TRAPPED

Barbara Payton and Lloyd Bridges

TRAPPED (1949). Director: Richard Fleischer. 

Chris Stewart (Lloyd Bridges), a prison inmate due to his counterfeiting activities, allegedly agrees to cooperate with the authorities in order to help find some near-perfect phony currency plates, but instead escapes and hightails it to the side of his girlfriend, Meg (Barbara Payton of Bride of the Gorilla). Chris makes a deal with a man named Jack Sylvester (James Todd) to exchange some counterfeit currency for legitimate cash, and contacts John Downey (John Hoyt of The Glass Cage), a confidence man who hangs out at Meg's club and is always trying to date her; Downey will come up with the cash. But Chris is unaware that the authorities are already watching Meg -- and him -- and that Downey may not be quite the man he thinks he is. 

Payton with John Hoyt

Trapped is a fast-paced, entertaining, and quite well-acted crime meller that pulls you along and makes you interested in what might happen next. There are a couple of problems with the film, however, and that includes Chris' assertion that he can get rich without acquiring those all-important bank plates, which Sylvester wants to hang on to. Also the last section of the film, while an exciting enough chase on its own terms, centers on a supporting character instead of the lead, who is off-screen for the entire final section of the movie. Bridges offers an adroit performance as a bad guy who is nowhere near as smart as he thinks he is, and Payton again proves that there was more to her than blatant sexiness and big red lips. John Hoyt offers an unusual and adept portrayal for him of a man who is almost an aging lover boy. Russ Conway and Robert Karnes have supporting roles and are fine. 

Verdict: Just misses being a special film noir. **3/4.