16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific; Suspenseful; Thrilling! .... This Is "Cry Terror!", December 14, 2004
This review is from: Cry Terror [VHS] (VHS Tape)
"Cry Terror!" is a tremendously-entertaining flick, featuring an exceptional cast and an exciting script that might have you experiencing sweaty palms by the final act.
A host of top Hollywood talent share the cast list for "Cry Terror!", including Rod Steiger, James Mason, Inger Stevens, Angie Dickinson, Neville Brand, and Jack Klugman.
The twisting and turning plot involves extortion, kidnapping, murder threats, money, a bomb, a nerve-racking deadline, and electrocution. With all of this going on, this 96-minute film doesn't leave much room for a bathroom break while viewing it.
Rod Steiger, age 33 here, is powerful and persuasive as the leading bad guy. Dickinson, Klugman, and Brand are all on Steiger's team of baddies. While Mason and Stevens are excellent as the victimized husband-and-wife couple.
"Cry Terror!" was made in 1958, premiering in theaters on May 2nd of that year. It was filmed in black-and-white, and features a lot of outdoor scenes, including the grippingly-realistic segments showing a near-panic-stricken Inger Stevens frantically driving on the crowded New York streets as she attempts to meet the demands of the kidnappers with a satchel of cash in tow. No fake, simulated, in-a-studio "rear projection" footage here. This was all filmed right in the car and on the N.Y. city streets and highways. Very effective scene.
This "car scene", with Inger driving, reminds me very much of an episode of "The Twilight Zone" starring Miss Stevens, which also involved a lot of automobile driving with Inger behind the wheel. That "TZ" episode ("The Hitch-Hiker"; 1960), like the "Cry Terror!" driving sequences, also relied on actual "camera in the car" filming, with much of this footage showing Inger only from behind as she negotiates the streets at high speed.
Given the era that these two programs ("Terror!" and "Zone") were filmed, 1958 and 1960, and the somewhat heavier and bulkier camera equipment that was used back then, it's always seemed to me that this type of "on location" shooting of scenes within a moving vehicle was a bit ahead of its time. The much-smaller "mini-cams" were still years away from being introduced, making this type of action/car scene a much more difficult proposition. Or, at least, I certainly *think* it would have been a more tedious task back in the '50s and early '60s.
This out-of-print VHS video was originally released by Lionsgate/Fox Home Video in June of 1989. If you somehow come across a copy -- give it to *me* post-haste, because I need one too! LOL! :-)
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8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
JAMES MASON VS. ROD STEIGER!, May 14, 2003
This review is from: Cry Terror [VHS] (VHS Tape)
a true classic to behold! i caught this the other day on tv and was utterly blown away... you've got james mason and inger stevens as husband and wife for one thing! WOW! well, jimmy inadvertantly helps the bad guy (rod!) build a bomb; gets himself, wife and daughter kidnapped by said bad-guy and friends (jack klugman, angie dickinson!)as a consequence, and then things start to REALLY go HAYWIRE! a guaranteed action-packed AND SURPRISINGLY SUSPENSEFUL late fifties black and white gem for sure! also, kevin mcarthy stars as a detective; and only several years after the fantastic "the thing".... in fact, the brisk dialogue is reminiscent of that great film! PLEASE DON'T MISS THIS BABY! if you see it available, SNAP IT UP!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Cast, But It's Inger Stevens Show All The Way..., January 29, 2012
The other reviews cater to the fact that this film has an incredible cast (and it certainly does), and that it's rife with suspense and tension (which it certainly is), and that the principal dynamic between Mason and Steiger is its high point (which is certainly debatable), but no one even alludes to the fact that this film is (along with 'The World, The Flesh And The Devil') singularly stolen by Inger Stevens' remarkable ability to amplify and infuse the required tension, suspense, frailty, sexuality, determination and persistance to her role to make this film the masterpiece it is. It's incomprehensible to me that she wasn't offered more roles like this and didn't become a bigger star, let alone tragically taking her own life later in 1971 (RIP).
Sure, we all expect great things from Mason and Steiger; hell, they're two of my personal favorites, but Miss Stevens steals every scene she's in to make you feel the clock ticking, the impending possible loss, the nearing sexual assault and probable certain death outcome, and the high stakes being played for at this roulette table in the Bronx. It's her show right up to the end, when the two male leads assume the reigns and grapple for the finale.
One of the best thrillers of its day, this film is required viewing for fans of all its principals, suspense films, thrillers and ever-satisfying flicks that require and withstand multiple viewings. Adding Angie Dickenson and Neville Brand to this eclectic mix is additional and colorful icing on this magnificent multi-layered cake. Go ahead, help yourself to a second slice...
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