Tonight's movie was "Cry Terror"(1958), a suspense filled thriller starring James Mason (pronun.), Rod Steiger and Inger Stevens, by whose name I discovered the film in a database search. More on Miss Stevens later. Also, concerning James Mason, I'd like to briefly remind you of the correct pronunciation of his name. It's easier than some of the others we've practiced, and only requires a substitution of a Ch sound in place of the J in his first name, and a drawn-out elocution, so that when you say it, it sounds like Chayme-s May-son, uttered in a perfect London accent. I know we've discussed this before, but it's been awhile with Mr. Mason, so I thought a refresher course was in order.
"Cry Terror" is an appropriate title for this picture. I don't know if "terrorism" was an actual term in 1958. The first time I heard it used was during the Munich Olympics in 1972, but in the movie, a terrorist has sent a letter to the president of an airline, informing him that an explosive device has been planted on one of his planes. The terrorist then calls the president at his office to tell him exactly where the device can be found. This is to prove that he has the capability to bypass their security, meaning he can do it again, and also to give the airline a second chance, because what the psycho really wants is money - half a million bucks worth. To back up his demand, he lets the president know that he planted a second device on a different airplane. He won't reveal which one. Just as you are expecting an earlier version of "Airport", the plot switches gears to evolve into a hostage situation.
Chames Mason works in some capacity as an electrician. One reviewer on IMDB claims he is a TV repairman, but that was not clear to me. When we first see him, the news of the event has just come over his radio, and he's frantic to get home.
When he gets there, he's a nervous wreck. His wife (Stevens) asks him what's wrong. He turns on the TV to show her the news, and then tells her that he's the one who built the device! I mean, OMG, right? He goes on further to explain : an old Army buddy of his (Rod Steiger) had come to him with a proposition. If he could design a triggering device, the buddy, whose name is Paul, would be able to sell it to a demolition company he does business with. During the war, both Mason and Paul worked in demolition for the military. Mason figured it was a good opportunity, so he built the device and gave it to Paul, but now - with the terrible news - he sees that Paul has tricked him. The device from the first airplane has been displayed on television. There's no question it is Mason's. Paul has turned out to be a psychopath, and........wait a minute because someone is knocking on the door.
James Mason answers it, and - boom! - in walks Rod Steiger (Paul). I suppose I should say he barges in, or maybe that he storms in, because Rod Steiger never simply walks into a room. As Paul the terrorist, he's a Barrelchested Bully wearing horn rimmed glasses. He barges in to Mason's house, pulls a gun, and informs Mason, his wife Inger Stevens and their little girl Patty that they're all coming with him. After forcing them outside and into his car - which is driven by his henchman Neville Brand - Paul proceeds to take them to a penthouse hideaway owned by Jack Klugman, playing a Petulant Punk in on the kidnap plot. Also at the penthouse is a very young Angie Dickinson, looking sleek as always and brunette here. She's in on the deal, too, and sweet on Steiger, whom she considers a criminal mastermind. "He's worked on this scheme for over a year", she tells a shocked Mason. "He's thought of every detail, so don't try anything funny cause you'll never get away".
Steiger gets on the horn again and makes another call to the airline. He tells the president that he's upping the ante : he's got Mason and his family at gunpoint. He wants his half million in three hours or he's gonna kill them, and blow up the previously indicated second airplane.
Kenneth Tobey of the FBI is listening in on the call. He gets right to work, giving his agents a comprehensive list of things to find out, such as the names of all the men who were in Mason's Army unit. They're also working on locating a woman who was seen lingering on the first plane (Dickinson). They've got a piece of her chewing gum with a nice incisor bite to go on, so they're gathering dental records from all over Manhattan. Steiger, meanwhile, is itchy to get his money, but there's no way in Hell he's gonna pick it up himself, so he tells Neville Brand to take Inger Stevens to another house, located in Hoboken, New Joysey. She protests (and you would too) because Brand is clearly a degenerate thug. She doesn't wanna be left alone with him.
Steiger tells her to shut up, but also orders Brand to keep his hands off her, which is awfully nice of him. What a gentleman. There will be a sub-plot that has to do with Brand's past as a convicted rapist and his longtime addiction to Benzedrine. Stevens will indeed be left alone with him, but only for a short time, because Steiger wants her to go to the airline offices to pick up the money. If she refuses or messes up, her husband and daughter will die.
Meanwhile, Kenneth Tobey is working overtime to get the forensics on Steiger and his gang. You get to see some sophisticated FBI work that you might not have thought them capable of in 1958. There is also a great driving scene through the streets of Manhattan. When Inger Stevens goes to get the ransom money, she's on a limited time frame, and she keeps making wrong turns and getting stuck at red lights, behind slow moving trucks, and finally she gets on a bridge she can't exit from. All of this is costing her time; it's a real nail biter of a scene.
For his part, Steiger has moved to a secret location so he can monitor Stevens' progress and make sure she hasn't brought the cops along. This leaves Chames Mason alone with Angie Dickinson and Jack Klugman back at the penthouse. They're the slackers of the gang, more interested in watching a boxing match than keeping an eye on Mason, so when Dickinson walks down to the corner for beer and sandwiches, he sees his chance to escape. But he's gotta be quick. If he doesn't alert the police immediately, the kidnappers could kill his daughter.
Are we having fun yet? I don't know about you, but this sounds like a heck of a plot to me. You also get an epic black and white tour of 1950s Manhattan, including some neighborhoods you may not have seen in other New York movies over the years. Rod Steiger is especially menacing as Paul the terrorist. About Inger Stevens, I don't know what prompted me to search the database in her name. I haven't seen her in any movies, recently or in the past, not that I can recall anyway. Her's was just a name that popped into my head, because I am always looking for films I haven't seen, and I've searched every actor I can think of. Out of the blue, her name popped up (maybe I heard it somewhere), and when I IMDBed her after the movie, I was saddened to see that she had a short and tragic life, and died at age 36, in 1970, from a drug overdose. Her death was ruled a suicide, and it's extra sad because just from this one movie, you can tell she was an excellent actress. Even more than James Mason, she has to carry the film, especially for the final 40 minutes after Steiger sends her to collect the money. Her reactions are as real as you would expect from a woman actually put into such a situation, and her narration during the driving scene has you on the edge of your seat, hoping she will make it back on time. That's all I wanted to mention about her, that I did a search on her name for no particular reason, that she was so good in this movie, and then that I read about her on IMDB.
The end of "Cry Terror" will take Stevens and Steiger on foot for a riveting finale. I'll tell you no more, except to give the movie Two Big Thumbs Up. It you liked "The Taking of Pelham 1-2-3" and films of that ilk, "Cry Terror" will be right up your alley and is thus highly recommended. ////
That's all for the moment. It is now Sunday afternoon. We had good singin' in church, and now I am gonna go for a short walk before heading back to Pearl's. I'm too nervous to see how the Rams are doing against Dallas........are they winning? Wait....don't tell me. I'm too superstitious. If I don't know the score, they'll win - but if I check it (or if you tell me), they'll lose. So I'll find out after the game, lol.
See you tonight at the Usual Time.
Tons and tons of love. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxo :):)
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