Thriller (TV Series) Man in the Cage (1961) User Reviews

"You pretty smart cookie."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 26 January 2012]

This episode of Thriller is set in the exotic foreign locale of Tangier, as an American businessman responds to his brother's distress letter asking for a thousand dollars so he can hightail it out of the country. The story centers around a weapons for heroin trade that seemed kind of lopsided to me, considering the smack was worth a cool million, but how many guns would it take to even the score? Well it's a moot point because Noel Hudson (Guy Stockwell) goes missing, as brother Darryl (Philip Carey) has to fend off all manner of mystery and intrigue, including some time in the 'cage' of the title.

There's a rather obvious continuity goof in the scenes right after Darryl pulls the tortured Arab off the balcony and into his room. You'll note that his suit jacket is clean as he sets down the torture victim, but when he gets to street level, one side of his jacket is covered with blood. I often wonder how something so obvious could be so easily overlooked, if not during filming, then in the final product. These kind of goofs seemed pretty prevalent for this series; watching the shows in order I've already picked up on a handful (see some of my other reviews).

The other striking element here is how easily Hudson discovered the spot where his brother was murdered. Let's see, we'll stop the car right here and take a look around. Son of a gun, there's his truck at the bottom of the ravine, right after Hudson states that a vehicle could remain invisible in a spot like this for a long time.

Well, no need to get too critical over this episode. It features an attractive accomplice for Hudson (Diana Millay), a Telly Savalas looking stand-in for the main villain (Theodore Marcuse), and an enterprising young lad (Barry Gordon) who knows how to make a quick buck. "Casablanca" it's not, but then again, what is?

Meet me in Morocco

[ctomvelu1 · 5/10 · 9 December 2012]

What makes this rather dull and clichéd Casbah-style episode stand out is the stellar cast, none of whom can be faulted for what amounts to a rehash of any number of Hollywood flicks set in North Africa in the 1940s and 50s. Veteran leading man Phil Carey plays an American engineer in search of his ne'er do well kid brother (Guy Stockwell) who works for a smuggler in Morocco. Ed Cianelli is the local constable and Theo Marcus essays a Sidney Greenstreet-type villain. Best of all, a young Barry Gordon plays a street urchin who helps Carey in his search. The use of Burbank back lots for Tangiers is not convincing and a cliff scene clearly was lensed in California, but we go along with it because all the actors give it their best. I think this may have been the first time the word "heroin" was used in a TV show.

Next time, hire some Moroccans!

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 22 October 2018]

When the show begins, an American is shocked after he makes a delivery to some unsavory characters in Morocco. They insist he MUST carry a load in return...but he doesn't want to because he thinks it might be drugs. After narrowly escaping, the scene changes and the man's brother has just arrived in Morocco looking for him. During the course of the show, many folks appear willing to possibly kill him unless he can somehow find the boxes his brother had on the truck. But the brother doesn't have a clue and is not going to be scared away by these characters.

This is a very straight-forward show with no ironic twists nor things you might expect in an anthology series. As such, it isn't bad BUT begs you to ask "why didn't they have any Moroccan actors or at least actors who APPEAR Moroccan in the show?". I can only assume laziness in the reason.

Not Much Suspense/Not Much Plot

[Hitchcoc · 5/10 · 14 November 2016]

A man comes to Tangiers to find his brother, who has been running guns for an Arab group. We know from the beginning that he has gotten in over his head. When he starts to find out things, danger lurks all around. He has a letter from his brother that seems to be of interest to all the parties. This is his ace in the hole. There are a series of close calls and confrontations. The problem is that the whole thing is utterly dull. The Arabs and the other peripheral characters are just to Anglo, so they aren't very convincing. Once again, this is serious business but doesn't stop the parade of goof ups. Just an ordinary desert melodrama.

Philip Carey and Eduardo Ciannelli

[kevinolzak · 4/10 · 1 November 2008]

"Man in the Cage" is a Maxwell Shane adventure set in Morocco, with Philip Carey searching Tangier for his missing brother (Guy Stockwell), involved in gun running and heroin smuggling. Theo Marcuse stands out among the villains, perhaps best remembered for the STAR TREK episode "Catspaw" in 1967, shortly before his untimely death in a car crash. A larger than usual cast also features familiar faces such as Russ Bender (a Roger Corman veteran previously seen in "Worse Than Murder"), Booth Colman, later a police lieutenant in "Waxworks," and dependable Hollywood veteran Eduardo Ciannelli as the investigating inspector (enjoying a more substantial role in "The Bride Who Died Twice"). The presence of 12 year old Barry Gordon, longtime veteran of movies and TV, is all that's necessary to believe that Tangier wasn't such a dangerous place to be at that time.

Subterfuge

[AaronCapenBanner · 7/10 · 30 October 2014]

Philip Carey stars as Daryl Hudson, an American visiting Tangier in Morocco who is trying to find his missing brother Noel(played by Guy Stockwell) He is disturbed to find out that Noel was involved with both gun-running and narcotics, but that his underworld allies do not want this brother snooping around, and so plot to get rid of him by locking him in a cage, though Daryl escapes and goes on a desperate hunt to locate his brother, and smash this gang of criminals, while local authorities are in hot pursuit. One of the better crime stories plays more like an adventure yarn, and at least has plenty of intrigue and action, even if few surprises.

Intrigue in countries outside the USA just might be even more nefarious than what goes on at home.

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 9 October 2019]

This is a truly disturbing "Thriller" episode dealing with American Philip Carey desperately trying to find his brother in Tangier. What he finds is much more treacherous and puts him not only in dire jeopardy, but the titled cage. The caper surrounds heroine smuggling for which the leaders of this mob are not just content with murder, but throw in quite a bit of torture as well. Carey deals with some truly despicable people, and the ring involved more than just some unfriendly and dangerous Arabs. This is a crime ring that reaches far beyond Tangier, and that leads to a "Thriller" episode that is often difficult to watch, especially for foreign travelers.

Reminding me of both versions of Alfred Hitchcock's "The Man Who Knew Too Much" and many other exotic thrillers of the 1940's and 50's, this shows the future "One Life to Live" patriarch (and veteran western star) in a truly heroic role where he risks everything for his brother, becoming involved with people he has to force himself to trust even though everybody around him seems to have calculating motives. Carey is joined by exotic looking blonde Diane Millay, veteran movie villain Eduardo Ciannelli and 12 year old Barry Gordon as an annoying kid who ends up being more help than Carey expected. The sinister atmosphere makes the episode seem rather claustrophobic, which is perhaps why it is very difficult to get through.