Plunder Road (1957)

On a dark night of pelting rain, five men stage a well-planned train robbery and get away with a 10,000,000 dollar, nine-ton gold shipment. Dividing the massive haul into three concealed ... See full summary »

Director:

Hubert Cornfield

Writers:

Steven Ritch (screenplay), Steven Ritch (story),

Stars:

Gene Raymond, Jeanne Cooper, Wayne Morris

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gene Raymond	...	Eddie Harris
Jeanne Cooper	...	Fran Werner
Wayne Morris	...	Commando Munson
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Skeets Jonas
Stafford Repp	...	Roly Adams
Steven Ritch	...	Frankie Chardo
Naura Hayden	...	Hazel (as Nora Hayden)
Helene Heigh	...	Society Woman
Paul Harber	...	Trooper No. 1
Don Garrett	...	Policeman
Michael Fox	...	Smog Officer / Narrator
Richard Newton	...	Guard No. 2
Charles J. Conrad	...	Trooper No. 2 (as Charles Conrad)
Jim Canino	...	Tibbs
Robin Riley	...	Don

Storyline

On a dark night of pelting rain, five men stage a well-planned train robbery and get away with a 10,000,000 dollar, nine-ton gold shipment. Dividing the massive haul into three concealed truck loads, the team (only one of them a professional thief) make a would-be inconspicuous escape across country to what they hope will be a perfect getaway...

---

Plot Keywords:

gold | train | police | café | heist | 

---

Taglines:

Crime of the century!

---

Genres:

Crime | Film-Noir | Drama

---

Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

German English

Release Date:

5 December 1957 (USA)

Also Known As:

Den stora guldkuppen

Company Credits

Production Co:

Regal Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

72 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in The Killing Floor (2007)

User Reviews

The machine rages against us

Being primarily a visual medium, one of the things film does best is illustrate the mechanics of complex items. I refer not only to the machinations of the caper plot so well achieved here, but also to big machines themselves -- trains, trucks, assembly lines. Many a great director has used the relentless workings of machines as a metaphor for inescapable fate -- think especially of Fritz Lang and the openings of Human Desire and Clash by Night.

The stars of Plunder Road are the machines themselves -- the overburdened trucks inching their way to freedom, the massive crane and huffing sabotaged train in the rain-pelted robbery scene, the bubbling cauldron at the foundry contributing to the ingenious escape plan, etc. The human characters are sketched briefly, with impressionistic strokes, but it's the mute mechanical accomplices that drive the plot and stick in the mind. This is best illustrated by the cleverly-inserted visit of a smog inspector, and again in the cruelly ironic downfall of the protagonists, who are at the mercy of their guileless vehicles.