FOUR GIRLS IN TOWN

Grant Williams and George Nader

FOUR GIRLS IN TOWN (1957). Written and directed by Jack Sher.  

A Hollywood studio wants to make a biblical epic about Esther, but their biggest star (whose face we never see) wants 50% of the profits. Therefore it is decided to find a new star and bring in four gals to do a screen test: American Kathy (Julie Adams), whose mother (Mabel Albertson) is pushing her to perform; Viennese Ina (Marianne Koch of The Monster of London City), whose husband recently died in a road accident; Italian Maria (Elsa Martinelli of One on Top of the Other), who appears to be a good-time girl who loves the men, especially the ones with money; and French Vicki (Gia Scala of The Big Boodle), who is trying to hide the fact that she has a husband and small son. 

John Gavin comes on to one of the "girls" 

Mike Snowden (George Nader) will helm the young ladies' screen tests, even though he'd much rather direct the picture itself. His best friend, Johnny (Sydney Chaplin) is a film composer nursing a broken heart and many hangovers. Mike is also friends with wealthy playboy Spencer Farrington Jr. (Grant Williams), who pursues women and does little else but attend parties with that end in mind. Tom Grant (John Gavin) is an actor who is chosen to appear in the tests with each of the ladies. Naturally these four men get involved in varying degrees with the "four girls in town." 

Nader with Gavin

I wish I could report that Four Girls in Town is a trenchant drama about Hollywood or at the very least a real trash wallow, but it's neither, although I can't say I ever found it boring. The acting is generally more than professional -- although none of the cast members really stand out -- and the picture has a good pace, but it just never quite comes alive. Maybe it just needed a few sensationalistic scenes to perk up the viewers' interest. An odd sequence has Mike taking some of the ladies and gents on a nighttime grunion hunt, a sequence that was a little more entertaining in Piranha 2: the Spawning, of all things. Jack Sher also directed The 3 Worlds of Gulliver. 

Verdict: At least it has a very attractive cast! **3/4. 

THE PRICE OF FEAR

Merle Oberon and Lex Barker

THE PRICE OF FEAR (1956). Director: Abner Biberman.

Jessica Warren (Merle Oberon) is driving carefree and a little drunk when she runs over an elderly man. Does she call for an ambulance? No, she keeps driving. Her temporary crisis of conscience fades when she sees dog track owner Dave Barrett (Lex Barker) "borrow" her car and figures if she reports the vehicle as stolen he will be accused of the hit and run, not she. Complicating matters for Dave -- who took Jessica's car because he was being followed by hoods who want a piece of his track -- is the fact that the same time the elderly man was run over, an enemy of Dave's was shot to death. Barrett is going to be convicted of one crime or the other, but he gets close to Jessica to find out what he can. But is she really falling in love with him or does she have her own agenda?

Warren Stevens and Merle Oberon

The Price of Fear has more than one interesting situation and the relationship between Jessica and Dave with their conflicting goals but obvious attraction to one another adds to the film's compelling quality. This was one of Oberon's last starring roles -- it's a bit surprising to see her in this kind of film noir -- and she gives an excellent performance that keeps the audience guessing as to exactly what's on Jessica's mind and what she is ultimately planning to do. Barker gives it the old college try, and his line readings are certainly not terrible, but next to Oberon he's a bit of a wooden Indian. Warren Stevens gives one of his all-time best performances as the shady character Frankie Edare, who's responsible for a lot of Dave's problems; he and Oberon play especially well together.

Lex Barker

There are also good performances from Gia Scala [The Garment Jungle] as the heartbroken daughter of the elderly man; Charles Drake [It Came from Outer Space] as the police sergeant assigned to the case; and Stafford Repp [Batman: The Black Widow Strikes Again] and Mary Field as a tippling cab driver and his unloving wife. With a little added depth and characterization, The Price of Fear would have made an even more memorable picture, but it's quite absorbing as it is. It has a tense climax and an uncompromising wind-up. Abner Biberman was primarily a television director.

Verdict: Another one of those movies that is so good you wish it were just a bit better. ***. 

THE BIG BOODLE

THE BIG BOODLE (1957). Director: Richard Wilson.

In this hard-boiled story set and filmed in Havana, casino croupier Ned Sherwood (Errol Flynn) discovers a young lady, Fina (Rosanna Rory), who's carrying a bundle of counterfeit cash. Before long he's up to his neck in threatening police officers, surly hoods, gang leaders who employ torture, a search for counterfeit plates, and a couple of dangerous females. Not as much fun as it sounds, The Big Boodle is a pretty standard but somewhat absorbing crime thriller with very few surprises in it. There are good locations, an okay climactic fight, and it's always fun to see the villain fall into the middle of some hungry sharks. Gia Scala plays Anita, one of the gals, and Carlos Rivas of The Beast of Hollow Mountain is a sinister playboy. Flynn, in one of his last roles, gives an acceptable performance but he looks pretty battered. Rory also had a small role in L'eclisse.

Verdict: Not worth missing The Beverly Hillbillies for. **.

THE GARMENT JUNGLE

THE GARMENT JUNGLE (1957). Director: Vincent Sherman.

Soon after the terrible death of his partner in a freight elevator "accident" -- a horrifying, well-handled sequence -- Walter Mitchell (Lee J. Cobb) welcomes his son Alan (Kerwin Mathews) into the garment business. Alan is disturbed to learn what a hold the mob has on the business with its protection racket, and how they've been terrorizing union organizers. This is basically a poor man's On the Waterfront, and not at all in the same league as that classic. However, there are several good scenes, and there's an interesting cast. Cobb is as good as ever, and Mathews gives it a good try, but his forte was swashbuckling costume heroes like in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, not realistic drama. Richard Boone is more on the mark as a mob boss, as is Robert Loggia as a union organizer and Joseph Wiseman (Dr. No) as one of the garment workers. Wesley Addy has an unusual role as a vicious associate of Boone's. Gia Scala and Valerie French are effective as the ladies involved with the garment workers.

Verdict: Overbaked melodrama. **.