Dangerous Mission

Dangerous Mission
Released Date: March 6, 1954
Director: Louis King
Actors: Victor Mature, Piper Laurie, William Bendix, Vincent Price, Betta St. John, Harry Cheshire, Steve Darrell, Walter Reed, Marlo Dwyer, and Dennis Weaver

     As we are well in our way into the month of October, it is high time I bring out Vincent Price. No matter what circumstance, Vincent Price always keeps his cool and one heck of a sexy voice. This movie was made in 3-D. Which makes sense because throughout the movie, you will notice a lot of action that seems a little too much if you get my drift. But at the same time, there is the perfect amount of action, and the perfect amount of Vincent, and the perfect amount of snow. I love snow, always have. And I always love seeing snow, especially in classic movies. This movie is in color, but the snow is just right!

     Where do you go if you witness a mob killing in New York? To a place nobody will find you. Louise Graham (Piper Laurie) finds the perfect place, Montana. A place with a lot of outside activity. She stays at Glacier National Park Hotel, which is now called Glacier Park Lodge. And she cannot be found. At least for a while. Matt Hallett (Victor Mature) finds out that Louise has been recognized by the mobster and is there to help. Glacier National Park is very safe. There is even a park ranger to greet you at the gate to get in. When Chief Ranger Joe Parker (William Bendix, who you may recognize from Hitchcock's Lifeboat) notices that Matt owns a gun, Joe is a little skepticle about Matt staying there. Especially since they are hiding a witness. Matt does meet Louise and likes her, a lot. And becomes friends with Paul Adams (Vincent Price), who is a very friendly man. Who is the mob killer? Are there more than one? Is Matt Hallett to be trusted? Only one way to find out!!! And with the snowy background, and actors like these, you can't go wrong with Dangerous Mission. And you may even feel as though you are on vacation. 

Lifeboat

Lifeboat
Released Date: January 28, 1944
Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock
Actors: Tallulah Bankhead, John Hodiak, Walter Slezak, William Bendix, Mary Anderson, Henry Hull, Heather Angel, Hume Cronyn, Canada Lee, and William Yetter Jr.

     The entire movie is in a lifeboat. In the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The production was rather rough having the entire cast being seasick at one time at different times during production. And some even ended up getting pneumonia because they were with cold air a lot of the production too. The actress Tallulah Bankhead had pneumonia twice. And after that Mr. Hitchcock gave Ms. Bankhead a puppy, which he named Hitchcock. Alfred Hitchcock had hired a lifeguard for the movie because Hume Cronyn almost drowned. And Mr. Hume Cronyn even ended up with cracked ribs.

     The movie is based around World War Two, and there had been a shipwreck with a German U-Boat. The two, ship and boat had been at war together. The film starts off with the knowledge of the shipwreck, followed by a very wealthy looking woman on a lifeboat. She is filming what is around her, when a man came up on the boat with her. There ended up being eight on the boat. In the beginning, a woman with a baby had been on board too, but there is a very big surprise with that. During all of the craziness of the shipwreck, a German came onto the boat too. Luckily, Ms. Bankhead's character, Connie, knew how to speak German. So she was able to find out a lot about him. The boats engineer Kovac, played by Hodiak, was against even allowing the German on the boat. But after a long talk between the rest of the crew, they decided to keep the German on board. Watch as the entire boat crew struggle through hunger and tiredness.

     Another known fact about the movie, is that Ms. Bankhead did not wear underwear, the entire film she was in a dress and on a moving boat... You get my drift, no pun intended. I love this movie, and it definitely keeps you on your toes. Alfred Hitchcock, once again, proves he is the master.