Terror Street (1953)

An American pilot AWOL from the states is framed for his wife's murder and has just 36 hours to prove his innocence.

Director:

Montgomery Tully

Writer:

Steve Fisher (story and screenplay)

Stars:

Dan Duryea, Elsie Albiin, Gudrun Ure

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Dan Duryea	...	Major Bill Rogers
Elsie Albiin	...	Katherine 'Katie' Rogers (as Elsy Albiin)
Gudrun Ure	...	Sister Jenny Miller (as Ann Gudrun)
Eric Pohlmann	...	Slossen, the smuggler
John Chandos	...	Orville Hart
Kenneth Griffith	...	Henry Slosson
Harold Lang	...	Harry Cross, desk clerk
Jane Carr	...	Soup Kitchen Supervisor
Michael Golden	...	The Inspector
Marianne Stone	...	Pam Palmer

Storyline

Bill Rogers, an American pilot taking special training in the States, gets an unauthorized hop to England to pay a surprise visit his beautiful Norwegian wife. He is devastated when he finds that she has moved out of their flat and is living a new and glamorous lifestyle entertaining a lot of men. After being knocked unconscious by an unseen assailant in her upscale West End apartment, he awakens to find his wife shot to death with his service pistol. On the run from police he persuades a young woman who runs a Salvation Army soup kitchen to believe in his innocence and help him uncover the real culprit. Although the police do not know as yet that he is in Britain, he has just 36 hours before he is declared AWOL and his identity is exposed. The trail leads to a corrupt customs official, smuggling, blackmail, and a mysterious safety deposit box.

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Plot Keywords:

british noir | pilot | west end | soup kitchen | salvation army | 

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Taglines:

Her frame was the only build-up to the frame-up!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 December 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

Terror Street

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hammer Films, Lippert Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

80 min 85 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dan Duryea takes his shirt off in this movie.

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Quotes

Major Bill Rogers: Just a minute, let's get this straight. Who are you?
Henry Slosson: Henry Slosson.
Major Bill Rogers: And your uncle? What's he done so bad that Orville can shake him down?
Henry Slosson: He's a terrible man. My life has been corrupted and dirtied by him! He deals in every shady business in the gutter of mankind!

User Reviews

Duryea does it again

In 1950, American producer Robert Lippert formed a business alliance with Hammer studios. Under the agreement, Lippert would provide American acting talent - frequently shop-worn stars or just supporting actors who fancied a profitable trip out of the country - while Hammer would supply the rest of the cast and the production facilities. Together they would split the profits. Famous for his concern with the bottom line, Lippert produced over 140 films between 1946 and 1955, characteristically genre pieces such as I Shot Jesse James or Rocketship XM. For the British deal, most of the films were noir-ish thrillers - and include this title.

The American noir icon Dan Duryea is the best thing in 36 Hours, which is at its strongest in the first half. He plays Major Rogers, a flyer smuggled into the country to discover what his wife has been up to during his absence away on duty. Shortly after he catches up with her, she is dead, leaving the stunned Rogers waking up next to her body with just a few hours to prove his innocence. Duryea's opening scenes, mostly played solo as he explores his wife's apartment piecing together her new relationships, are the essence of noir - an alienated man, lost in an environment where moral certitudes are missing. Unfortunately the script by Steve Miller (responsible for earlier classics such as Dead Reckoning, and Lady In The Lake) grows less interesting as it proceeds, and the final complexities are forced and unconvincing. Along the way, Duryea brings life to his relationship with Jenny (Ann Gudrin), equally as good as the unfussy woman who believes his story. Kenneth Griffith also makes impact as the weasely Slosson - a character which, on a different continent, would no doubt been of interest to Elisha Cook Jr.