Hunt the Man Down

Watching Hunt The Man Down put me in mind of a Law And Order episode where Mandy Patinkin had to be retried again after jumping bail some 20 years after the crime and Sam Waterston's problem was the same as Gig Young's, missing witnesses. Only Young is the public defender.

James Anderson after years of hiding foils a robbery at a restaurant/bar where he was a dishwasher. That act of heroism cost him his freedom.

Young is appointed to handle his new trial and he prevails on his retired cop father Harry Shannon to locate all the people who were witnesses. On the night in question Anderson fell in with a crowd of young 20 something yuppies as we would call them today. One of them is shot while he's sleeping and Anderson is the one who looks good for it.

This group has gone up, down, and sideways on the social scale in the intervening years. One murder, and two attempts on other witnesses convince Young he's got an innocent client. In the end it's an act of kindly deception perpetrated on one of them that's the key to solving the case.

Standing out in this film is Willard Parker as the blind veteran, once a rising star in business now a bookbinder. Lynne Roberts who believes in Anderson's innocence and Cleo Moore a brassy blond from the Veda Ann Borg school. Veda must have been busy because Cleo's playing her kind of part and she does well with it.

Hunt The Man Down is a well made B film from RKO and it looks like a television pilot. I think that Young and Shannon in a series based on this film would have worked.

When the story begins, an armed robber breaks into a cafe and the guy tries to shoot a guy who is working there as he steals the money. However, the worker manages to overpower the robber and shoots him in the process. Now you'd think he'd become a big hero. Instead, the police see the newspaper clipping showing a photo of the hero...and he's recognized as a man who vanished 12 years ago after he was convicted of murder but before he could be sentenced.

The public defender (Gig Young) believes the reluctant hero and decides to investigate the case himself*. Soon, he's able to track down a few of the witnesses but then something weird happens....folks try to kill the public defender and his father! And, they also try to kill one of the witnesses. Obviously somebody doesn't want anyone looking into this old case!

While "Hunt the Man Down" is clearly a B-movie due to its short run-time and cast of mostly 2nd and 3rd tier actors, it's a terrific film. Well acted, tense and a nice script more than make up for the cheap production. Well worth seeing.

*I have no idea IF defense attorneys EVER do this. They do it in films and on TV but I also know that they are generally overworked and overwhelmed and assume they literally don't have enough time to investigate anything.

Jam Packed Little Movie with Probably more Characters than the Budget or the Short Running Time can Encompass. There is much Cynicism in the Fate of the Many "Witnesses" to the Murder at Hand. Some like Mental Illness, Alcoholism, and Class Elitism are quite at home in the World of Film-Noir.

The Movie does its best to keep all the Players in Line but it can be somewhat of a Challenge to keep them all Straight. But it makes up for the Complications with some Sharp Cinematography and Deeply Affected Participants. There is the Wrongly Accused Man trying to Unwind the Events that happened Years before, and Gig Young is the Public Defender trying Desperately to Help.

The Film is so Full of Interesting Stuff that it Manages to be Entertaining Despite the Confusion. There is more than one Great Scene and some others that are Lurid B-Movie Delights. In the End it just Needed more Breathing Room to Elaborate on some of the Truly Interesting and Off-Beat Characters. But as it Stands there are some really Intriguing Interludes and doesn't Pull Punches as it Relies on some Stylized Realism for its Portrayal of Pulp Fiction.

Really more of a murder mystery than a noir, with a Perry Mason-like final courtroom scene. One of those films where the detective keeps getting information a bit too easily.

It's about a public defender representing a murder suspect apprehended after fleeing a courtroom while on trial 12 years earlier. What gives it more interest than usual is its showing the changes in the suspects' live from 1938 to 1950 caused by the war, their involvement with the murder, and life in general.

Chief virtues: the fast pace without needless explanation, crisp dialog, and minor characters with their own personality, even if only onscreen briefly.

Not a classic but hold yours interest and provides some food for thought. Perhaps a "B" picture but with quality production values you'd expect from RKO.

Hunt the Man Down is directed by George Archainbaud and written by DeVallon Scott. It stars Gig Young, Lynne Roberts, Mary Anderson, Harry Shannon, James Anderson, Willard Parker, Carla Balenda and Gerald Mohr. Music is by Paul Sawtell and cinematography is by Nicholas Musuraca.

Plot finds Young as a hard-working public defender who seeks to clear the name of an alleged murderer (Anderson) who has been on the run for 12 years and who is only caught when he plays hero during a robbery attempt at the diner he has been working at.

Economical for sure, but this is a tight noirish legal thriller that is well written, tidily performed and has the skills of Musuraca for noir photographic shadings that belies the film's obvious low budget. Story is interesting because the accused is adamant he was framed all those years ago, and when we see his story in flashback we understand just why Young's lawyer is so determined to crack the case. So roping in his ex policeman father (Shannon excellent), who lost an arm in service, the scene is set for trying to track down witnesses and hopefully prove the client's innocence.

The pic then shifts into noir gear, cynicism hangs heavy as the one time group of young upwardly mobile socialite witnesses are now either dead, damaged by fate or have mental health problems. The American Dream has not surfaced for these people, and with a couple of nifty twists for resolution purpose, pic - while not a hidden gem or anything like that - is worth tracking down by fans of noir like crime programmers. 7/10