5 Against the House, Law Students and the Perfect Crime

Yep, law students. Idiots.  So when four think they are pulling off the perfect crime, we know carnage and imperfection will rule the day. Never mind one of the students is an unhinged psycho. Law students? Dullards, indeed. Hence Kim Novak as a sultry nightclub singer. Irrelevant to the plot? Hardly. In slinky evening gown and yearning for love, Kim Novak adds allure and seduction to the plot. Her chances of escaping this one with her perfect face and allure intact will be slim, but we will pull for her. Let us look at the casino-heist film, 1955's "5 Against the House," directed by Phil Karlson.

Al (Guy Madison) is home from Korea and the GI Bill is sending him to law school. His buddy Brick (Brian Keith), same deal. Brick saved Al's life in combat and got pretty messed up doing it. Just released from the psyche ward of an army hospital, Brick is now a law student prone to homicidal rages. They have two law student buddies, the young Roy (Alvy Moore) and Ronnie (Kerwin Mathews). Ronnie is a genius. The quartet drive to Reno and have a night at Harold's Club Casino. Ronnie scoped out the place and when he hears it is impossible to rob, he devises a plan. Okay, Al, back at law school, is romancing sultry nightclub singer Kay (Novak). Brick has a homicidal outburst, or two, and Al tries to get him to go back to the psyche ward. Ronnie thinks too much and now has a surefire plan to hit the casino and lets Roy and Brick in on it. Ronnie's plan to is to rob it, leave the money outside town, and call the casino to come get their money...proving only it can be done.

Brick has other motives and gets a gun. The trio need Al to go along with it, but know he won't. They invite him to go to Reno with them and spring it on him at the last moment. Al decides to marry Kay and bring her to Reno to get married. On the way, Al figures out what his buddies are up to and objects and refuses to be the fourth man. Brick threatens to murder Kay unless Al cooperates. Oh, that perfect plan... genius except for the fact it is so stupid. Brick gets more unhinged.

Will Kay make it to the end credits with her perfect face unmarred?  Does Ronnie's perfect plan have any ounce of perfection in it?  Will Kay ever get the hint and ditch the law student in favor of someone with earning power and personality? This is a good one and the contrast between psycho Brick and the nubile and glamorous Kay, both pulling at Al's heartstrings, is fascinating.  See "5 Against the House" and be reminded those perfect plans you have...they probably stink. 

Man Bait, Diana Dors Of Course

Hot blondes from Film Noir films? Many, but Diana Dors is a big one. The bombshell is introduced in this very film. Not just a Film Noir film but also one of those old Hammer suspense films from England. Yep, Diana Dors is the femme fatale, or one of them in this movie. Sadly, she plays a stupid bimbo and won't survive for the end credits. So sad, the beautiful die so horribly especially when they romance psychos. Our feature today is 1952's "Man Bait" (aka "The Last Page"), directed by Terence Fisher.

The prim and proper book store manager John (George Brent) is battling with insurance companies. His wife (Isabel Dean) is very frail and needs surgery from a specialist in Sweden. The check finally arrives and in a few days will fly there with her for the procedure. Late one day,  his young employee Ruby (Dors) is helping him catalogue books...and she seduces him to kiss her.  Quickly he withdraws and apologizes. No harm done. I know, in 2026 it would be considered rape. Back then, it was a compliment. Ruby is a babe. She catches the handsome Jeffrey (Peter Reynolds) trying to steal a rare book. Jeffrey puts the book back but romances the naive Ruby. Now he finds out about the kiss from Ruby and implores her to blackmail John.  All they want is 100 pounds, but you know where these blackmail schemes go. 

Ruby tries but John throws her out of his office and threatens to fire her. Ruby sends a letter, like she promised to his wife. John's wife reads it, burns it, and drops dead from shock. Uh oh! Murder? Well, Ruby's psycho boyfriend is not into grieving and implores Ruby to go back and demand money anyway. When idiots plot crimes. Yep...Ruby will accidentally die at Jeffrey's hands in the bookstore and now a gorgeous corpse litters the bookstore. John is the murder suspect.  His only ally is co-worker, the beautiful Stella (Marguerite Chapman). She was John's nurse when he went bonkers after the war. John was a POW and escaped the enemy, but not with his sanity. John recovered and now is a stalwart member of London's bookseller community. Big problem...the owner of the store, Clive (Raymond Huntley) is secretly in love with Stella, and having John facing the electric chair increases his chances of getting Stella. Yep, John is screwed...unless...

Will John be able to prove his innocence?  Will Jeffrey step forward and confess to murdering Ruby?  Is Clive at all involved in John's precarious predicament? Blackmail! Dangerous dames! Criminals doing stupid things! Film Noir and Hammer suspense at its best.  See "Man Bait" and pine for the lovely Diana Dors, who met such a brutal death...at least in this film.

  

Wicked Woman, Femme Fatale in White

Beverly Michaels! Whatever you may think of her from watching this film, we should say she was married to the director of this film. Oddly enough, they were wed four years after this film was made and stayed married for 30 years when Russell Rouse died. The couple had two children. Her magnum opus is our film today and she gives a sultry performance of an evil dame looking to chew up and spit out unsuspecting and vulnerable hunks. We do pull for her, not because we approve of what she is doing, but because she is quite the dish, always clad in smart, white outfits.  Our feature today is 1953's "Wicked Woman."

Clad in white, Billie's (Michaels) bus arrive sin a small California town. She is mean to everyone she meets but eventually gets a dive room at a boarding house and a job at a bar owned by Dora (Evelyn Keys) and her husband, the hunk Matt (Richard Egan). Billie's game is to get any man she likes...and Matt is the guy. The patrons love Billie, for the same reason we do.  Her white outfits, smile, and sex appeal. Billie sees that Dora is a drunkard and this bothers Matt.  The seductress then makes sure Dora always has a double-bourbon in her hand. Dora's alcoholism gets worse and Billie has no trouble moving in.  Suddenly, Matt and Billie are scheming, and Dora is not in their plans.

At the boarding house, Billie has a problem. The old, balding, neighbor, Charlie (Percy Helton). The old guy is a pervert and comes on strong.  Billie kind of needs Charlie because he always is quick to lend her money without asking for it back. Billie uses the old slimy guy. Meanwhile Dora's alcoholism gets worse.  Matt kisses and embraces Billie harder and steamier. Now the femme fatale and chump develop an ambitious plan that both are too stupid to see it will never work. Still, passion wins out and the evil duo act on it. Oh, Charlie? He's onto Billie and now is able to blackmail her. 

Just what will Charlie demand from Billie in return for not going to Dora with her plans? Can Matt see past his masculine instincts and save himself from this veritable succubus? What will be Dora's fate now that Billie has Matt under her spell? This is an erotic good time of bacchanal Beverly Michaels allure. For a steamy and moral tale of unfaithfulness and blackmail, see "Wicked Woman." 

The Girl in Black Stockings, Babes Slashed in Film Noir Horror

This is a weird one. I do have to say that however shocking this film is, and however twisted the final reveal is, I guessed the killer in the first five minutes. Be warned...you deviants out there will be less shocked than the sane. The Girl in Black Stockings? Slut! Hussy! Worry not, as the film begins she has been slashed a hundred times. Her face is slashed off...her intimate parts are slashed off...her inner thighs are slashed...  Okay, stop right here. She won't be the last. Our feature today is 1957's "The Girl in the Black Stockings," directed by Howard W. Koch.

In a resort town near Park City, Utah, horror has come. While being romanced by David (Lex Barker), Beth (Anne Bancroft) spots a body at the lakeside...yep, the aforementioned former skank. She screams and Sheriff Jess Holmes (John Dehner) arrives. Suspects? Everyone! Every guy at the resort was two-timed by Marcia, the deceased. Every dame had her BF stolen by her. The resort, Parry's Lodge, is owned by the grouchy Edmund Parry (Ron Randell) and his sister Julia (Marie Windsor). Oh, Edmund? Paralyzed from the neck down...or so we think. Sheriff Jess has his doubts. Paralyzed from what? Accident? Disease? Nope...a broken heart after being jilted by the love of his life. His sister Julia tends to his every need, including wiping his nose. How about the hunk David? He had a date with the deceased but broke it to go out with Beth.  Beth? She likes David and knows what happened when Marcia also liked a guy.

More guests, Harriet Ames (Mamie Van Doren), actress/model, struts around in swimsuits and tries to get in the pants of an older, has been actor, Norman (John Holland). There are more...you'll see. Then another murder...a mysterious stranger from Pittsburgh...huh? Sheriff Jess has suspects but they even begin to get shredded in ways that are equally ungodly. Harriet? She gets drunk and makes a pass at Edmund in his wheelchair. Paralyzed from the neck down, this is awkward for Edmund, and the look on his sister's face is priceless.  More murders.  Every clue points to something incredibly twisted and wrong.

Is Mamie Van Doren too beautiful to be slashed a hundred times? Is the killer a jealous guy or a defensive dame? Is Edmund really paralyzed? The final reveal will cause you to take a shower and clean all the grime off. Oh, did I mention Hoss (Dan Blocker) from "Bonanza" is also in this? Always good to see him, of course not as good as seeing Mamie Van Doren in her white swimsuit. See a prurient Film Noir mystery, "The Girl in Black Stockings."

Rififi, A Perfect Heist in Paris

Right! What could go wrong? The smartest dudes in all of France have a perfect plan. Yep, they're so smart that they have police records and every women they know yells at them. French dames...good luck. They have some in this film and they're as stupid as their guys. However, our mistakes make us smarter, so just maybe this will work. From France, we have a Jules Dassin Film Noir epic, 1955's "Rififi." What does that word mean in English? Tough-guy posturing or a violent brawl. Yeah, that's about right.

Tony (Jean Servais) gets out of prison. He took the rap for his younger cousin Jo (Carl Mohner), who had a family. So what does he do after five years in the joint? Finds his sultry ex-GF Mado (Marie Sabouret). She looks fine in a wonderful evening gown and expensive jewels. Tony will strip her, then whip her and leave her scarred. Let's not be judgmental here...it is France. Jo has an idea and brings him to meet Mario (Robert Manuel). A jewel heist! Yep, ice worth a quarter of a billion Francs. The planning is meticulous. The execution? Well, Mado leaves town and this ticks off her present BF, the sadistic killer Pierre (Marcel Lupovici).  Him and his family are real psychos. Another dame, the nightclub songstress Viviana (Magali Noel) seduces Mario and Cesar. Cesar? An expert with alarms from Italy, brought in just for this job.

The scene in which they sneak into the jewelry store after hours is an extensive one. It looks like a perfect heist except for...well, same old story. One of the four gets just a little bit greedy...just a little bit. Now, Viviane has herself a diamond ring worth almost as much as the Hope diamond. Oh, Mado...she returns to town and Pierre presses her for information. Tony? He can't believe his fortune...until he realizes one of the gangsters is being a bit too generous with his share of the take. Now Pierre puts two and two together and wants Tony dead and all the jewels. Much killing, shootouts, chases, and women getting slapped and abused follows. Is there any way for this to end well?

The dark streets of Paris make this almost a perfect Film Noir film.  The dames are beautiful though they will be endlessly beaten and abused. The eroticism is rampant, and the violence is almost extreme.  Alas, will greed end the night for our gang of thieves? Will any of the dames find happiness with one of these vicious thugs?  Will Tony allow the cops to take him or will he get real desperate? This is a grim and action-packed Film Noir film. See "Rififi" and take it as a moral lesson on greed and treachery.    

Night Without Sleep, Did he Murder Her?

Murder who?  Good question. Hopefully he murdered the Linda Darnell character.  Sure, she's beautiful but oh, is she annoying!  Just murder her and get it over with.  Oh, please...let her be the one who was murdered.  That is, if anyone is going to be murdered. Yep, one of those Film Noir films where some schmuck wakes up with no memory of the night before. As the viewer, we so hope that he did murder someone...someone in particular in fact.  Our feature today is 1952's "Night Without Sleep," directed by Roy Ward Baker.

Six years ago, Dick (Gary Merrill) was a successful Broadway composer. He falls in love with a wealthy woman who finances his play, Emily (June Vincent). They wed. Uh oh...alcohol rears its ugly head and Dick's career goes down the toilet. Emily must be like a mother to him now and Dick resents her. As the film begins, Dick wakes on his sofa from a drunken stupor with no memory of the night before. Remembering as much as he can, he deduces he murdered a dame. Which dame? Well, we can't expect guys like Dick to only have one. He quarrels with Emily.  Then he remembers more. A party at his buddy's (Hugh Beaumont) home. There he sees Julie (Darnell), an actress.  he falls in love with her and goes out with her.  The two have a great time and Julie is so touched he noticed her. Julie has always been a fan of his and is sad to learn he no longer composes. She goes on and on about fantasy dreams she had about him falling in love with her.

Did he murder Julie? Wait, there's more. Because of romancing Julie, he is late for a date with his mistress, Lisa (Hildegard Knef). She's sultry and crying at dinner. She yells at him and back at her apartment, Dick gets mad and approaches her as if he is going to strangle her.  Did he murder Lisa? Then Julie almost misses her boat, the Queen Mary is taking her to England.  She comes to Dick's estate and further professes her love for him. Now, does he murder her?  He murdered someone and he does not yet know who he murdered. Dick has murder in him, so his psychoanalyst (Donald Randolph) tells him.  Dick is scared.  Did he murder anyone?  Will he murder anyone?

Will Julie make her cruise on the Queen Mary, or will Dick off her?  Did Dick kill all the dames in his life?  Is killing the annoying Julie, if it happens, a mere mercy killing (mercy for the viewing audience)?  Linda Darnell is a lovely and talented actress, but I challenge you to watch this film and not desire her fiery demise.  See "Night Without Sleep" and see who gets murdered and why.

The Human Jungle, She's a Tramp and that's Just Fine

"I'm a tramp, okay!" Yes! This declaration by Jan Sterling in her role as a...tramp. Too strong of a word? Hussy?  Slut? Skank? No matter...we like her...what a dish. In this film she is a stripper. Okay, more than a stripper, a nightclub singer/ exotic dancer. She is actually described as a "Tassel Tossing Teaser." Really. Uh oh...former Boston Celtic and Los Angeles Dodger legend Chuck Connors wants her dead. Today we look at a gritty police Film Noir classic, "The Human Jungle," directed by Joseph M. Newman, from 1954.

Intending to leave the force, John "Danny" Danforth (Gary Merrill) is convinced to stay and clean up a demoralized precinct. The precinct is located in an area of the city which is overrun with violent crime.  Now captain of the precinct, Danny institutes changes. Arrest everyone! Shake things out. The murder case in question is stripper/nightclub singer Lilian Dean. No one is talking and Danny suspects the behemoth boyfriend, Ear Swados (Connors). He won't talk and either will anyone else. His new GF is another hot blonde singer/stripper, Mary (Sterling). She has a couple of musical numbers and the makers of the film push the censorship envelope with some of her routines. You'll like those. Danny knows she is the weak link and need her to roll over on Earl and the ownership of the club in which she performs.

Mary knows the score and will not talk. Now the crime boss who owns the club, Leonard (Florenz Ames), and his henchman Mandy (Claude Akins) begin framing Danny's detectives for police brutality. Now Danny needs to clean this case up before City Hall guts his precinct as the newspapers have turned public opinion against tough policing. Oh...Danny's conscious is his wife, the beautiful Pat (Paula Raymond). Always good to see Paula Raymond. Now Mary, proud to be a tramp, makes fools of Danny and his men as she is steadfast against helping them. Uh oh...poor Mary...she will play the sap now.  However steadfast she is, the mobsters realize she is a weak link, and so does Earl.  Little does Mary know, she has more to fear from Leonard and his boys than she does from Danny and his detectives.

Will the beautiful Mary get into a vicious catfight with Pat?  Okay, silly question...but we can always hold out hope.  Will Mary ever decide to help the detectives bust the crime syndicate operated out of the nightclub?  Will Earl murder Mary just as he did Lilian Dean?  This is a gritty one with little humor or diversion.  Police Film Noir all the way with car chases, shootouts, and a nice tour of the Pabst Blue Ribbon Brewery...you'll see.  See "The Human Jungle" and enjoy a dame who knows she is a tramp!  Something refreshing about that...just saying.