Harrison's Reports (1950)

202 HARRISON'S REPORTS December 23, 1950 "The Man Who Cheated Himself" with Lee J. Cobb, Jane Wyatt and John Dal! (20th Century-Fox, January; time, 81 min.) An engrossing melodrama, one that is a credit to the ability of Jack M. Warner (son of Jack L. Warner), who makes his debut as a producer with this picture. Revolving around a detective who finds himself in a heap of trouble when he tries to cover up a murder committed by his married sweetheart,, the story itself is fashioned along conventional lines, but it is made gripping and exciting by the semi-documentary technique, the intelligent direction, and the competent acting, particularly the performance of Lee J. Cobb, as the erring detective. The fact that both Cobb and his younger brother, a rookie detective, are assigned to the case heightens the suspense, for Cobb, to keep the truth from his brother, constantly seeks ways and means to steer him away from clues without arousing his suspicions. The tracking down of Cobb by the younger brother, after he learns the truth, makes for an exciting chase in the closing reels: — Harlan Warde, about to be divorced by Jane Wyatt, his wealthy but spoiled wife, plans to kill her on a night he is supposed to be flying to Seattle. Jane, discovering the plot, notifies Cobb, her secret lover. Shortly after Cobb arrives, Warde slips back into the house. Jane discovers his presence and, in an hysterical outburst, accidentally shoots him dead. To protect her, Cobb takes the body to the airport to make it appear as if Warde had been the victim of a holdup. As he pulls away from the airport, Cobb's blue coupe is spotted by Charles Arnt, who also sees the body. Arnt, however, tells the police that the color of the car was green. John Dall, Cobb's brother, just promoted from patrolman to detective, is assigned to the case along with Cobb. Jane makes out that she does not know Cobb when he arrives with Dall to "break" the news about her husband's death. Cobb does everything he can to throw Dall off the right track, but Dall, determined to make good on his first assignment, discovers flaws in Cobb's holdup-murder theory. When Dall sees Cobb becoming friendly with Jane, he assumes it is a budding romance, but he soon becomes suspicious when he finds out otherwise. Taking Cobb's blue coupe, he goes to Arnt, who proves to be color blind when he identifies it as the "green" getaway car. Heartbroken, Dall bluntly accuses Cobb of the murder. Aware that he was now trapped, Cobb knocks Dall unconscious and heads for the airport with Jane to flee the country. Dall regains consciousness and notifies headquarters to set up roadblocks. Unable to get through the blockade, Cobb and Jane hide out in an abandoned fortress, but Dall traces them there and arranges for the police to pick them up. It ends with the couple being brought to trial, and with Jane ignoring Cobb to carry on a flirtation with her defense lawyer. It was directed by Felix Feist from a screen play by Seton I. Miller and Philip MacDonald, based on a story by Mr. Miller. Adult fare. "Stage to Tuscon" with Rod Cameron, Wayne Morris and Sally Eilers (Columbia, January; time, 81 min.) Although the Technicolor photography is a definite asset, as entertainment this western does not rive above the level of routine program fare. Its chief defect is a far-fetched, complicated plot, which revolves around the hijacking of stage coaches in Arizona for shipment and sale to the Confederates in Atlanta. One is asked to believe that this condition is seriously affecting the Union Army's western supply line. The best that can be said for the picture is that it should get by with the avid western fans, for what it lacks in plausibility is made up for in fast action, with plentiful shootings, chases and hard-riding. The direction and acting are no more than adequate: — Worried over the constant hi-jacking of stagecoaches between Apache and Tuscon, the Union military authorities assign Rod Cameron, a veteran driver, to take over the stageline's management. Cameron sets up headquarters in Apache, and appoints Wayne Morris as his assistant. When the two men are not busy trying to solve the mystery of the disappearing stages, they fight each other for the affections of Kay Buckley, a stageline employee. While foiling an attack on one of the stages, Cameron and Morris discover that the ringleader of the band is Roy Roberts, debonair owner of a rival stageline. Roberts, playing on the antiYankee sympathies of some of the local men, enlisted their help by leading them to believe that they are helping the Confederacy. Unknown to Cameron, Roberts was the husband of Sally Eilers, a local salonkeeper, who was his former sweetheart. Sally had not lived with Roberts for years, but she had continued to cover up for him out of pity. Morris is captured while spying on the hijackers at Roberts' ranch, and he escapes death by claiming that he had split with Cameron in order to join the hi-jackers. Roberts dispatches Carl Benton Reid, head of the town's Southern sympathizers, to check on Morris' story. Sally tells him that Morris did not quit Cameron, but also convinces him that Roberts is working for himself and not for the South. Angered, Reid informs Cameron about the departure of Roberts' wagon train carrying stolen coaches. Accompanied by the sheriff and a posse, Cameron swoops down upon the wagon train and captures it, rescuing Morris at the same time. Roberts is killed during the battle. With the shooting over, Morris wins Kay, while Cameron resumes his romance with Sally, now free. The picture ends with both men going off to the war in blue uniforms. It was produced by Harry Joe Brown and directed by Ralph Murphy, from a screen play by Bob Williams, Frank Burt and Robert Libbott, based on a novel by Frank Bonham. Harmless for the family. "California Passage" with Forrest Tucker and Adele Mara (Republic, Dec. 15; time, 90 min.) Good photography, an interesting story, and capable acting lift this western far above the average pictures of this type; it should more than satisfy the action fans. The story, which deals with the eminty between two business partners and with their desire for the same girl has some interesting twists, for the villainous partner leads the heroine to believe that the honest partner is a crook and a killer. A good deal of shooting and a number of fist fights keep the action moving at a pretty fast and exciting pace. The period is in the 1850's: — Heading for California, Adele Mara and Peter Miles, her young brother, become separated from their wagon train and are rescued from an Indian attack by Forrest Tucker. They meet again some weeks later in a California mining town, where Tucker operated a gambling casino in partnership with Jim Davis who, to cover up his gambling losses to Tucker, secretly robbed stagecoaches of gold shipments. Adele discovers that Bill Williams, her brother, had been killed by Tucker, but is unaware that the killing had been committed in self-defense. Williams had been one of Davis' henchmen, and Davis, to fan Adele's hatred for Tucker and win her for himself, tries to convince her that Tucker had killed Williams without cause. But she changes her attitude toward Tucker when Charles Kemper, the sheriff, and Estelita Rodriguez, Williams' sweetheart, inform her that Williams had first attacked Tucker. Undaunted by this turn of events, Davis frames Tucker for a stagecoach robbery that he himself had committed, forcing Tucker to flee from a mob of angry vigilantes. Adele, disilusioned, accepts Davis' proposal of marriage and prepares to return East with him. Just before their departure, however, she and Peter discovers that Davis is the holdup man. Lest they give away his secret, Davis goes after them with a gun. They flee up the side of a mountain hotly pursued by Davis, who traps them on the summit after an all-night chase. Tucker, hiding in the hills, sees their predicament and comes to their rescue. Davis dies in a fall off a cliff, and Tucker, exonerated, wins Adele. It was produced and directed by Joseph Kane, from an original story by James Edward Grant. Suitable for the family.