MAN ON THE PROWL

James Best and Mala Powers

MAN ON THE PROWL (1957). Director: Art Napoleon. 

Living with his horrible mother (Vivi Janiss), Doug Gerhardt (James Best of Killer Shrews) has developed a positive hatred for women. He beats one poor gal who resists his advances to death with his fists. Then Doug accidentally encounters Marian Wood (Mala Powers), who is married to car dealer Woody (Jerry Paris) and has two cute little boys (Josh and Jeff Freeman).  Arrogant and attracted to Marian -- one senses she is drawn to Doug despite her love for her husband --  Doug does his best to court her, but she will only agree to having a beer with him because he tells her they went to the same school. This only makes Doug obsess more over Marian, putting both her husband and her children in mortal danger. 

Man on the Prowl may have been the only starring role for James Best, who gives a strong performance as the psychopath, with good work from Mala Powers and Jerry Paris as well. Ted de Corsia is fine as the detective on the case, and Vivi Janiss makes an impression as Doug's monster mother. The film features a tense and suspenseful climax. Art Napoleon directed only two other films, the Diana Barrymore biopic, Too Much, Too Soon, starring Dorothy Malone and Errol Flynn, and The Activist ten years later. 

Verdict: Worthwhile minor suspense film ***. 

THE KNIFE SLIPPED Erle Stanley Gardner

THE KNIFE SLIPPED. A Cool and Lam novel by A. A. Fair (Erle Stanley Gardner). Written 1939. Hard Case Crime/Titan; 2016.

NOTE: On occasion B Movie Nightmare will review genre books as well as movies. 

Erle Stanley Gardner is most famous as the creator of Perry Mason, but he also wrote many books in a crime series devoted to the exploits of Bertha Cool and Donald Lam. Cool is a obese but solid middle-aged woman who has a tough, no-nonsense approach and is primarily concerned with making money for herself through her small detective agency that takes cases other agencies won't touch, such as divorces and political assignments. Her chief operative is the much younger and smaller Donald Cool, a twenty-something who may be short but is still good-looking enough to attract many of the ladies he encounters. He, however, is not that much good in a fight and "the little runt," as Bertha calls him, takes a beating more than once. 

The Knife Slipped was originally to be published as the second in the series, but the publisher rejected it, finding Cool's depiction too mercenary and sordid, among other things. The book was not published (posthumously) until many years later. The Knife Slipped has Cool and Lam taking on a woman client who feels that her son-in-law is cheating on her daughter with a blond. This son-in-law is later murdered, and there are numerous suspects, including a switchboard operator at his apartment house that Donald becomes stuck on. Lam has an almost 21st century attitude toward women and their sexuality, and Cool is cynical (or realistic) about certain aspects of life and love. The Knife Slipped is entertaining and well-written, but frankly it seems a cut below similar books by, say, Raymond Chandler. I've read only one other Cool and Lam book and felt the same way -- good but forgettable. 

However, if you're crazy about private detective fiction, I must say that Bertha Cool and Donald Lam are unusual operatives and highly interesting characters. That alone makes their stories of interest. And one of these days I may pick up another one in the series.

Verdict: Perry Mason might be appalled by these two. **3/4. 

THE THIRD ALIBI

Laurence Payne

THE THIRD ALIBI (1961). Director: Montgomery Tully.

Norman Martell (Laurence Payne) is an egotistical composer who thinks nothing of having an affair with his wife's half-sister, Peggy (Jane Griffiths). Norman has tried to keep all this a secret from his wife, Helen (Patricia Dainton), but when Peggy tells him she's pregnant, he knows he has no choice but to reveal the truth. However, a horrified and heartbroken Helen has no intention of giving Norman a divorce. Therefore he thinks up what he believes is a foolproof plan to murder his wife, with Peggy's complicity. But things don't always work out the way you figure they will ... 

The British film The Third Alibi plays like an episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, and is quite good on that level, with a very ironic and amusing wind-up. I'll say no more about the plot but the movie is worth seeking out. The picture is also well-shot and well-acted. Horror fans know Payne as one of the cast members of the delightful Crawling Eye. 

Verdict: Short and snappy mystery film with a neat denouement. ***. 

LOVE'S DEADLY TRIANGLE: THE TEXAS CADET MURDER

Holly Marie Combs and David Lipper

LOVE'S DEADLY TRIANGLE: THE TEXAS CADET MURDER (aka Swearing Allegiance/1997 telefilm). Director: Richard A. Colla. 

In the late nineties in Texas, two young sociopaths -- Diane Zamora (Holly Marie Combs) and David Graham (David Lipper), high school students with plans for the military and marriage -- decide to do away with another young lady, Adrianne Jones (Cassidy Rae), in order to wash out the sin of her sleeping with David, an event that may never have even occurred. Love's Deadly Triangle is a telefilm that was rushed out even before Zamora and Graham were put on trial (both received life sentences.)

David Lipper as Cadet David 

Frankly, Love's Deadly Triangle, although absorbing enough, is another example of a true crime movie that is sort of pasted together in a hurry and lacks any kind of depth of characterization or much else. True, there isn't much to Zamora or Graham aside from severe pathology. In spite of this Combs gives a good performance as the jealous Diane, while Lipper is effective, although a cut or two below his co-star in acting ability. Dee Wallace is fine as Adrianne's heartbroken mother. True crime shows, such as American Justice, that have focused on this tragic case and present the real participants are generally more interesting than this TV movie. Graham at first denied that he murdered Jones, then later not only admitted that he had killed her but that he and Adrienne had never even slept together. Zamora had a brief jailhouse marriage to another man that ended in divorce, and essentially failed a lie detector test on Dateline. Apparently both of these creeps are right where they belong. 

Verdict: Sad case, interesting story, so-so telefilm. **1/2. 

SECRETS OF A PSYCHOPATH

Mark Famiglietti as Henry

SECRETS OF A PSYCHOPATH (2015.) Director: Bert. I Gordon. 

Henry (Mark Famiglietti) lives with his sister, Katherine (Kari Wuhrer), in their large family home. Apparently the only woman Henry can have sex with successfully is his sister, but he makes attempts with other women he meets on the internet and at the movies. He has gone so far as to get engaged to Grace (Mary Anthony), whom he has also met online. But when Grace shows up at the house to tie the knot, she finds a jealous future sister-in-law  waiting, and discovers she is in the midst of a deadly and frightening situation ... 

Secrets of a Psychopath is a comeback of sorts for Mr. BIG, aka Bert I. Gordon, who worked on so many fun creature features in the fifties through seventies such as Earth vs the Spider, The Magic Sword, The Food of the Gods and The Cyclops. Gordon even managed to snare no less than Orson Welles to star in one of his minor B productions, Necromancy. At the ripe young age of 93 Gordon directed this, his last feature to date -- no mean achievement. Unfortunately, while I'd like to report that this is Gordon's masterpiece, it's not that great a movie, and certainly much, much less fun than Mr. BIG's flicks on giant spiders, grasshoppers and Amazing Colossal Men. 

Wuhrer, Anthony and Famiglietti

The shame of it is that Secrets of a Psychopath has some damn good things going for it. There's the attractive lensing by Brett A. Hart which gives the picture a clean and polished look, and an effective score by Scott Glascow (although it generally tends to be a bit too languid, unfortunately, along with the film's pacing). Then there's an excellent lead performance by the appealing Mark Famiglietti, who makes Henry another charming if no-less-deadly sociopath. Although I have never heard of her, apparently Kari Wuhrer has achieved some kind of minor fame in little-known B horror flicks, and she is good as Henry's sensual sister, Katherine. Mary Anthony is also very good as the ill-fated Grace. However, most of the rest of the cast, including Henry's other victims, are played by amateurs who lower the whole tone of the movie.

The film's premise is workable, but Gordon's script is full of holes and moments of illogic  -- Henry buries one body in broad daylight, and there's this whole incredible business with two children improbably drowning in a small plastic lawn pool and the apparent lack of repercussions to this. As mentioned, the pace of the film at times seems glacial and there's only a decent spurt of energy at the very end. Gordon's direction betrays none of the flair that would make this psycho-thriller really sing. Too bad. 

Verdict: Psychologically dubious and not much fun but it's still Mr. BIG! **. 

HIGH SCHOOL HELLCATS

Yvonne Lime and Brett Halsey

HIGH SCHOOL HELLCATS (1958). Director: Edward L. Bernds. 

Joyce Martin (Yvonne Lime) is the new girl in town, and she's a decent kid, even if her father (Don Shelton) thinks she wears too much lipstick. On her first day in high school she meets Connie Harris (Jana Lund), who tells her in no uncertain terms that she's the head of an all-female gang called the Hellcats, and if Joyce doesn't pass the initiation, she might as well just kill herself. Trying to fit in, she complies with what Connie and her friends wish, while also dating the soda jerk Mike (Brett Halsey, his name misspelled "Bret" in the credits). Mike worries that his girlfriend is getting in with the wrong crowd, but she goes to a party and after the lights go out, someone dies ... 

A moment of teenage angst

High School Hellcats is an entertaining teen movie with effective enough performances from the leads. However, the best acting comes from Jana Lund as the incredibly bitchy Connie, and especially from Susanne Sidney as her chubby, conspiratorial pal, Dolly, who has some sterling moments at the climax. Rhoda Williams is fine as a sympathetic teacher, Miss Davis; she had more credits than the other ladies combined. The executive producer for this film was Charles "Buddy" Rogers, husband of Mary Pickford and an actor himself. 

Verdict: Fun if you're in the mood for a silly fifties teen flick. **1/4,  

BEHEMOTH THE SEA MONSTER

The giant behemoth invades London

BEHEMOTH THE SEA MONSTER (1958/original UK version of The Giant Behemoth). Directors: Eugene Lourie and Douglas Hickox. 

Atomic testing has revivified a sleeping, gigantic, and electrically-charged dinosaur -- a fictional paliosaurus -- that has become dangerously radioactive. In addition to stomping across the coastal areas, it leaves tens of thousands of dead fish in its wake, causing decided consternation for Cornish fishermen such as John Duncan (John Turner). While American Steven Karns (Gene Evans) of the Atomic Energy Commission tries to convince Professor James Bickford (Andre Morell) of the existence of this strange "behemoth," it attacks a ferry boat and then smashes into London itself. How can they destroy the beast without blowing all of its radioactive pieces into every part of the city? 

Gene Evans and Andre Morrell

This is the original UK version of The Giant Behemoth, and to my surprise, there are a number of differences. For one thing, the British version is eleven minutes shorter, which tightens up the picture and eliminates some unnecessary sequences -- all of the dinosaur scenes appear to be intact, however. The American version puts back some crowd-panic scenes and some stock footage. In the original version, when the behemoth struts through London, the music stops abruptly so that all you can hear, besides screaming pedestrians, is the ominous thud thudding of the monster's footsteps as well as its breathing and the occasional snarl or roar. Somehow it makes the sequence more chilling. (In addition to the music, the American version puts in the sound of an unseen man screaming as the monster's foot smashes down on his car, and also adds more screeches of soldiers as they are burned to death by the behemoth's terrible radioactive glare.) The announcement made on the radio at the very end of the film is slightly different in each version. 

Leigh Madison and John Turner

During the ferry-attack sequence, the monster is portrayed by a rubber model which looks good but has decidedly limited mobility (reportedly it had more mobility until it broke down just before filming). However, when the creature attacks London, Willis O'Brien's fluid stop-motion effects take over, and while the rampage is comparatively crude and low-budget (particularly as compared to today's FX work), the animation is still well-done and the sequence exciting. Edwin Astley's musical score adds to the generally eerie tone of the picture. Jack MacGowran is fun as a paleontologist who hopes to track down the monster, and Leigh Madison plays the daughter of a fisherman who becomes one of the behemoth's first victims. 

Verdict: Grim and absorbing. ***.

WHILE I LIVE

Audrey Fildes and Sonia Dresdel

WHILE I LIVE (aka The Dream of Olwyn/1947). Director: John Harlow. 

On the Cornish coast, young composer Olwyn (Audrey Fildes) lives with her older sister, Julia (Sonia Dresdel) while she tries to put the finishing touches to a composition entitled "The Dream of Olwyn." Unfortunately, Olwyn sleepwalks one night and winds up taking a header off of a cliff. Twenty-five years later Julia lives in the same house with her young cousin Peter (Clifford Evans), whom she raised, and his more practical wife, Christine (Patricia Burke). One evening into the household comes an unexpected visitor (Carol Raye), who claims she has no memory but has a connection to Cornwall and the family. Julia is convinced that this young lady is the reincarnation of her dead sister, but Christine is a little suspicious, leading to conflicts between her, her husband, and his somewhat domineering aunt. 

Clifford Evans and Patricia Burke

While I Live could have gone in several different directions -- oddly, no one wonders if this woman might be a con artist when you consider that Julia appears to be quite wealthy -- but what it offers the viewer (very little, in fact) is like a mild, forgettable episode of One Step Beyond stretched to 80 minutes! I won't give away any more of the film's flimsy secrets in case there are masochistic viewers who have a need to see virtually every bad British movie ever made (apparently I'm one of them!), but this has to be classified as a time-waster. You keep hoping something of real dramatic interest will occur but it never quite does. The acting is professional at least, with Tom Walls making the best impression as the house man Nehemiah. As for Olwyn's pleasantly romantic musical composition, it sounds like warmed-over Rachmaninoff but was composed by Charles Williams. 

Verdict: Based on a stage play that must have been equally dull. *1/2. 

ACCOMPLICE

Richard Arlen and Veda Ann Borg

ACCOMPLICE (1946). Director: Walter Colmes.

Private eye Simon Lash (Richard Arlen) gets a surprise visitor, Joyce (Veda Ann Borg), the woman who left him at the altar years before to marry a wealthy man. Now her husband is missing and Joyce wants Simon to track him down, although he is wary that this is merely a divorce case, which he wants no part of. Simon's investigation takes him to a mink farm, where he encounters the suspicious Sheriff Rucker (Archie Twitchell), along with a couple of bodies. Eventually the trail leads Lash to a mysterious castle in the desert (not to be confused with the Charlie Chan film of that name) where elderly men with shotguns have got an operation running that might put Lash in a bit of difficulty.

Accomplice is a fast-moving, interesting PI story, although towards the end it does get a little ridiculous. However, the acting is sharp, there are certainly interesting settings, and the action is all resolved in a satisfactory and exciting manner. Although Arlen makes a more than credible private eye, he was never to play Lash again. 

Verdict: Entertaining PI flick from the forties. **3/4. 

SWIMFAN

Erika Christensen

SWIMFAN (2002). Director: John Polson. 

Rhode Island high school senior Ben Cronin (Jesse Bradford) is a bright light on the swim team, and he has a cute and charming girlfriend in Amy (Shiri Appleby). One afternoon he helps the new girl in school, Madison Bell (Erika Christensen), when her locker door gets stuck, and the two strike up a friendship. Ben winds up sleeping with Madison and both agree it should not happen again and remain their secret. Unfortunately, Madison doesn't keep her end of the bargain, and considers Ben her new boyfriend, come hell or high water. And she's perfectly willing to kill to keep him. 

Jesse Bradford and Shiri Appleby

A teenage version of Fatal Attraction, Swimfan is a modestly entertaining little thriller with good performances from the three leads, who are appealing actors, especially Bradford and Appleby. The best-known member of the cast is Dan Hedaya, who plays the coach of the swimming team. James DeBello makes an impression as Madison's weird cousin Christopher, and some of the students are well-portrayed. In the long run Swimfan suffers from the fact that most of the characters aren't that dimensional, and I've no doubt some teenagers were disappointed by the movie's complete lack of gore. There's a fairly exciting climax in the high school swimming pool, however. Too bad Madison is such a psycho, as her interest in classical music already gives her a certain, more positive distinction over most of her classmates. 

Verdict: There have been worse ... **1/2.