3 Steps to the Gallows

Hats off to the director, John Gilling, who delivers a fast moving, action packed movie, which has a film 'noir' dimension about it. The storyline revolves around a American naval officer, Gregor Stevens, played by Scott Brady, who is on shore leave, where he hopes to meet up with his brother, but to his horror, his brother is in prison, convicted of murder, and has three days left before he will be hanged. The muscular and athletic Brady now begins to take matters into his own hands to see if he can find out as to the actual circumstances, which has led to his brother languishing in a cell, waiting to be executed. Our hero, turned sleuth, gives an energetic and powerful performance as a 'man on a mission,' where he confronts not only several shady nightclub operators and thugs, but also the blond, sultry and deliciously beautiful Yvonne, played by Mary Castle, the resident nightclub singer. Brady has plenty of opportunity to show his physical and athletic prowess in a number of scenes where he has to chase, as well as evade several underworld henchmen, who wish to 'terminate' his interest in his hunt to find out the truth. Brady's frantic investigations, where he's diving in and out of taxis and cars, also sees him confronting some very unsavoury characters, such as 'Sartago,' the smooth and suave nightclub manager, wonderfully played by Ferdy Mayne, as well as from John Blythe, who gives a convincing performance playing the cheerful and breezy cockney boxer, Dave Leary. There are many dramatic twists and turns in this fast moving storyline, which ends with a thrilling 'Hitchcockian'' climax around Olympia in London. Although the finale is a bit far fetched, the director and the cameraman should be congratulated for creating an entertaining and riveting film, where many of the action scenes have a sense of gritty realism, set against the backdrop of London in the early 1950's. Normally, these type of quick quota B films, which were made in the 50's, with an American lead actor, were mediocre 'time fillers,' shown before the main feature, but the pacy storyline and the strong acting performances by the two main protagonists, Brady and Castle, puts this on a much higher level.

Excellent British Film Noir "3 Steps to the Gallows" follows American Sailor Scott Brady trying to visit and then just locate his brother while docked in London. Mary Castle as the lounge singer at the Gay Mask club gives this film an extraordinary aura. Her abbreviated performance of "There's No Way Out" paves the way for Brady to commence making contact with all of the characters involved in the plot. Pay attention - no one is above suspicion. Brady is more than a bit of a bull in a china shop but the rest of the cast is more subtly believable. This moves along at a good pace with no dead time. Worth seeking out.

AKA..."3 Steps to the Gallows"

Scott Brady Travels to England to Beef Up Film-Noir.

Brady (brother of Lawrence Tierney) Goes Ashore to Meet His Brother and Finds He has been Convicted of Murder and will Hang in 4 Days.

What Transpires is Brady vs a British Mob of Smugglers and Tough-Guys.

The Goons can Barely Fill a Trench-Coat and are Constantly Attacking Him in Gangs.

One Fight or Chase Ends and Almost Immediately Another Takes Place.

The Movie, very Unusual for B-Movies, is Shot Predominately On-Locations.

A Difficult Task at Best.

The Story Involves a Night-Club Singer, a Rita Hayworth Look-Alike (Mary Castle) along with the Brothers Former Friends and Acquaintances.

A Wise-Cracking Boxer (John Blythe) and the Brother's Lawyer (Colin Tapley), Secretary (Gabrielle Brune), and Night-Club Owner (Lloyd Lamble).

It's a Complicated Plot.

One has No Time to be Concerned with such Twists and Turns because the Film Won't let You Catch Your Breath.

It's One of the Most Active British Noirs.

With a Hyper-Pace Anchored by Brady's Physical Presence and Persistence.

Also, the Beautiful Mary Castle Eventually Decides to Help and is an Attractive Companion.

Breathless Action and a Bewildering Plot.

Combine for an Entertaining 80 Minute Noir that Incorporates Many Night-Scenes and Shadows.

For an Ominous and Threatening Tone.

One of the Better Late Noirs from Britain and is Definitely...

Worth a Watch.

Scott Brady is a merchant mariner who gets off ship in England to visit his brother. He finds his brother in prison, doomed to hang in three days for murder, unless Brady can make his way through a murky underworld conspiracy that involves smuggled diamonds.

I find it interesting, the number of British programmers that begin with a sailor of some sort making port, hoping to see a relative, and discovering he is in jail or dead. It's a nice technique for plopping the protagonist down in a plot in a new situation, forcing him to deal not only with the plot, but the part of society he's caught up in. Usually it's a guy; Howard Hawks liked to use the situation with a woman coming into a tight-knit community of men -- Jean Arthur in ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS; Angie Dickinson in RIO BRAVO are two of those movies. However, in those movies, it's the exploration of that society that is the point of the movie; sure, there's a plot, but what it turns into is a story about bonding.

Brady is good in the role, and the story is well told, but while the mystery aspect is good, it's a decent programmer, and little more... which is fine.

I saw this under the title of "3 Steps to the Gallows". A better title would have been "3 Days to the Gallows," since when American seaman Scott Brady arrives in London and goes in search of his brother he finds the latter is due to be executed in three days' time for murder: he's innocent, of course. The film's scriptwriter plays the brother, and he's definitely a better writer than actor, seeming remarkably calm for someone facing imminent death for something he didn't do. John Gilling made several low-budget crime films in the 50s, and seeing this one made me want to see the others.The plot has some good twists, and there's a lot of interesting location filming. It was common practice to import minor American stars for such films, and Brady made a spirited hero, while Mary Castle, who I'd never seen before, bears a considerable resemblance to Rita Hayworth. She even sings in a nightclub, a la Gilda. The weaknesses are the way Brady wins all his fist fights (even against a professional boxer!) and the climax, in which the police turn up like the 7th Cavalry even though they had no way of knowing where the protagonists were. Very odd.