(1954)
2
Bruce Eder
From its opening credits shot, of an aerial view of Ketchikan, AK, as a plane carrying mail lands by a dock, Cry Vengeance is a visually engrossing movie, using actual locations for its exteriors and generally maintaining a texture of realism that is braving to the viewer. The plot seems to take a wrong turn at nine minutes in by explaining too much of what we've just seen as mysterious action, but director and star Mark Stevens keeps the action moving so fast and smoothly that the revelation simply opens up more angles to draw the viewer in. And in fairly short order, a de facto duel has been set up between Stevens' maimed ex-detective and the strong-arm man (Skip Homeier) sent to shadow him, with escalating levels of violence in the bargain. It's all a bit reminiscent of Fritz Lang's The Big Heat but with a style and allure all its own, thanks to Stevens as both an actor and director. In the title role, he projects an almost palpable, edgy desperation that is totally convincing, while as a director he seems to know how to move his story forward without wasting a single shot or even a frame of film. The editing by Elmo Vernon and the music score by Paul Dunlap also go a long way toward keeping this one of the more briskly, neatly paced and engrossing examples of film noir.
cast-crew for Cry Vengeance on AllMovie
Cry Vengeance (1954)
