MASSACRE RIVER

Guy Madison

MASSACRE RIVER (1949). Director: John Rawlins. Colorized. 

On a fort in disputed territories in the old west, Phil (Rory Calhoun) is rejected when he proposes to Kitty (Cathy Downs of Missile to the Moon), the colonel's (Art Baker) daughter. Phil takes it surprisingly well when she gets engaged to his best buddy, Larry (Guy Madison of Hilda Crane), not much later. Complications arise in the nearby town of Jackson when Larry falls for the co-owner of the Blue Star saloon, Laura (Carole Mathews of Betrayed Women), after she ministers to the colonel's son, Randy (Johnny Sands), when he is shot by Indians. Before long Larry is caught in a triangle situation: will he marry the colonel's daughter and make advancements in the army, or decide that his future is with a woman who is more like him? His friendship with Phil will certainly be put to the test by further dark developments. 

Rory Calhoun

One could easily say that Massacre River takes advantage of well-worn tropes and cliches in its story, but somehow that doesn't matter. There are beautiful widescreen vistas of western landscapes, courtesy of Jack MacKenzie, a stirring score by John Leipold and Lucien Moraweck, and a fast-paced, engrossing ambiance throughout. Though one wouldn't necessarily argue that the two handsome male leads are acting geniuses, they acquit themselves nicely, as do the ladies. Johnny Sands is appealing as Randy, but had only a few credits. An especially lovely scene has Laura waving at Larry from a window, disappointed that he doesn't wave back from the street below, but then happy again when he finally does wave as he rides off on his horse. As usual, the Indians in this -- on again/off again antagonists -- are mere backdrop for the white players and not even the chief gets much of a back story. John Rawlins directed a wide variety of movies, including Arabian Nights with Maria Montez.  

Verdict: Very entertaining western melodrama-romance. ***. 

AIN'T MISBEHAVIN'

AIN'T MISBEHAVIN' (1955). Director: Edward Buzzell. 

Millionaire businessman Kenneth Post (Rory Calhoun) is smitten with a showgirl, Sarah (Piper Laurie of Carrie), that he sees on TV and goes to a nightclub to see her, accompanied by his disapproving good right hand, Hal North (Jack Carson of The Bottom of the Bottle ). Sarah proves to be a  rapacious and unrepentant gold-digger to the point of being obnoxious. In spite of this Ken proposes and she accepts, insisting that she has truly fallen in love with him despite her original intentions. The trouble isn't with her spending, but the fact that she decides to better herself, and spends too much time in the company of Ken's distant relation, Anatole Piermont (Reginald Gardiner of Black Widow), a cultured man with an eye for the ladies. Meanwhile, Ken is caught at a baseball game sitting next to the predatory Pat (Barbara Britton). Can this marriage be saved?

Rory Calhoun surrounded by ladies

This has one of the worst scripts of any fifties musical, without any solid laughs and two main characters who are stupid and unlikable for most of the running time. The songs are instantly forgettable, and the production numbers intermittently lively but mediocre. Piper Laurie is spritely and appealing in spite of her character and Calhoun proves more adept at this kind of light stuff than you would imagine -- both are eye candy -- but neither of them can do much to overcome that screenplay. Barbara Britton is saucy as Pat and Mamie Van Doren has a couple of sexy moments as a pal of Laurie's; Dani Crayne plays another dancer. Jack Carson could do this sort of thing in his sleep and Reginald Gardiner provides most of the limited fun with his portrayal of the often tipsy Anatole. Madge Blake has a bit as does Frank Chase, the sheriff in Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, this time playing a sailor. 

Verdict: The lead characters are assholes. *1/2. 

BLACK SPURS

Rory Calhoun and Linda Darnell

BLACK SPURS (1965). Director: R. G. Springsteen.

In Texas in 1885 Santee (Rory Calhoun of Night of the Lepus) is engaged to pretty Anna (Terry Moore) but he wants to wait to marry until he's made his fortune. He bids adieu to Anna and sets off to capture or kill the notorious bandit, El Pescadore (Robert Carricart), something he succeeds at. After this Santee becomes a full-time bounty hunter with many kills to his credit. Many. many months later he returns to his lady love only to learn that she has understandably married another, Sheriff Ralph Elkins (James Best) of Lash, Kansas. An embittered Santee decides to help a certain entrepreneur named Gus Kile (Lon Chaney Jr.) bring gambling and loose ladies to Lash no matter who gets hurt, but does the man have a chance at redemption?

Lon Chaney Jr. and Rory Calhoun

Black Spurs certainly has an interesting cast. Although Calhoun mostly shows the emotion of a rock, his co-players tend to be better, and this includes Linda Darnell in a small role as a madame. Darnell is a bit zaftig but not unattractive. She died in a fire before the film was released. Scott Brady plays, of all things, a priest, Richard Arlen owns the local saloon, and Bruce Cabot is an enforcer who zestily throws people out of town with a sneer or a heave. Patricia Owens and Jerome Courtland [Kiss and Tell] play lovers who aren't really married, and there is a brief appearance by pre-Star Trek DeForest Kelley as another sheriff.  Handsome Joseph Hoover has a rare (if small) speaking role as another one of Arlen's associates. Manuel Padilla Jr. [Tarzan and the Valley of Gold[ is cute as the little boy, Manuel, who loves to sing and eventually becomes disenchanted with his hero, Santee.

Black Spurs is by no means a great western but it features a basically sound storyline (albeit probably one that has been used in different variations many, many times over) and has some flavorful performances. Courtland and Owens each had one more theatrical film before doing some TV work; Courtland became a director. Calhoun and Moore had a great many more credits, and the latter is still acting today. Director R. G. Springsteen amassed nearly 100 film and TV credits, mostly working on westerns.

Verdict: Okay western for devotees. **1/2. 

THE LOOTERS

Danton, Faylen, Adams, Calhoun

THE LOOTERS (1955). Director: Abner Biberman.

"I haven't had this much fun since I was kicked out of the Campfire Girls." -- Sheryl.

Jesse Hill (Rory Calhoun of That Hagen Girl), a loner and mountain climber who lives in the Rockies, gets a visit from a shady ex-army buddy, Peter Corder (Ray Danton of Code Name: Jaguar). When a commercial plane crashes in the mountains, the two decide to climb towards the wreckage, but with very different motives. Jesse wants to look for survivors, while Pete is more interested in salvaging what he can, which turns out to be a trunk full of loot. Pete's true nature is revealed pretty quickly, and he stakes his claim while threatening everyone else. Before long the two men start a tense descent back down the mountain along with three survivors, a former cheesecake model named Sheryl (Julie Adams), a captain named Leppich (Frank Faylen of The Mystery of the 13th Guest). and a wannabee big shot named Parkinson (Thomas Gomez). Who will get to keep the loot and who will survive?

Ray Danton as sneaky Pete

The Looters has a very good premise and could have been turned into a nail-biting and memorable suspense film. Instead it's a mediocre and often hokey time-waster that isn't good enough for the audience to ignore its many implausible aspects. Now, the plane crashed on top of a mountain, but it isn't in a nearly impassable area as the plane was in Three Secrets, so it seems to me that even if there were no survivors, arrangements would be made to get the victims' bodies back to their loved ones. But when the military, who is playing war games in the area, discovers that no one is at the plane, they start bombing the whole area -- say what? Admittedly, this adds some excitement to the climax, but it doesn't make much sense, as if the military's attitude would be "let's just blow up the bodies of the crash victims without even finding out what caused the crash!"

Of course one reason for this silliness is that it may fool viewers into not scratching their heads when one survivor expresses the hope that everyone will think he died in the crash. Another problem is that no one seems to act as if this was the scene of a tragedy, that there are several dead bodies (never shown) lying just out of view for much of the film's length. Then you have to wonder why Sheryl and Jesse would want to make out when neither has brushed their teeth for at least several days. Gomez makes his mark as the weaselly Parkinson, Danton is typically vivid, Adams is reasonably adept and sexy, giving the film no more than it deserves, and Calhoun is adequately stolid and heroic. But this is one flight you may not want to book. After meeting on this film, Adams and Danton were married. Abner Biberman was originally an actor, playing a great many Asian roles, before switching to directing.

Verdict: Another reason to avoid the Rockies. **. 

THAT HAGEN GIRL

THAT HAGEN GIRL (1947). Director: Peter Godfrey.

"Well, what are we going to talk about now?"

A middle-aged couple, Minta and Jim Hagen (Dorothy Peterson and Charles Kemper), come back to town carrying a baby about the same time as a scandal erupts over a disturbed young lady, Grace Gateley (Kyle [sic] MacDonnell) and her boyfriend Tom Bates (Ronald Reagan). Somehow the whole town gets it into its head that the Hagen baby is actually the child of Grace and Tom, with the result that that child, Mary Hagen (Shirley Temple), has had to put up with odd looks, remarks, and a discriminatory attitude towards her all of her life. When Tom comes back to town, Mary decides to find out if he actually is her father or not. Meanwhile, Mary discovers that while her boyfriend, Ken (Rory Calhoun) wants to marry her, his disapproving old bitch of a mother (Nella Walker) has other ideas. That Hagen Girl is a study of small-town narrow-minded attitudes and is very good at getting across the astute point that men gossip just as much as women do. The problem with the movie is that the two leads, Temple and Reagan, while competent, are so weak that the picture never recovers from the miscasting. Temple plays the entire movie in the key of "pout," while Reagan is simply mediocre, as he was in Kings Row. Calhoun [Night of the Lepus] is handsome, if a little odd-looking; Penny Edwards [Feudin; Fussin', and A'Fightin'] is effective as another gal interested in Calhoun; Lois Maxwell [yes, "Miss Moneypenny" of James Bond fame, but without her British accent] is nice as the sympathetic teacher, Julia Kane; and Kathryn Card, Lucy's mother on I Love Lucy, is fun as the termagant school board member who catches Mary being bussed by horny Dewey Koons (Conrad Janis). Franz Waxman's opening theme is lovely, but the movie that follows the credits is quite disappointing.

Verdict: Excellent premise but this never amounts to what it could have. **.

THE BIG CAPER

THE BIG CAPER (1957). Director: Robert Stevens.

Frank Harper (Rory Calhoun of Night of the Lepus) is the original instigator of a plot to rob a bank that holds a huge Army payroll. Among Harper's confederates are nervous Zimmer (Robert H. Harris of Mirage), pretty Kay (Mary Costa), Harry (Paul Picerni), big operator Flood (James Gregory of Nightfall), and sexually ambiguous Roy (Corey Allen), who wiggles his ass in front of Kay but is also gleefully whipped by Flood in one weird sequence. Harper has second thoughts about the whole business when he learns that part of the scheme includes blowing up a school ... The kinky characters are what distinguishes this otherwise standard caper movie, which has some good performances, especially from Gregory, Harris and Allen. Roxanne Arlen plays a woman who has the misfortune of getting in with the gang.  Robert Stevens also directed In the Cool of the Day and many television shows.

Verdict: Okay caper film with some zesty scenes and acting. **1/2.

FLIGHT TO HONG KONG

FLIGHT TO HONG KONG (1956). Director: Joseph M. Newman.

"When a man makes a mistake, all of his friends suffer."

Tony Dumont (Rory Calhoun of The Colossus of Rhodes) has been living well ever since he got in with hood Michael Quisto (Paul Picerni), to the consternation of his fiancee, Jean (Delores Donlon). Tony's rationale is that he was afraid to say no to Quisto. On a flight to Hong Kong Tony meets writer/socialite Pamela Vincent (Barbara Rush) and the two are attracted to each other; the flight is hijacked to assist in the theft of a fortune in industrial diamonds, a theft that Dumont has actually had a hand in. As Pamela pursues Tony -- his fiancee be damned -- Tony's associates Nicco (Pat Conway) and Lobero (Aram Katcher) try to betray Quisto with unpleasant results. But then, drawn to Pamela, Tony makes up his mind to do the same thing ... Flight to Hong Kong is a flavorful, unpredictable crime drama with interesting settings from Hong Kong to Macao, good photography (Ellis W. Carter), and a suspenseful final quarter. Other cast members include Werner Klemperer, Carleton Young and Mel Welles [The Little Shop of Horrors] but the best performances are from Barbara Rush [Bigger Than Life] and Soo Yong as Tony's friend, Mama Lin. Nice score by Albert Glasser.

Verdict: Not bad at all. ***.

NIGHT OF THE LEPUS

NIGHT OF THE LEPUS (1972). Director: William F. Claxton.

"Attention! Attention! There is a herd of killer rabbits heading this way!"

Roy (Stuart Whitman) and Gerry Bennett (Janet Leigh) are scientists who come to Arizona to deal with an explosion in the rabbit population and the dangers this represents to the ecosystem. Trying to curb the rabbits', ahem, appetites, their experiments only result in rabbits that are much larger and astonishingly ferocious. Supposedly remaining vegetarians, they nonetheless go around attacking people, leaving mutilated corpses in their wake. Now, it would have been one thing if the special effects department had come up with some fearsomely mutated rodents with large fangs and grotesque appearances, but all they did was use real cute bunny rabbits stuffed into miniature sets and interacting with people via process shots. Some of these sequences aren't badly done, but the sound effects are what make the cuddly bunnies seem so horrible. The best scene is the climax when Leigh tries to keep the surrounding rabbits away from her and her little daughter after their camper gets a flat tire at night. Rory Calhoun plays a rancher and DeForest Kelley, almost fresh from Star Trek, is a friend of the Bennetts. Played completely straight, the movie is completely absurd but somehow amusing and entertaining, if strictly for monster movie devotees.

Verdict: Stupid, but a lot of fun in spite of it. **1/2.

THE COLOSSUS OF RHODES

THE COLOSSUS OF RHODES (1961). Director: Sergio Leone.

Athenian Darios (Rory Calhoun) comes to the island of Rhodes in 280 B.C. to visit his uncle and becomes embroiled in intrigue, betrayal, bloodshed and worse as various factions strive to take control of Rhodes. Towering over everything is the huge statue that stands astride the harbor and from which molten ore can pour onto those below. It's hard to keep track of who's plotting against who, which are slaves and which are Phoenician armies disguised as slaves, the rebels from the loyalists, but in the end it doesn't quite matter. Beautiful natural scenery combined with often stunning art direction -- not to mention the striking colossus (the bottom of the legs as well as everything from the chest up seem to have been built full-sized) -- give the film a certain visual sheen, but on the dramatic front the picture is not so solid. There are some very creative scenes of torture, a fairly exciting sequence set in the arena, but the long-awaited climax -- the movie runs over two hours -- is not nearly spectacular enough.

Verdict: Not awful by any means but not good enough to go out of your way for. **1/2.