Verhängnisvolle Spuren

The best thing about Inferno is that, like the Aeneid, it jumps right into the middle of the action. Out in a southwestern desert, under the baking sun, lies Robert Ryan, with his leg broken and only a meager supply of food and water. He's been left to die by his wife (Rhonda Fleming) and her lover (William Lundigan). There's no backstory, no lead-up to the crucial events; what little we need to know gets doled out as the movie advances, but never in flashback.

Of course, anybody can be left to die in the desert by a philandering spouse, but it helps if you're a millionaire, like Ryan. We learn that he inherited his fortune and wonders whether he deserves it, and that he's a tough and private man who suffers no fools gladly (the part's basically a reworking of Ryan's Smith Ohlrig in Max Ophuls' Caught).

The rest of Inferno cross-cuts between Ryan's attempts to survive by his wits and Fleming's and Lundigan's to throw the local police and Ryan's business associates back in Los Angeles off track. After several days elapse, when it becomes apparent that Ryan may still be alive and on the move, Fleming and Lundigan decide that, in order to save themselves, they have to go back and finish the job....

Inferno was issued in 1953, the annus mirabilis of 3-D. Unlike most titles filmed in that short-lived gimmick, it stands pretty well on its own – even the hurtling rocks, striking rattlers and flaming rafters stay effective without knocking viewers over the head. But basically it's a story of a man born to wealth who, to stay alive, must negotiate a deadly wilderness where money proves worthless. Watching Ryan do so is worth giving Inferno a look.

Pretty inventive script, Robert Ryan helps pull off quite a bit of voice over dialog, nice photography, (I did see it in 3D) well paced there are a number of clever script/plot elements that keep it going and a great fight scene(which features most of the 3D Fx in the movie).

Sort of a desert Film Noir really, well directed by the mostly always good Roy (Ward) Baker this holds up. There is constant cross cutting between Ryan's plight in the desert and the two villains swimming or eating and drinking that really builds your hatred of them and your siding with Ryan.

No mamsey pamsey character softening here, which keeps it tough, but reality based, throughout. It's not a cartoon at any moment which can happen with B films. Though also perhaps the limited character development keeps it slightly in the programmer category. Good music score by Paul Sawtell as well. This movie moves quickly doesn't have the soapy elements, or bloated running time, that killed off many color crime films in the 1950's.

"Inferno" is a film with a very simple plot. Despite this, it was given top treatment by improved sound AND 3D! And, as you watch, you can see in quite a few places that 3D gimmicks would abound...but it's still basically a good film.

When the film begins, a rich man is injured in the desert and his unfaithful wife and her lover decide to leave him there to die of exposure. The problem is that Donald (Robert Ryan) is a very tough guy and he's determined to not only survive but last long enough to exact revenge. Fortunately, where the movie goes next is a bit unusual and yet satisfying.

Much of the film consists of Donald talking to himself by having Ryan do voiceovers. This is risky but the director manages to make it work...and the film manages to take a very simple story yet make it worth your time.

Robert Ryan, Rhonda Fleming and Bill Lundigan give outstanding performances in this suspensive thriller that winds up in a struggle to survive in the desert. Originally introduced in 3D in 1953, it will keep you on the edge of your seat.

In the history of motion pictures only two ideas (as far as I know) failed to catch on in improving the movies we see. One is the laughable "Aroma-vision" that was tried out in the late 1950s with a film that Peter Lorre and Desmond Elliot made called SCENT OF MYSTERY. People just don't like certain odors that can be on the screen in films. But the other was an 3-D, which should have succeeded. If you want to have a more realism in movies, then you should have a movie where depth adds some degree of reality. But 3-D was not used properly. The best recalled uses are in grade z films like ROBOT MONSTER. The best uses of the process were in Alfred Hitchcock's DIAL "M" FOR MURDER, in the Vincent Price horror classic HOUSE OF WAX, and in INFERNO. But while Hitchcock's and Price's films are well remembered (and seen frequently), INFERNO has been generally ignored.

It stars Robert Ryan, Rhonda Fleming, William Lundigan, Larry Keating, and Henry Hull. Ryan begins the film in one of his typically negative characterizations - a millionaire married to Fleming who treats everyone around him as a servant to do his bidding. Sort of like a follow up to his Smith Ohlrig in CAUGHT, only with a new bride. He is going on vacation, and he is accompanied by his wife and a guide played by Lundigan. But Fleming and Lundigan are having a love affair, and when Ryan is injured they realize that they can get rid of him, collect his fortune, and then marry. They leave the obnoxious millionaire in the desert with just a six shooter and a canteen with water. He also has a broken leg. They figure they can report he wandered off, they could not trace him, and in a week the police can find his corpse.

Ryan fools them. Always intelligent in his roles, he growls as soon as he is alone, "They think I'll drink up all my water!" He starts an enforced rationing. He also makes a crutch. Finally he shows his patience in becoming a careful hunter - carefully using his gun to kill game only when it is available. Soon he is able to start following the stars to get back to civilization. And his disappearance is not being casually dismissed by the discovery of his body by the authorities led by Carl Betz. And Fleming and Lundigan are beginning to get nervous - and a bit less lovey-dovey with each other.

But the best part of this film, aside from the careful script and performances, was director Roy Baker's brilliant use of 3-D. He wanted the size of that desert Ryan is marooned in to be really evident to the audience, and his shots of the miles of mesas and sand are deeply impressive. It adds to one's realization of just what Ryan is up against to survive. Actually it was the best use of the process in Hollywood movies, and it makes one regret that John Ford did not think of using the process in say THE SEARCHERS or TWO RODE TOGETHER. Ford's use of "Monument Valley" was always brilliant - imagine if it too had been in 3-D.