BLACKOUT (1950)

Maxwell Reed and Dinah Sheridan

BLACKOUT (1950). Director: Robert S. Baker.

Chris Pelley (Maxwell Reed of Shadow of Fear) lost his sight in an accident but is scheduled to have an operation that will restore it. Before that he goes to an appointment and discovers that he has entered the wrong flat and  even stumbled over a dead body. The body disappears and nobody believes him. After a successful surgery, Chris returns to the flat and encounters Pat Dale (Dinah Sheridan of No Trace) and her grumpy father (Kynaston Reeves of Fiend without a Face), who has been out of sorts ever since his son died in a plane crash. Attracted to one another, Chris and Pat begin their own investigation into whoever the dead man was as well as whosoever killed him. Because of this both of them not only find themselves in danger but discover that sometimes dead men walk again ...

Chris is in a bit of a pickle -- Michael Evans on the far left

Blackout has superior photography and scoring, and all told is not badly done, and well-acted as well. But somehow it just never catches fire and comes off as a decent but distinctly minor crime drama. Maxwell Reed, who I have seen in many working class roles, this time plays a dapper, urbane type and is as good as ever. Dinah Sheridan is a bit bland but okay. Annette D. Simmonds offers more spice as a gal who is in with the bad guys but tries to help Chris to her regret. Patric Doonan is Chalky, an old pal of Pat's brother who may know more than he's telling, and Michael Evans (of The Young and the Restless) is effective as Guy Sinclair, who is mixed up in the thick of things. An eerie house that figures in the story looks like something out of Psycho. Robert S. Baker also (co-) directed the much more interesting Jack the Ripper. Maxwell Reed married Joan Collins two years after this film but their marriage only lasted four or so years. 

Verdict: Acceptable suspense story with some good settings and performances. **1/2. 

MYSTERY STREET

Ricardo Montalban

MYSTERY STREET (1950). Director: John Sturges. 

A blackmailer named Vivian (Jan Sterling), who lives in a shady boarding house, winds up on the wrong end of a bullet. Some time later Lt. Morales (Ricardo Montalban) of the Barnstable, Cape Cod police force is called in when a skeleton is found on a beach. With the help of forensics and some dogged police work, as well as interviews with those who knew Vivian, Morales is able to zero in on the killer. Morales' chief suspect is Henry Shanway (Marshall Thompson of Cult of the Cobra), a married man who made the drunken mistake of driving off with Vivian that night, while Mrs. Smerrling (Elsa Lanchester), the landlady of the boarding house, is playing a dangerous game of blackmail that could make her the next victim. 

Elsa Lanchester and Edmon Ryan

Mystery Street deals with forensic science much, more more than the average murder mystery of the period, which is one of its strengths. There are also some fine performances from Montalban, Lanchester, Thompson, Sterling, Bruce Bennett as a Harvard professor that Morales consults with, and Sally Forrest as Thompson's wife. Forrest has a particularly good scene talking obliquely about the death of her child in the hospital. There is also nice work from Betsy Blair as a woman who lived in the same boarding house as the victim, and Edmon Ryan as a ship builder who is another suspect. Walter Burke and King Donovan have smaller roles and are fine.

Sally Forrest and Marshall Thompson

Mystery Street has some flaws, however. There is not nearly enough music, which would have strengthened key sequences. Certain actions of the main suspect should have strongly intimated that he wasn't the murderer if Lt. Morales, who seems quite smart, was using his head. And the scene when Morales walks in on Shanway just a second after the latter happens to see the victim's photo in the newspaper is coincidence carried a bit too far. John Alton's moody photography is an asset, though. Leading man Montalban always played with a borderline cocky assurance that gives his thesping a certain flavorful aspect -- this film is no exception in that regard.

Verdict: Good crime thriller with some very good performances. ***. 

BORN TO BE BAD

Joan Fontaine and Robert Ryan

BORN TO BE BAD (1950). Director: Nicholas Ray. Colorized. 

As a child Christabel (Joan Fontaine of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea) was sent to live with her maiden aunt (Virginia Farmer) -- a woman of modest means -- instead of with her wealthy uncle, so she has grown up wanting what others have. This includes Curtis (Zachary Scott), the rich fiance of her uncle's secretary, Donna (Joan Leslie),  with whom she moves in to work her wiles. Christabel, who seems sweet, shy and innocent, sets her cap for Curtis, subtly dissuading him away from "mercenary" Donna, but also can't keep her hands off the more virile author, Nick (Robert Ryan), who also falls under her spell. One of these men she will snare and bring to the altar, but that won't stop her from wanting the other man as well ... 

Zachary Scott and Joan Leslie

With Born to be Bad, Fontaine enters Bette Davis-Joan Crawford territory, but as she plays a character who employs a more sinister, shady technique instead of sharp, vitriolic bombast, she may seem less vivid than those other actresses. But Fontaine is nevertheless excellent in the role, and her almost constant smiling -- no matter what she's saying or thinking -- makes her seem like the most hideous of sociopaths. The other cast members are all top-notch, and this includes Mel Ferrer as painter and observer Gobby, who is both amused and appalled by Christabel and makes funny and sardonic comments. The trouble with this very entertaining soap opera is that the wind-up is rather flat. This movie was spoofed on The Carol Burnett Show as "Raised to Be Rotten!"

Verdict: Joan schemes, wins, and loses in grand style. *** 

PREHISTORIC WOMEN

 PREHISTORIC WOMEN (1950). Director: Gregory G. Tallas.

Tigri (Laurette Luez) is head of a group of supposedly prehistoric women who hate and hunt men from another tribe, one of whom is Engor (Allan Nixon of Outlaw Women), who inspires a fairly zesty cat fight among the ladies. There is a nine foot giant who snatches up women and runs off with them, as well as a "giant flying dragon" -- according to the ever-present narrator -- that more resembles an outsized pelican or sea gull. There are no dinosaurs or even lizards, no special effects to speak of, and a budget of about 99 cents. Luez made more of an impression in the TV series The Adventures of Fu Manchu as the Oriental doctor's mistress, and also had a notable role in D.O.A. with Edmond O'Brien. 

Verdict: This isn't even a fun "bad movie." *. 

UNMASKED

Raymond Burr may need Perry Mason 

UNMASKED (1950). Director: George Blair. 

Roger Lewis (Raymond Burr of Abandoned) is a ruthless man who publishes a rag exposing the peccadilloes of prominent citizens. His main backer is actress Doris King (Hillary Brooke of Confidence Girl), a barracuda who wants to divorce her husband -- down on his luck producer Harry Jackson (Paul Harvey) -- and marry Roger, although he's much more interested in his secretary, Mona (Grace Albertson). Early in the film Roger gets rid of the annoyingly insistent Doris and manages to pin the murder on her estranged husband. As detective Jim Webster (Robert Rockwell) tracks down Jackson, his devoted daughter, Linda (Barbra Fuller), tries to get him to turn himself in. Meanwhile both Jim and Linda are determined to prove that the reptilian Roger Lewis is actually behind the murder, but Lewis may be too clever for them ... 

Barbra Fuller

Unmasked is a minor suspense film that is bolstered by a terrific lead performance by Raymond Burr, who seemed to specialize in bad guys (a la Rear Window) before landing the plum assignment of Perry Mason. Rockwell, most famous as the principal on Our Miss Brooks, is pleasant but unexciting as the detective, Brooke is snappy in her customary fashion, Harvey is suitably desperate, and Fuller offers a good, intense performance as Linda. Norman Budd also makes an impression as "Biggie," a character who unwittingly and unwisely pits Lewis against his main enemy, the mobster Johnny Rocco (John Eldredge, who is also excellent). Barbra Fuller figured that taking an "a" out of her first name would be more distinctive, and she did it years before Barbra Streisand did the same thing. George Blair also directed Insurance Investigator with Eldredge and Brooke.

Verdict: Despite several good performances, this doesn't really make the grade. **. 

ARIZONA TERRITORY

Whip Wilson

ARIZONA TERRITORY (1950). Director: Wallace Fox. 

Prospector Jeff Molloy (Whip Wilson) comes across a pretty gal, Doris (Nancy Saunders), in a runaway wagon and rescues her. Along with her ex-con Uncle Otis (John Merton of Radar Patrol vs Spy King), Doris runs a trading post in the wild territory of Arizona. Suspecting Otis of going back to his old ways of counterfeiting, Jeff teams up with an undercover U.S., Marshall named Luke Watson (Andy Clyde). Another player in this undistinguished oater is Greg Lance (Dennis Moore) who wants to marry Nancy but is secretly in cahoots with her uncle. Meanwhile Jeff is hoping that Nancy is on the up and up. 

Dennis Moore

Although he made a couple more films than Lash Larue, Monogram's Whip Wilson was probably the least of the western cowboy stars and isn't much remembered today. His comic book for Atlas/Marvel only lasted three issues. This is one of the very few films in which he didn't play himself, but it scarcely makes a difference. Handy with a whip, Wilson proves to be an amiable if minor-league screen presence, although he handles the dialogue and action scenes professionally enough. Veteran character actor Andy Clyde, who supported Whip in several films, was 58 but looked quite a bit older. There was a forty-year gap in the acting career of Nancy Saunders, who stopped acting in the late fifties and took it up again in the nineties! Dennis Moore of The Purple Monster Strikes -- he had 264 other credits! -- gives the best performance. 

Verdict: Nothing special in this B western, but it's always nice to see Moore! **. 

FLYING DISC MAN FROM MARS -- IN COLOR!

Walter Reed and James Craven

FLYING DISC MAN FROM MARS (12-chapter Republic serial/1950.) Director: Fred C. Brannon. Colorized.

Martian Mota (Gregory Gaye) has come to earth and enlisted a former Nazi scientist named Bryant (James Craven of The Purple Monster Strikes) to assist him in conquering the planet, something which Bryant seems eager to do. His chief opponents are Air Patrol security officers Kent Fowler (Walter Reed of Government Agents vs Phantom Legion), Helen Hall (Lois Collier), and Steve (Sandy Sanders). Since Mota's spaceship, or flying disc, has been destroyed, Bryant helps him construct what he calls a smaller "semi-disc" which is hidden inside a volcano HQ when it isn't in use. For twelve chapters Fowler and his associates do their level best to foil the dastardly plans of Mota, Bryant and their own associates, including Drake (Harry Lauter of It Came from Beneath the Sea) and Ryan (Richard Irving). 

The fabulous "seni-disc"

Fred C. Brannon had co-directed a number of Republic serials but eventually helmed the productions single-handedly and did just fine. Flying Disc Man moves at a swift pace and is colorful, action-packed fun. Fowler is one of the luckiest heroes in serials as on two occasions he survives falls from great heights -- in planes no less -- merely by landing on some bushes or a hay stack (this after falling through a bomb bay)! There are also exciting cliffhangers involving a train trestle, a fiery rag stuffed into a gas tank, oil from a rocket ignited by sparks, and others. The actors all go through their paces playing it in just the right note. 

Verdict: Even more fun in color! ***. 

THE DALTONS' WOMEN

Lash La Rue

THE DALTON'S WOMEN (1950). Director: Thomas Carr.

In the town of Navaho, members of the Dalton gang have seemingly become respectable citizens with new identities. However, they are up to their old tricks of holding up stagecoaches and robbing banks. Into town comes a man that everyone assumes is one of the Daltons, but "Mike Leonard" -- actually Clint Dalton (Jack Holt) -- knows better. He hires this stranger as a dealer in his saloon, suspecting that he's actually the law. Yes, indeed, the stranger is U.S. Marshall Lash La Rue (Lash La Rue), and he and Pinkerton agent Joan Talbot (Pamela Blake) set out to expose and round up the gang with the help of Lash's grizzled old pal Fuzzy Jones (Al St. John).

burlesque in the wild west?

Lash La Rue was a cowboy star who appeared in a great many low-budget productions for poverty row studio, PRC. In spite of this he gained a large following and had his own comic book that lasted until 1960. Although some have noted a resemblance to Humphrey Bogart, La Rue was actually handsomer than Bogie, although his acting range was much more limited. Playing himself in his movies, La Rue always dressed in black and carried a whip which he eventually learned to wield with a certain expertise; he also did his own stunts, which fitted neatly into PRC's budgetary plans. La Rue occasionally had small roles in films for other studios.

Catfight! June Benbow vs. Jacqueline Fontaine

The Dalton's Women throws in everything but the kitchen sink. There are sexy show girls strutting their stuff and doing the can can; a juggler whose act is interrupted by a shooting party; and a songstress named Jacqueline Fontaine (played by Jacqueline Fontaine, who was introduced in this picture). Fontaine delivers two numbers, including the catchy "The Right Kind of Man," in a husky and sensual voice; she knows how to deliver a song. The best scene in the movie has Fontaine involved in a wild, protracted catfight with saloon gal, May (June Benbow) over a character named Honest Hank (Archie Twitchell), who otherwise doesn't really figure in the plot. The catfight, with the two women pulling hair and nearly tearing the clothing off of each other, is one of the longest female-female fight scenes I've seen in any movie!

Tom Neal, Lyle Talbot, J. Farrell MacDoanld

Others in the cast include the ubiquitous Lyle Talbot as an honest businessman, Tom Neal [Jungle Girl] as the dishonest Mayor, J. Farrell MacDonald as the representative of the stagecoach company, Stanley Price [The Invisible Monster] as bad guy Manson, and Tom Tyler [Adventures of Captain Marvel] as Emmett Dalton. Thomas Carr also co-directed the serial Jesse James Rides Again. This really was the first movie for Jacqueline Fontaine, who had thirteen successive credits in B movies like Outlaw Women, A productions such as The Country Girl, and assorted television programs. A "Western Adventure" Production. 

Verdict: If you've always wanted to see a Lash La Rue picture, this is the one to go for. Dig that zesty catfight! **1/2. 

THE LOST VOLCANO

Johnny Sheffield as Bomba

THE LOST VOLCANO (1950). Director: Ford Beebe. 

Paul and Ruth Gordon (Donald Woods and Marjorie Lord) are troubled by reports that their young son, David (Tommy Ivo), has an "imaginary" friend named Bomba (Johnny Sheffield). David argues that Bomba actually exists, and his friend, the maid Nona (Elena Verdugo) concurs. The Gordons aren't crazy about their son running around the jungle in a loincloth accompanied by Bomba, but they quickly change their tune once David is kidnapped. Previously Bomba had taken David to a secret location, an extinct -- or "lost" -- volcano inside which is hidden treasure, and now two hunters, Barton (John Ridgely) and Higgins (Don C. Harvey), want David to take them there -- or else. As his parents and Nona search frantically for the missing boy, Bomba comes to the rescue, but an earthquake and bullets may cause a problem ... 

Tommy Ivo and Donald Woods

The Lost Volcano is an entertaining Bomba programmer with Sheffield appealing as the jungle "boy" and a climax that has lots of action. The movie judiciously uses lots of stock footage, although there are times when one can't quite place the actors in true relationship to their surroundings, a typical problem with low-budget movies. Despite this, the movie is fun due to its fast pace and generally spirited cast. There is a humungous python that wraps itself around one of the villains, tunnels and caverns full of skeletons and jewels, and an unexpected eruption with lava flows, adding up to an effective climax. Little Tommy Ivo amassed 85 credits, and then retired to become a professional race car driver. 

Verdict: Not bad Bomba feature with pleasant players. **3/4. 

THE HIDDEN CITY

Johnny Sheffield and Sue England

THE HIDDEN CITY (aka Bomba and the Hidden City/1950). Director: Ford Beebe.

Dennis (Damian O'Flynn) and his driver Hadji (Smoki Whitfield) are taking nature shots of the jungle when they spot Bomba, the Jungle Boy (Johnny Sheffield) swinging by. They report this to Hassan Emir (Paul Guilfoyle), the leader of a place called the "Hidden City." Dennis wants to capture Bomba, more out of curiosity than any malevolence, but Hassan and his right-hand Abdullah (Charles La Torre) seem to want Bomba dead.

Haggard in the jungle: Sue England

Apparently they are afraid that Bomba may know the true origins of a young lady named Zidah (Sue England), an orphan who has been taken in by adoptive father, Raschid (Leon Belasco). Raschid is anxious to get in good with Hassan, so when the latter comes to choose a wife -- or slave -- from the girls of a nearby village, he is eager to offer Zidah. However, Zidah runs off and tries to set up housekeeping with Bomba in the jungle -- Bomba will have none of it. (It may be that in some shots Zidah looks old enough to be Bomba's mother, or that Bomba hasn't yet developed much interest in the opposite sex; English was 22 and Sheffield 19.)

Belasco, O'Flynn and Whitfield

The Hidden City is a standard Bomba adventure with some amusing moments and a fast pace courtesy of director Ford Beebe. Sheffield is charming, England  adequate, and Guilfoyle, and especially Belasco, make a decided impression in their roles. In one scene Abdullah savagely whips a prone Bomba, but neither the blows nor the teenager are seen in the frame. Although the title sort of promises some kind of mysterious adventure or locale, this doesn't quite materialize. The film is reasonably pleasant for Bomba and jungle movie enthusiasts. From Monogram.

Verdict: So-so Bomba adventure that moves too swiftly to wear out its welcome. **. 

BLONDE DYNAMITE

Gabriel Dell and Adele Jergens

BLONDE DYNAMITE (1950). Director: William Beaudine. 

Gabe Moreno (Gabriel Dell) has a job as a messenger in a bank, and also has a new girlfriend named Joan (Adele Jergens). Joan manages to steal $5000 from Gabe and give it to head operator Champ Fallon (Harry Lewis), who tells Gabe that he'll get the money back if he gives them the combination to the safe. While this is going on, Louie Dumbroski (Bernard Gorcey) is importuned to take a vacation, after which Slip Mahoney (Leo Gorcey) opens up an escort service in his Sweet Shoppe which employs Sach (Huntz Hall) and the other Bowery Boys as unlikely dates for lonely ladies. Then Champ hits on the scheme of breaking into the bank by digging through the floor of little Louie's shop. 

Escorts? 

Believe it or not, Blonde Dynamite has some genuine laughs in it as the zany story proceeds. A scene with Sach and Whitey (Billy Benedict) taking two older ladies to the opera is a scream, and there's also a funny sequence when Joan hires all of the boys as  escorts to a party to get them out of the way and plans to give them all a mickey. The screenplay makes good use of the comic talents of Slip and his gang, and Gabriel Dell exudes a certain likable charm of his own. Adele Jergens is saucy and vivid as usual as the bad girl who drives the action. Handsome Harry Lewis did mostly television work in the fifties and afterwards and offers a smooth performance in this. 

Verdict: Cute Bowery Boys picture with spirited players. ***. 

NO TRACE

Hugh Sinclair

NO TRACE (1950). Director: John Gilling. 

Robert Southley (Hugh Sinclair) is a best-selling mystery writer, radio host, and former actor. Patronizing and chauvinistic, he has a secretary, Linda (Dinah Sheridan), who puts up with him probably because she's in love with him. Inspector MacDougall (John Laurie) doesn't think much of Southley's crime novels, and thinks he should learn more about police procedure. This opportunity presents itself when Southley murders a blackmailer (Michael Brennan), and MacDougall invites him to tag along on their investigation. Southley finds himself in a bit of a sticky wicket, and now Linda is beginning to have suspicions herself ...

No Trace is an entertaining and well-acted British suspense film -- Laurie is especially good in this -- and other cast members include Dora Bryan as the dead-common Maisie, who lives in the same boarding house as the victim, and Barry Morse as Sgt Harrison, who is an assistant to MacDougall and is also sweet on Linda. 13 years later Morse became famous as the policeman hunting David Janssen on the long-running TV series, The Fugitive. You would never have known that Morse was actually an Englishman who emigrated to Canada and eventually got many American roles; he amassed about 150 TV and film credits, and that's not even counting his numerous stage credits. 

Verdict: The acting, a fast-pace, and interesting situations put this over. ***.