collision Shop Owner
- (uncredited)
Sidney Clute
- Mechanic
- (uncredited)
Ken Curtis
- FBI Agent Jim Anderson
- (uncredited)
Harry Hines
- Motel Owner
- (uncredited)
Tom McKee
- Man from Sanitarium
- (uncredited)
Bert Stevens
- Motorcycle Cop
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe opening scene of the car being towed replicates the one in Billy Wilder's Ace in the Hole (1951). Writer-director Henry Kesler acknowledged the hat-tip by naming the place "Wilder's Garage."
- GoofsIn the opening scene, Mrs. Nicholson's car passes the towed car, yet John Emmett's towed car gets to the garage before Ann Nicholson's Lincoln. However, it's quite obvious that John's car comes in from the left while Ann's car enters from the right, indicating that she passed the service station and then drove back. That is why John's car enters first, even thought Ann's car passed him on the highway.
Featured review
sometimes I think I must be going insane
"Five Steps to Danger" is a decent film from 1957, directed by Henry Kesler and starring Ruth Roman and Sterling Hayden.
Why do I think I must be going insane? All these comparisons to Hitchcock. Okay, the basic story is similar, but so are lots of stories. This movie was as much like a Hitchcock film as "The Sound of Music." Two people handcuffed together does not mean you can make a viable comparison.
The story is interesting, but awkward. Ann (Roman) approaches John (Hayden) in a restaurant. He has just sold his car, which can't be fixed easily, and her car is being serviced. She is in a hurry to get to New Mexico and asks if, for a ride, he will help with the driving so she can get there faster by having him drive at night. He agrees. Well, we live in different times today, but I wouldn't have even talked to this guy much less offer him a ride. Too many true crime shows, I guess.
At one point Hayden is approached by a nurse, who explains that Roman has just been discharged from a mental facility and is being monitored by her and her doctor. The nurse is played by the late Jeanne Cooper, Mrs. Chancellor on The Young and the Restless. She is nearly unrecognizable, she's so young.
Eventually it's revealed that Roman, who was in Berlin and lost family during the war, is supposed to deliver a transcript to a family friend working in the U.S., Dr. Fritz Kissel. She has just located him at a university. The university denies he's ever been there, and Everyone wants to stop her from finding him.
I found this film talky, low on action, low on suspense, and the dialogue and pace awkward. Ruth Roman was very good. I've never been a fan of Sterling Hayden's, but he was okay here.
So-so.
Why do I think I must be going insane? All these comparisons to Hitchcock. Okay, the basic story is similar, but so are lots of stories. This movie was as much like a Hitchcock film as "The Sound of Music." Two people handcuffed together does not mean you can make a viable comparison.
The story is interesting, but awkward. Ann (Roman) approaches John (Hayden) in a restaurant. He has just sold his car, which can't be fixed easily, and her car is being serviced. She is in a hurry to get to New Mexico and asks if, for a ride, he will help with the driving so she can get there faster by having him drive at night. He agrees. Well, we live in different times today, but I wouldn't have even talked to this guy much less offer him a ride. Too many true crime shows, I guess.
At one point Hayden is approached by a nurse, who explains that Roman has just been discharged from a mental facility and is being monitored by her and her doctor. The nurse is played by the late Jeanne Cooper, Mrs. Chancellor on The Young and the Restless. She is nearly unrecognizable, she's so young.
Eventually it's revealed that Roman, who was in Berlin and lost family during the war, is supposed to deliver a transcript to a family friend working in the U.S., Dr. Fritz Kissel. She has just located him at a university. The university denies he's ever been there, and Everyone wants to stop her from finding him.
I found this film talky, low on action, low on suspense, and the dialogue and pace awkward. Ruth Roman was very good. I've never been a fan of Sterling Hayden's, but he was okay here.
So-so.
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- blanche-2
- Dec 31, 2014
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $500,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 21 minutes
- Color
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