Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

Stevecorp Don't listen to the negative reviews

Borgarkeri A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

simonqbb (5.5 out of 10!) Fairly forgettable for the most part, but still sort of interesting as an artifact of a 1950s B movie thriller/police procedural. The problems: Joseph Cotten (whom I often like) isn't particularly good here, looking rather tired and perhaps a little disengaged; the character of his wife, played by Rhonda Fleming, is considerably shrill and annoying, to the point of being very nearly unsympathetic; the story itself is considerably simple; and the climax is rather weak and too abrupt. Still, Wendell Corey is quite convincing as psychopath Leon "Foggy" Poole, and it's fun to see some of the settings, styles, and conventions of mid-50s Los Angeles. (Future Gilligan's Island resident Alan Hale Jr. is also on hand.) Budd Boetticher's direction may be closer to very competent than anything else, but it's not bad by any means. Overall, nothing like a must-see, but this may still add some B movie color (not literally, it's black and white) to your classic film viewing.

virtualband That's not a rip on Joseph Cotten, who solid as a mildly henpecked cop whose wife's primary nag is to ask him to quit police work. But after the end of the movie, I didn't remember the last name of Cotten's character (Wagner). Or the name of his regrettably still living wife (who cares?) at all. What I remembered was Leon "Foggy" Poole.First, to correct something I saw in a couple other comments, the cops did not kill Mrs. Poole through the door. After Leon calls out the cliché "you're not gonna take me" and shoots from the apartment wounding an officer, the cops then break in guns firing.. but it's Mrs. Poole in the middle of the room while Leon is over in a corner. If the police had taken a split second to look where they were shooting, they would have gotten the right person. Which is what sends Leon over the edge But Corey as Poole is, even as a killer, a sympathetic character. In the apartment after the shooting he seems more dazed than crazed as he asks Wagner "Don't you see how wrong it was to do that?" The movie then jumps to Poole's trial, where he gives the calmest revenge threat I've ever seen. This IMHO is what makes Poole so memorable... he's so matter-of-fact about what he's doing. No hysterics or foaming at the mouth. At Otto's house when Otto's wife asks why Poole had to come there, he replies, "I had to come somewhere" as if holding your former sergeant's wife at gunpoint after breaking out of jail and killing 2 people happened every day.Later on after killing Otto he asks the room at large, "what else could I do?" after Otto essentially talked himself into getting shot by reminding Poole how much stronger/faster/fresher he was. By trying to talk Poole into giving up, Otto instead ensured his own death... A great bit of irony.This movie's only real weakness is that that Rhonda Fleming lives through it. Some movies would simply be better if the villain had won, and this is one of them. The idea that Poole, who had doubtless been fixating on Wagner's wife throughout his trial, wouldn't recognize her when she walks by him on her way home is ridiculous. The only explanation for this is that at this time (1956), production codes would not allow the criminal to get away with it. However, they could have at least had Poole kill the wife then get gunned by Wagner. Then maybe a dying Poole could tell Wagner, holding the body of his wife, something like "now you know". Instead, after a great 70 or so minutes, the so-called climax left me going "oh please" followed by "that's it?"But the first 65+ minutes of this movie more than make up for the last 5. If you get a chance to see this movie, do it, and just rewrite the ending in your head :)

Michael_Elliott Killer is Loose, The (1956) *** 1/2 (out of 4) Budd Boetticher directed this highly intense police drama, which certainly deserves to be better known than it is. In the film, a bank robber (Wendell Corey) gets away from the scene of the crime but a detective (Joseph Cotten) tracks him down to his apartment. When the detective breaks the door in he accidentally kills the man's wife (Rhonda Fleming). The robber is eventually sent to prison but he escapes and plans his revenge by killing the detective's wife. There are plenty of twists and turns in this little gem that contains a huge amount of suspense and some terrific direction by Boetticher. This was the first film I've seen from the director but I'll certainly be seeking more out. Cotton is very good in his role as is Fleming but the film belongs to Corey as the deranged psychopath. He gives a wonderfully creepy performance and really adds a lot to the film. The start of the film in the apartment is wonderfully done but it's the ending that really packs a terrific punch. Hopefully this thing will hit DVD at some point.

MartinHafer First, I must point out that the role Wendell Corey played was exceptional. Usually, Corey was relegated to supporting roles but here he is what helps carry this very limp film. Without him and the character he played, the film would have been a lot worse--hardly meriting a 2 or 3.So why did I hate the rest of the film so much? Well, one of my pet peeves is when characters act "too stupid to live". You can't base major plot points on the assumption that your major characters are completely stupid (unless having a brain injury is part of the plot, of course). But this is exactly what happens in this film. Wendell Corey is a crazed man who has murdered three innocent people and they know his next target is Joseph Cotten's wife. So what do they do? Yep, they provide really inadequate police protection and a plan that makes no sense at all (no marksman and guys with shotguns that are so far away they probably WON'T stop this madman). And if this isn't bad enough, the marked woman inexplicably runs away from her hiding place and walks right into the WORST possible place she could be! Is anyone THAT stupid?!?! Arrrggghhhh---I hate when movies have such dumb characters. In fact, I found myself rooting for Corey since I felt the idiots deserved to die for their behaviors! In addition to these clichéd characters, there was also a bit player who fainted. Sure, seeing your husband shot MIGHT cause someone to faint, however in real life this is a rare occurrence--people rarely faint unless there is a medical reason. So, combining this with the above character problems is a real nightmare for people who are looking for realism--something Film Noir movies MUST have.All these serious problems are even more infuriating since Wendell Corey's character is amazingly well-written and conceived. It was his chance to shine as an actor--too bad the rest of the movie was so limp that Corey and the basic plot idea are sunk. This is one film that could really use a remake--but this time without brainless characters.