The Killer Is Loose
| The Killer Is Loose | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster |
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| Directed by | Budd Boetticher |
| Produced by | Robert L. Jacks |
| Written by | Story: John Hawkins Ward Hawkins Screenplay: Harold Medford |
| Starring | Joseph Cotten |
| Music by | Lionel Newman |
| Cinematography | Lucien Ballard |
| Editing by | George A. Gittens |
| Distributed by | United Artists |
| Release date(s) | March 2, 1956 |
| Running time | 73 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
The Killer Is Loose is a 1956 crime film noir directed by Budd Boetticher and starring Joseph Cotten, Rhonda Fleming and Wendell Corey.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Plot
An employee for a savings and loan desperate for cash plans and successfully robs a bank as an inside job. At first bank employee Poole (Wendell Corey) is considered a hero during the bank robbery but the police quickly figure out he's involved in the crime. The police catch up with Poole and his young wife at their apartment. Poole's wife is accidentally shot to death by the police during the gunfight. Poole is arrested, convicted and sent to prison for the robbery.
While behind bars, Poole plans his escape and revenge on the men that killed his wife, especially the leader of the police raid, Lt. Wagner (Joseph Cotten). Poole figures the best way to extract revenge is to kill Wagner's wife, Lila (Rhonda Fleming).
[edit] Cast
- Joseph Cotten as Det. Sam Wagner
- Rhonda Fleming as Lila Wagner
- Wendell Corey as Leon 'Foggy' Poole
- Alan Hale Jr. as Denny, Detective (as Alan Hale)
- Michael Pate as Det. Chris Gillespie
- John Larch as Otto Flanders
- Dee J. Thompson as Grace Flanders
- John Beradino as Mac, Plainclothes Cop
- Virginia Christine as Mary Gillespie
- Paul Bryar as Greg Boyd, policeman
[edit] Critical reaction
New York Times reviewer Bosley Crowther found nothing original about the film calling the lead actors (Cotten and Corey) "first rate" and the crime film "third rate."[2]
Critic Bruce Eder gave a more favorable review and wrote, "Budd Boetticher was a filmmaker of consummate skill and many surprises, as anyone who's seen his best Western dramas can attest. The Killer Is Loose (1956) only enhances his reputation in a totally unrelated genre, and in a stylistic mode that's about as far as he could get from his most familiar work. Using a cast of conventional—albeit top-flight—Hollywood professionals, Boetticher takes them out of the studio and puts them into an almost totally location-shot drama, and turns them loose in that naturalistic setting. The result is an array of performances that are as arresting as the script is filled with improbabilities; indeed, the narrative momentum of Boetticher's direction, coupled with a handful of excellent performances, overcomes a script that is just a little too heavy on coincidences to otherwise play true."[3]
More recently, critic Dennis Schwartz wrote, "A typical 1950s noir, distinguished by its rapid pace and taut script, that delves mainly into the character of the villain—making him out to be someone who went over-the-edge when he couldn't take being ridiculed as a failure, anymore...The suburban atmosphere and the no-nonsense style of telling the story add to the blandness of the story and the failure to elicit anything out of the ordinary to the build-up of the suspense that comes with the climax. The result is a watchable film which could be seen for the sense of nostalgia of the 1950s it evokes, a time when it was more receptive for noir to work as well as it does."[4]
[edit] References
- ^ Crowther, Bosley. "New York Times: The Killer Is Loose". New York Times. http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/97713/The-Killer-Is-Loose/overview. Retrieved 2008-08-17.
- ^ Crowther, Bosley. New York Times, film review March 3, 1956.
- ^ The Killer Is Loose at AllRovi.
- ^ Schwartz, Dennis. Ozus' World Movie Reviews, film review, July 12, 1999. Last accessed: August 30, 2008.
