Liberdade Sangrenta

Crashout isn't your typical prison movie.

The film was produced by Ida Lupino's company with script contributions by blacklisted writer Cy Enfield. Crashout stars William Bendix, Arthur Kennedy, Gene Evans, William Talman,Luther Adler, Marshall Thompson, Beverly Michaels, and Gloria Talbot.

Six men escape from prison and hide out in a cave while the police scour the countryside looking for them. One is killed almost immediately. The head guy is Van Morgan Duff (Bendix) who has $180,000 hidden, and he's on his way to get it, agreeing to split it six wways.

However, right at the beginning, he's badly wounded - in fact, he plays dead, convincing the cop who shot him that he's finished. Though he seems like he's dying, he's strong enough to lay some groundrules.

The men are supposed to stay in the cave for three days, but the food didn't make it during the escape. Peeking outside and seeing no one around, it's decided they can leave. From then on, we see these ruthless men robbing, stealing cars, killing, and walking toward their individual fates.

Arthur Kennedy, no surprise there, is a standout as Joe Quinn. When the escapees take over a farmhouse, a spark ignites between Joe and Alice, who lives there.

The cast is excellent, with Bendix, so pathetic in "Lifeboat," is mean as dirt here, and future television actors William Talman, Gene Evans, and Marshall Thompson lend good support, along with Broadway actor Luther Adler.

I first saw Beverly Michaels in Pickup, giving an Ann Savage-like performance. From the films of hers I've seen, she can be soft and vulnerable, too. And as usual she towers over everyone.

What some people won't do for money - including a very impressive walk in a blizzard up a mountain. A really good movie, exciting and well acted.

A curiously compelling little movie, Crashout is a throwback to the tough prison-escape movies of the 30's. Fortunately, the producers had the good sense to hire an expert cast of B-movie veterans to enliven an otherwise shopworn plot. Writer-producer Hal Chester and director- writer Lewis Foster provide each convict with a distinct personality that holds viewer interest as tensions mount, while the audience anticipates how each character will be brought to justice. Standouts in the cast are the always subtle Arthur Kennedy, an engagingly ambivalent Marshall Thompson, and William Tallman doing his scary psycho bit, this time as a knife-throwing religious fanatic. Then there's that raspy little gnome Percy Helton, lending his unique brand of character color. And in a poignant bit part, cult favorite Gloria Talbott as the prospect of a normal life for the ill-fated Thompson. The scenes in the dingy roadhouse are well done, along with an appropriately ironical ending. Though you've seen it all before, there are many nice touches that lift this otherwise generous slice of thick-ear beyond the merely routine.

The opening credits show the prison break itself so this movie is all about the run for freedom. A rag-tag motley crew of inmates, none of whom seems to like the others much, crack under the tension of the chase in different ways and seem fated to never truly escape themselves. The atmosphere is doom-laden from the outset and becomes more tragic as it goes on. Rare moments of levity arise in a few contrastingly sentimental mini-subplots as certain women are encountered/accosted along the way - but here again there is a melancholic tone, the same one that runs through this tale from start to finish. A raw, gritty and fatalistic movie which is much better than it has any right to be! Recommended.

This prison break movie wastes no time in getting down to business. "Crashout" is a B-Movie directed by Lewis R. Foster and it's just the kind of B-Movie the American cinema did beautifully in the fifties and it's got a terrific cast, (Arthur Kennedy, William Bendix, Luther Adler, Marshall Thompson, Gene Evans and William Tallman), all playing escaped convicts. Kennedy and Adler take the acting honours but they are all excellent and it's got a great plot involving stolen loot and dishonour amongst thieves. If it feels at times like an extended episode of a TV series, it's still a good one that scores points in every department. Maybe not an undiscovered gem but a pleasure nevertheless.

Crashout gets to the point quickly. A story of desperate escapees making their way out of the abyss. William Bendix gives a "close to the bone" portrayal of a desperate man who escapes prison with a motley crew.

Nothing in this story comes easy. The six escapees work their way through several states by the skin of their teeth. On the other side is a split of a big pay day, but that pay day is way away buried in some of the most inhospitable territory imaginable. The common denominator is the promise of a huge buried payout. That's the story of Crashout. It's no easy road to glory for the cons, in the ensuing journey they cross paths with some unwitting characters. A journey of attrition whereby along the way not only does a possible love story evolve, but a the deaths of all but two remaining cons. The path to the big pay day is anything but a simple story. This is where Crashout rises above it's "B Movie" roots. Bendix give his usual colorful performance, but this time as a star front and center. The story suits his skills well.

The end is a heartless reckoning. A sort of good trumps bad, but there is an opening. The character of "Joe" played by the great Arthur Kennedy may or may not be the last man standing. Does he have the buried fortune? Probably not, but if he survives he may actually have gained much more than the 180 grand. This is a really tasty slice of film noir. It grabs the viewer early on and doesn't let go. Your're in for the ride. It's especially gritty and dark for the day in which it was filmed. It has a buried heart which all humanity can connect to. Basically hopeless, Crashout still has something that one can grab on to and in that it keeps the viewer invested. Great "B-Movie" film noir and as such recommended viewing for those to whom this stuff speaks.