In this solid heist film, two criminals (played by Rory Calhoun and Mary Costa) plot a bank job by moving into a quiet California town and posing as husband and wife, winning the confidence of the townsfolk. The problem is the rest of the gang are unbelievably inept in every way and things begin to really unravel when the big night arrives.
Costa makes a great femme fatale and I'm surprised she didn't make more films. She was the voice part in Disney's Cinderella (1950) and had a small role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) but has done little else. Calhoun is also excellent as the brains behind the plan who begins to have second thoughts after he develops a conscience. By then, however he has to deal with gang boss Flood (James Gregory) who isn't in the mood for pulling the plug on the caper. Corey Allen (who played Buzz in 1955's Rebel without a Cause) is good as the hyped- up psychopath who is under Flood's twisted control. Robert H Harris is the alcoholic arsonist Zimmer, whose dependence on the bottle and mania for starting fires makes him a loose cannon who needs constant management. I mean, these guys are just born to lose.
An effective morality take, this gritty noir has all the right elements, and in spite of its seedy elements is really celebrating the capacity of small town life to win over even the hardest of criminal hearts.
Costa makes a great femme fatale and I'm surprised she didn't make more films. She was the voice part in Disney's Cinderella (1950) and had a small role in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) but has done little else. Calhoun is also excellent as the brains behind the plan who begins to have second thoughts after he develops a conscience. By then, however he has to deal with gang boss Flood (James Gregory) who isn't in the mood for pulling the plug on the caper. Corey Allen (who played Buzz in 1955's Rebel without a Cause) is good as the hyped- up psychopath who is under Flood's twisted control. Robert H Harris is the alcoholic arsonist Zimmer, whose dependence on the bottle and mania for starting fires makes him a loose cannon who needs constant management. I mean, these guys are just born to lose.
An effective morality take, this gritty noir has all the right elements, and in spite of its seedy elements is really celebrating the capacity of small town life to win over even the hardest of criminal hearts.