Mark Stevens is a bitter ex-cop, fresh out of San Quentin after doing a 3-year term on bogus corruption charges. Aside from being framed, he also lost his wife and kid in a car explosion meant for him. San Fransisco racketeer Douglas Kennedy was said to be responsible for everything and Stevens wants to get even. He turns to another local mobster, Lewis Martin and his right-hand Skip Homeier, for information but they feign ignorance. But Homeier's girl Joan Vohs, informs Stevens that Kennedy moved to Alaska, and Stevens makes his way up north. There Stevens meets bar owner Martha Hyer while trying to find Kennedy, who lives there under a new identity, raising his young daughter, together with his former criminal partner Mort Mills. But when Martin gets wind that Vohs spilled the beans to Stevens, he sends Homeier and Vohs up north as well, to take care of Stevens, Kennedy, and Vohs...
I have a soft spot for Mark Stevens ('The Dark Corner'), and this movie, hist first directorial effort, only solidifies that spot even more. He's not a great actor by any means, but at least in his noirs I find him really entertaining to watch. This might even be his finest hour acting-wise that I've seen so far. Despite playing his character bitter to the core, some would even say over-the-top bitter, he does manage to give him some humanity, and there are some touching moments during his interactions with Kennedy's daughter Cheryl Callaway ('The Lineup'), who gives a great performance for a 7-year old girl. In fact, the cast is pretty good overall, with Vohs ('Vice Squad') also standing out as a streetwise girl with a heart of gold who always goes for the bad guy, Homeier ('Black Widow') in this case. Homeier gives his character a nice sadistic streak, while the gorgeous Hyer ('Down Three Dark Streets') plays the strong but empathetic businesswoman well (loved her hairdo here btw, it really made her stand out). But while they have decent chemistry, the romantic angle between Stevens and Hyer feels a bit forced, it happens way too fast.
The plot takes more than a few cues from 1953's 'The Big Heat', but it doesn't feel like a carbon copy of that movie. It's not a classic, but Stevens proved himself a solid director. His next movie, 'Time Table', is also a solid noir (which I would love to see in a cleaned up version), and he would also direct, produce and star in the noir-ish TV series 'Big Town'. What sets 'Cry Vengeance' apart tho from other noirs is the location, a small town in Alaska. Despite a lot of interior shots, there is enough on-location/second unit shooting to give this movie its own feel. It's not an out- and-out noir tho, plot-wise it moves away from noir as the movie progresses, and visually DoP William Sickner ('Loophole') doesn't really bring out the shadows either. But I didn't mind really, I actually liked the story arc and the way Stevens slowly regained his humanity. Definitely a movie I will revisit at some point. 7+/10
I have a soft spot for Mark Stevens ('The Dark Corner'), and this movie, hist first directorial effort, only solidifies that spot even more. He's not a great actor by any means, but at least in his noirs I find him really entertaining to watch. This might even be his finest hour acting-wise that I've seen so far. Despite playing his character bitter to the core, some would even say over-the-top bitter, he does manage to give him some humanity, and there are some touching moments during his interactions with Kennedy's daughter Cheryl Callaway ('The Lineup'), who gives a great performance for a 7-year old girl. In fact, the cast is pretty good overall, with Vohs ('Vice Squad') also standing out as a streetwise girl with a heart of gold who always goes for the bad guy, Homeier ('Black Widow') in this case. Homeier gives his character a nice sadistic streak, while the gorgeous Hyer ('Down Three Dark Streets') plays the strong but empathetic businesswoman well (loved her hairdo here btw, it really made her stand out). But while they have decent chemistry, the romantic angle between Stevens and Hyer feels a bit forced, it happens way too fast.
The plot takes more than a few cues from 1953's 'The Big Heat', but it doesn't feel like a carbon copy of that movie. It's not a classic, but Stevens proved himself a solid director. His next movie, 'Time Table', is also a solid noir (which I would love to see in a cleaned up version), and he would also direct, produce and star in the noir-ish TV series 'Big Town'. What sets 'Cry Vengeance' apart tho from other noirs is the location, a small town in Alaska. Despite a lot of interior shots, there is enough on-location/second unit shooting to give this movie its own feel. It's not an out- and-out noir tho, plot-wise it moves away from noir as the movie progresses, and visually DoP William Sickner ('Loophole') doesn't really bring out the shadows either. But I didn't mind really, I actually liked the story arc and the way Stevens slowly regained his humanity. Definitely a movie I will revisit at some point. 7+/10