FACES IN THE DARK

Mai Zetterling and John Gregson

FACES IN THE DARK (1960). Director: David Eady. Colorized. 

Richard Hammond (John Gregson of Fright) is a gruff and unpleasant developer who is working on a revolutionary new light bulb called the Apollo. This bulb explodes, blinding Hammond. His wife, Christiane (Mai Zetterling), who was about to divorce Richard, decides to stay and take care of him, and she takes him for a rest stay at their place in Cornwall. Other guests and residents include Richard's mistreated business partner, David (Michael Denison), Richard's irresponsible brother, Max (John Ireland of Gunslinger), the chauffeur Clem (Tony Wright of The House in Marsh Road), and the maid Janet (Nanette Newman of The Painted Smile). Richard actually seems to be adjusting to his vision loss rather well, but then he gets the notion that things in the household just aren't right. Is he being paranoid or mentally unstable, as his wife suggests, or is he truly the victim of a diabolical plot?

Gregson with Tony Wright

Faces in the Dark is based on a novel by the authors of the source material for Les Diaboliques and Vertigo. It is also a tricky suspense tale that will keep you wondering exactly what is going on in the background. Gregson gives an excellent performance, perfectly convincing in his blindness, and remaining true to his grumpy characterization throughout, although he eventually becomes pitiful. Zetterling, Denison and the others are all on target, with the exception of Ireland, who gives a surprisingly  perfunctory performance. Although the film lacks the slick quality and pacing of other British thrillers of the period, it's great in its depiction of the harrowing struggle of Richard to uncover the truth, whatever it may be, and survive. The movie makes clear, as Richard states, that a blind person is easily fooled by his enemies. 

Verdict: Solid lead and supporting performances help bolster this interesting suspense film. ***. 

GUNSLINGER

Beverly Garland, Jonathan Haze, Allison Hayes

GUNSLINGER (1956). Produced and directed by Roger Corman.

"Sometimes I like awake two or three seconds worrying about it." -- Erica.

1878: Marshal Scott Hood (William Schallert) of Oracle Texas is shot dead in his office right in front of his horrified wife, Rose (Beverly Garland). She immediately shoots and kills one of two assassins and catches up with the other one at her husband's funeral, shooting him dead, too, as he stands hypocritically at the gravesite -- a great scene. 

Beverly Garland and John Ireland

Rose then decides to make herself the marshal of Oracle until a real marshal can show up in two weeks. In those weeks the feisty widow cleans up the town and wages war with Erica Page (Allison Hayes), who owns the Red Dog saloon. Rose insists that Erica keeps regular hours and that the trampy dancing girls leave town (they later attack Rose en masse). Erica and Rose have a zesty cat fight which the latter wins, leading to the former calling for a gunslinger named Cane Miro (John Ireland). Cane is paid $3000 to off the law in town -- Rose -- only Cane finds himself falling for the lady and vice versa. Meanwhile Erica, manipulating things behind the scenes, has bet virtually everything she owns hoping that the railroad will run through Oracle. Will Cane ultimately side with Rose or Erica?

Ireland romances the 50 Foot Woman

There are two obvious influences on Corman's Gunslinger. The first is Johnny Guitar, which came out two years earlier and also featured two women, Joan Crawford and Mercedes McCambridge in this case, in a power struggle (both on and off the set). Then there's Duel in the Sun, made about ten years earlier, in which lovers Jennifer Jones and Gregory Peck have a climactic gun battle -- Gunslinger's climax is basically a steal from that. But that doesn't detract from the fact that Gunslinger is a well-made, well-acted and entertaining picture that is better than its reputation (trashed largely because it was featured on that silly Mystery Science Theater).

Ireland confers with Hayes in front of Haze

Corman's fast-paced direction is a plus, as is the cast. John Ireland successfully keeps you guessing as to his true character and motivations, while Hayes, the 50 foot woman herself, gives possibly her best performance in her hard-as-nails portrayal of Erica. Beverly Garland, always a superior actress who deserved better than a career in B movies, is excellent as Rose, although one flaw in her performance is that she never seems to be grieving for her beloved husband -- but then she's kept pretty busy. Jonathan Haze of The Little Shop of Horrors scores as Jake, the bartender who is in love with Erica and kills poor portly Zebelon Tabb (Bruno VeSota) at her direction. Martin Kingsley doesn't make much of an impression as Mayor Polk, who is hated by Cane, but Margaret Campbell is much better as his wife. Chris Alcaide is Deputy Joshua, and Dick Miller shows up briefly as a postal man who gets shot by the sociopathic Erica. Ronald Stein contributes a quirky and effective score. 

Verdict: With a little more work this under-rated western could have been a real contender. ***. 

THE SCARF

Mercedes McCambridge and John Ireland

THE SCARF  (1951). Written and directed by E. A. Dupont. 

John Barrington (John Ireland of Railroaded) was convicted of strangling a woman with a scarf, but has no memory of it. Sentenced to life in an institution, he manages to escape and winds up on a turkey farm with a grizzled old-timer named Ezra (James Barton). John gives a lift to a somewhat hard-boiled lady named Connie (Mercedes McCambridge). Like Ezra, Connie learns the truth about John but doesn't turn him in, not even for the $5000 reward. John goes to see his old friend, Dr. David Dunbar (Emlyn Williams), who tells him he actually witnessed the murder and knows that John committed it. But is this the truth? Then John's father (Basil Ruysdael) comes into the office with the police in tow ...

James Barton

Frankly, I didn't believe The Scarf for a minute. A lot of good actors are trapped within a screenplay that is half-baked and ludicrous. You can see the denouement coming from a mile away, and the characters seem to exist for only the amount of time they are on-screen -- despite the good acting they never quite seem like real people. Ireland and McCambridge, who were also in All the King's Men together, do the best they can but Broadway star Barton and Williams -- author of Night Must Fall and The Corn is Green in addition to being an actor -- make the best impression. There is also some good work from Lloyd Gough as another psychiatrist, David Bauer/Wolfe as bar owner Louie, and Iris Adrian as a drunken floozy. King Donovan [The Magnetic Monster] is the piano player in the gin joint where Connie works and sings (McCambridge betrays a not-bad voice). Lyle Talbot [Batman and Robin] gives a dull performance as a cop. The music and photography are good but not enough to make this memorable.

Verdict: Flavorful performances, but you won't believe a minute of it! **.

TENDER FLESH / WELCOME TO ARROW BEACH

TENDER FLESH /WELCOME TO ARROW BEACH (1974). Director: Laurence Harvey. 

Hitchhiker Robbin Stanley (Meg Foster) runs into Korean war veteran Jason Henry (Laurence Harvey, who also directed the film) on the beach in front of his large California home. Jason invites Robbin in for a meal and she is introduced to his sister, Grace (Joanna Pettet), who is jealous of the women he brings home due to her incestuous relationship with her brother. Although this is not spelled out in any detail, apparently Jason developed a taste for human flesh when he was lost and isolated during the war. Nearly becoming his next supper before escaping, Robbin tries to tell the authorities -- Deputy Rakes (Stuart Whitman) and Sheriff Bingham (John Ireland) -- how crazy and dangerous Jason is, but they think she's on drugs and don't believe her. With the help of a medical technician named Alex (David Macklin), Robbin re-enters the house of horrors to get more evidence. But both of them may have bitten off more than they can chew (pun intended). 

Laurence Harvey

Welcome to Arrow Beach was originally entitled Yellow-Headed Summer and Walter Pidgeon and Donna Reed were supposed to have been in the cast. The film was re-released under the more exploitative title Tender Flesh and had a major and more explicit advertising campaign: "You won't believe what's behind the meat locker door" and so on. In truth the movie definitely has its gruesome moments (in the uncut version) and there's actually more gore than in Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which came out the same year. The horror highlight of the film is a basement murder where the killer takes photographs of the victim, and then literally butchers the woman with an ax, the whole slaughter tableau presented as brutal still pictures with flashing strobes, something that doesn't diminish the disturbing aspects of the sequence one bit.  

Gloria LeRoy

This was Laurence Harvey's last picture, and only one of two that he directed. His performance is excellent. He gets solid performances from Meg Foster and Joanna Pettet, and veterans Ireland and Whitman are typically professional. David Macklin makes a nice impression as Alex, as does Gloria LeRoy as an ill-fated middle-aged model that Jason also encounters on the beach after her paramour has robbed her. Altovise Gore Davis, the wife of Sammy Davis Jr., plays a deputy named Molly. By any name Welcome to Arrow Beach is an interesting if imperfect picture, with both pacing and structural problems, and a score that does very little to create needed suspense or terror, but it's worth a look if for no other reason than the presence of Laurence Harvey both behind and in front of the camera. 

Verdict: You will believe what's behind the meat locker door after that rather savage murder sequence. **1/2. 

RAILROADED

Hugh Beaumont

RAILROADED (1947). Director: Anthony Mann. 

Steve Ryan (Ed Kelly) is falsely accused of robbery and the murder of a police officer when the real culprit is nasty hood Duke Martin (John Ireland). Duke's hard-as-a-hooker girlfriend, Clara (Jane Randolph), fingers poor Steve, but even she begins to develop a conscience when other witnesses wind up murdered. Sgt. Mickey Ferguson (Hugh Beaumont), a cop from the old neighborhood, has to arrest Steve, incurring the wrath of Steve's feisty sister, Rosie (Sheila Ryan), who begins a relationship with Duke to ferret out information. Meanwhile Mickey hopes he can get a love-sick but frightened Clara to turn on her boyfriend and tell the truth. 

John Ireland and Jane Randolph

Railroaded is an absorbing if minor entry in the film noir genre, bolstered by some good performances. Although best known as a kind of bland father on Leave It to Beaver, Beaumont was generally good playing cops, private eyes, and especially bad guys in low-budget melodramas like this one. Randolph and Ryan, who have a fairly zesty cat-fight at one point, are both effective as the ladies in the story, and Ireland makes a convincing villain. Steve Ryan is fine as the decent guy accused of a terrible crime, but he only appeared in two other pictures. Keefe Braselle plays another guy who took part in the robbery, and Roy Gordon [Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman] is a mob boss who gives Duke his orders; both are good. From PRC (Producers Releasing Corporation). 

Verdict: Lower case film noir with some interesting performers. **1/2.