A locksmith gets caught up in a bank robbery.A locksmith gets caught up in a bank robbery.A locksmith gets caught up in a bank robbery.
Berry Kroeger
- Willis Trent
- (as Berry Kroger)
Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez
- Pedro
- (as Gonzales Gonzales)
Fred Aldrich
- Bank Guard
- (uncredited)
David Leonard
- Mr. Grover - Locksmith
- (uncredited)
John Mitchum
- Andy
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Burt Kennedy
- Frank Gruber
- Tedd Pierce(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThere really was a Grover's Lock and Key on Santa Monica Blvd in Hollywood. Apparently, it was easier to use the existing storefront than create a phony one for the movie.
- GoofsAt about 68 minutes, when Pedro opens a glass door to leave the bowling alley, the cameraman and a director are clearly reflected in the glass door.
- Crazy creditsVeteran heavy Berry Kroeger had his name misspelled in the main credits as "Berry Kroger."
- ConnectionsReferences You Bet Your Life (1950)
- SoundtracksLet The Chips Fall Where They May
by 'By' Dunham (as By Dunham) and Henry Vars
Sung by Vivianne Lloyd (uncredited)
Featured review
A minor but enjoyable noir cheapie from John Wayne's company.
The Dukes' production company Batjac did occasionally turn out films that didn't star the American icon, but they were typically low budget affairs. William Campbell, an actor who bounced back and forth between A and B films throughout the 50s and 60s, stars as Tommy Dancer, an average guy earning meagre wages as a locksmith. But a two-bit hoodlum named Willis Trent (Berry Kroeger) wants to hire Tommy for a job: make a set of keys for a safety deposit box that contains a substantial payday. Tommy refuses at first - he's no angel, but he's a basically good man - but the bad guys will naturally figure out ways to manipulate him into doing the job.
While Leonard Maltins' paperback review guide has always dismissed this one, in truth it's a fairly entertaining crime / noir programmer with some good acting. Campbell is okay, but is outshone by top character actors like Kroeger, Mike Mazurki (cast to type as Trents' thug), Paul Fix, Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, and James Seay. It also features very nice eye candy in the form of the lovely Karen Sharpe, who plays Tommy's love interest, and delectable Anita Ekberg, the mistress of big time mob boss Seay. A lady named Vivianne Lloyd gets fairly prominent billing, but her main purpose is to take a few minutes belting out the number "Let the Chips Fall Where They May".
"Man in the Vault" is given competent guidance by director Andrew V. McLaglen, who subsequently graduated to bigger movies, a number of them with The Duke. A truly special film it's not, but it entertains reasonably for a trim 74 minutes, and features two standout suspense sequences: one, inside a bank vault, where Tommy doesn't stand much chance of not being witnessed, and two, inside a bowling alley where Tommy is pursued by an unseen assailant.
Co-star Gonzalez had earlier appeared on TV's 'You Bet Your Life', which is where The Duke had first noticed him. This little factoid is echoed as part of the movies' story (scripted by future director Burt Kennedy, based on a novel by Frank Gruber).
Seven out of 10.
While Leonard Maltins' paperback review guide has always dismissed this one, in truth it's a fairly entertaining crime / noir programmer with some good acting. Campbell is okay, but is outshone by top character actors like Kroeger, Mike Mazurki (cast to type as Trents' thug), Paul Fix, Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, and James Seay. It also features very nice eye candy in the form of the lovely Karen Sharpe, who plays Tommy's love interest, and delectable Anita Ekberg, the mistress of big time mob boss Seay. A lady named Vivianne Lloyd gets fairly prominent billing, but her main purpose is to take a few minutes belting out the number "Let the Chips Fall Where They May".
"Man in the Vault" is given competent guidance by director Andrew V. McLaglen, who subsequently graduated to bigger movies, a number of them with The Duke. A truly special film it's not, but it entertains reasonably for a trim 74 minutes, and features two standout suspense sequences: one, inside a bank vault, where Tommy doesn't stand much chance of not being witnessed, and two, inside a bowling alley where Tommy is pursued by an unseen assailant.
Co-star Gonzalez had earlier appeared on TV's 'You Bet Your Life', which is where The Duke had first noticed him. This little factoid is echoed as part of the movies' story (scripted by future director Burt Kennedy, based on a novel by Frank Gruber).
Seven out of 10.
helpful•30
- Hey_Sweden
- Sep 29, 2018
Details
- Runtime1 hour 13 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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