Customer Reviews

Hell Drivers [Region 2]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The speed at which this 1957 movie hurtles along means there isn't much time for character embellishment.

But character background isn't necessary in this story, as it's more situation then character based.

Synopsis.

A corrupt road haulage company (run by William Hartnell) forces it's drivers to risk their lives, (and the lives of other road users) by tempting them to break speed limits and highway code rules, in order to pick up bonuses.

One day a likable ex-con (Stanley Baker) turns up and signs on as a driver.

After making friend's with one of the other drivers (Herbert Lom), he crosses swords with the ambitious and emotionally volatile number one driver, "Red" (Patrick McGoohan).

So begins the main thrust of the movie as Stanley Baker's character keeps clashing with McGoohan's character.

Which eventually ends in tragedy for one of them!

For good drama to work it deserves good conflict, and this film has lots of conflict.

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The very memorable cast list includes.

Stanley Baker-(Zulu)

Patrick McGoohan-(Dangerman, The Prisoner)

Herbert Lom-(The Human Jungle, the Pink Panther films)

William Hartnell-(Doctor Who)

Gordon Jackson-(Upstairs Downstairs, The Professionals)

Sid James-(many Brit Sit-Coms, The Carry On Films)

Alfie Bass-(The Fearless Vampire Hunters)

David McCallum-(The Man from UNCLE, Sapphire and Steel)

Peggy Cummins-(Night of the Demon)

And in a "blink and you'd miss him" role, Sean Connery-(James Bond)

Also a very young Jill Ireland. (She later married Charles Bronson)

This film certainly made a change from my usual Sci-fi and comedy shows.

Three stars for the Film, and an extra two for the cast.

OPINION

A gritty realistic portrayal of 1950's working class life.

On sale at amazon.co.uk

Recommended.

This is that comparative rarity from the Britisgh cinema in the 50's -a strongarm drama .Its plot is downright melodrama and centres on the rivalries of a gang of truckers operating between a number of gravel pits and a hugh construction site .

Stanley Baker -one of the few UK actors of the era who could convince as a tough guy -plays an ex-con hired on as a driver and who falls foul of boss Patrick McGoohan when he discovers that McGoohan and another boss (William Hartnell)are running a scam by claiming there are 5 more hired drivers than is actually the case ,and pocketing the extra cash .They maintain the scam by working the other drivers illegally hard ,thus keeping the delivery schedule up to date ,despite the severe risk to men and machines this entails .

The driving sequences are good ,as are the performances especially from the ever excellent Herbert Lom as the likeable Italian driver Gino ,and McGoohan .

Look out also for a young Sean Connery in a movie made 5 years before Dr No and already showing definite screen presence .

The movie is restarined by today's standards but even so the love scenes between Baker and the heroine ,capably played by Peggy Cummins

This is not great movie making but it is an worthwhile little movie that acts a sprecursor to the working class themed movies like Saturday Night and Sunday Morning that came down the pike a short time later

Cy Enfield's "Hell Drivers" provides a interesting peak at a young Patrick McGoohan before he played John Drake and became cool. As Red, the belligent foreman of a crooked trucking firm he exhudes malevolence. The film itself is a tough action piece that plays a bit like a Warner Brothers film from the 1930s. As the ex-con who must work where he can, even when he knows the set-up is a rotten one, Stanley Baker pits his toughness and stoicism against William Hartnell's deviousness and McGoohan's free-flying fists. The always-reliable Herbert Lom is on hand as another outsider, an Italian driver who befriends Baker (big mistake) and the young Sean Connery plays one of McGoohan's admiring cronies.

Were I to rate the film on its own qualities, it's a solid 5 stars. It's a classic, bringing back that 50's nostalgia of everyone loving trucks and Ex-con lingo. Now we need the Sean Connery/Patrick McGoohan/Herbert Lom/Jill Ireland DVD box set. But this DVD transfer has so many issues, it really brings the experience to a lesser degree. The top and bottom of the screen are cut off. Everything is flattened out so it's very lean and extended upward. Parts of the film are cloudy to the point of being unwatchable. If you can ignore the technical issues ([Region 2 Format: PAL]), the movie itself is highly recommended.

If you are into the 50's style The Wages of Fear Le Salaire De La Peur (1953) type movies, you will love this film. It is based on the tough, good trucker fighting the ruthless bad guys and the British working class loving it all. This was the day when they made a REAL tough guys film. There were no CGI graphics or millions of dollars to spend. This is just good old fashion acting, and road scenes they shot at normal speed or sped up. Watch the film, learn some British trucker history.

I loved Hell Drivers so much I tracked down a copy of the original VHS and purchased it from a local rental store because they don't make it on German DVD.

Beware when ordering British movies. Make sure the movie has been convereted to play on USA DVD systems. When I ordered this movie "Hell Drivers" from Amazon, it was not made clear that the movie had a Region 2 format i.e. it can only be played in England. Foreign movies must have a Region 1 format to be playable in the USA. I paid $50 for a movie that cannot be played in the USA!