The Threat

This little-known 'B' noir – tightly-paced and efficiently handled by journeyman Feist – provides Charles McGraw with one of his best roles as a vicious escaped criminal out to get the three people responsible for his conviction; clearly resourceful, he manages to kidnap all of them within the space of a few hours from his freedom (with the help of two other associates)! The film makes great use of confined spaces: in their attempt to escape detection on the way to crossing the border into Mexico, the gang exchanges their hide-out a number of times – a house, a moving van (conveniently concealing a police car inside it which, apart from carrying the hostages, allows McGraw to know the pursuing force's every move!) and finally a cabin in the desert.

As with other post-war examples of the genre, the violence is more pronounced – in particular the stunning sequence in which McGraw pins the hero to the floor (by stepping on the latter's outstretched arms) and breaks a chair over his face! The hero, however, is rather colorless and it's the young van driver (himself an unwilling captive) who offers the most resistance to McGraw and gang – though, in their final confrontation, the criminal is able to disarm him in the blink of an eye!

Ultimately, this proves to be yet another title which has so far been curiously overlooked for DVD release – indeed, it would make an ideal choice for the next instalment of Warners' much-anticipated "Film Noir Collection"...