The Baited Trap (1959)
"The Trap" (original title)

Lawyer Ralph Anderson arrives in Tula, an amazingly remote town in the desert, as reluctant emissary of mob chief Victor Massonetti, who wants the airstrip clear for his unofficial exit ... See full summary »

Director:

Norman Panama

Writers:

Richard Alan Simmons, Norman Panama

Stars:

Richard Widmark, Lee J. Cobb, Tina Louise

2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Richard Widmark	...	Ralph Anderson
Lee J. Cobb	...	Victor Massonetti
Tina Louise	...	Linda Anderson
Earl Holliman	...	Tippy Anderson
Carl Benton Reid	...	Sheriff Lloyd Anderson
Lorne Greene	...	Davis
Peter Baldwin	...	Mellon
Chuck Wassil	...	First Fake Policeman
Richard Shannon	...	Len Karger
Carl Milletaire	...	Eddie

Storyline

Lawyer Ralph Anderson arrives in Tula, an amazingly remote town in the desert, as reluctant emissary of mob chief Victor Massonetti, who wants the airstrip clear for his unofficial exit from the country. Ralph's arrival has a profound effect on his estranged father, the sheriff; his brother Tip, an alcoholic deputy; and his ex-sweetheart Linda, now married to Tip. Tension builds as a small army of gangsters takes over the town. Then the situation abruptly changes...

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Plot Keywords:

gangster | neo noir

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 August 1959 (Finland)

Also Known As:

Die Falle von Tula

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Heath Productions, Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

84 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In addition to this film, Richard Widmark and Earl Holliman also played siblings in the 1954 western "Broken Lance".

User Reviews

Hybrid crime drama is parched of any individuality

The Trap grafts a dysfunctional-family drama onto a glorified road-chase movie; it also grafts the shoot-from-the-hip conventions and sun-parched look of the Western onto a late-fifties crime drama. These various components, all vying for our attention, give birth to a hybrid that lacks any individuality.

Prodigal son Richard Widmark turns up in his hometown of Tula, out in the California desert, after a decade's absence. The old homestead, seething with tensions, houses his father (Carl Benton Reid), the town sheriff; his drunken wastrel of a brother (Earl Holliman); and the brother's wife (Tina Louise), an old flame of Widmark's. It seems that Widmark works for the mob as a mouthpiece, come home to persuade his law-and-order dad to call off the police guarding an airfield where crime kingpin Lee J. Cobb will make a break for Mexico. In the ensuing chaos, after his dad gets killed, Widmark decides to bring Cobb to justice himself. Unfortunately, he needs the help of his resentful brother, who in turn needs the cash Cobb offers him....

The trek through the desert to the nearest big town proves a fiendish obstacle course: What with snipers and double-dealings and radiators gone dry, it's just one damn thing after another. The relentless heat and blazing sun suck out much of the movie's juices, too; watching it becomes an endurance contest like being stranded in the desert. Widmark and Cobb walk through their roles with expected professionalism, but do nothing unexpected, either. Holliman telegraphs his vacillating weakness loud and clear, while Tina Louise doesn't bring much to the party (but then again, director Norman Panama didn't ask her to bring much). Once it's over, The Trap just sort of dries up and blows away.