Cry Terror! is written, produced and directed by Andrew and Virginia L. Stone. It stars Rod Steiger, James Mason, Inger Stevens, Neville Brand, Angie Dickinson, Kenneth Tobey and Jack Klugman. Music is by Howard Jackson and cinematography by Walter Strenge.Once in a while there comes a time when you have to say enough is enough with your willingness to accept the fantastique with certain genre viewings. Most film noir fans and avid watchers of olde classic crime cinema will gladly, and rightly, expect and embrace contrivances and a suspension of disbelief. However, this only works if the cast are dynamite in performance and the ultimate pay off is an edge of the seat wowzer.Cry Terror! asks way too much of its viewers, even for those just passing through looking to tick off a Rod Steiger or James Mason movie from their completist lists. The Stone's, Andrew and Virginia, get pretty much everything wrong here.Potential of story is nicely set up. Mason is an inventor type dude who gets bluffed by Steiger's shifty operator into making some time bombs on promise of a government sanctioned military contract. Steiger, though, is a thief type who along with his less than brainy minions, demands ransom money or they will blow up passenger aeroplanes. Fast forward and Mason and family (wife and child) are taken hostage whilst Steiger smirks a lot and demands money with menace from the authority suits led by a square jawed Tobey.So far so possibly good, then. The FBI guys are shown debating and pontificating in true documentary style, while back at the sweaty hostage house Mason stands firm to protect his woman and child. Stevens as his wife is coerced by force into being the bag lady, so she has to go out in the car and collect the ransom money in an allotted time scale or else Jimmy and child are done for. She narrates her every thought as she comes across the everyday pains of American traffic. The suspense is marginal as we are asked to wonder if she will make the return rendezvous in time.Meanwhile, Jimmy and child are left in the company of Klugman and Dickinson up in some penthouse suite. Klugman is utterly miscast and Dickinson is utterly wasted. So as they are probably miffed at the weak script, both Jack and Angie allow Jimmy to go a wandering out on the terrace for twenty minutes, from where he turns into John McClane in a lift shaft and achieves absolutely nothing that ultimately affects the finale!It's so frustrating, that a highly impressive cast list could be so badly used, in fact a few role reversals could have made this an excellent thriller, and that is even allowing for the ridiculous plot dynamics. There's a pat on the back due for the Big Apple location photography, while Brand, although cast in type, creates the only genuine menace in the picture as a sexually aggressive ex-con dependant on "Bennies" to get him through the day. But break it down as a whole, and it's very much a case of a production team getting it badly wrong. 6/10

The airline is getting bomb threats. Chet Huntley reports. Mastermind Rod Steiger has an extortion scheme to collect half a million abetted by Klugman Dickinsom, and Brand. Steiger bamboozled Mason into building his bombs, then kidnaps his family to execute the plot. Interestingly, Stevens is overwrought (purposefully directed so)while nearly everyone else underplays it very effectively - UNTIL things start unwinding. Then Brand's psycho begins to freak out, Steiger's mastermind blows his cool, and Mason loses it - all very realistically done in semi-documentary fashion. I do not see the "routine" aspects others cite. These characters are quite different from the ordinary - especially Dickinson's matter-of-fact criminal who has no compunction about killing if necessary and has ice water running through her veins - a great performance. It makes fabulous use of its New York locations on a low budget. Stevens' race to make the ransom delivery on time despite being diverted by traffic miles in the wrong direction is a tour-d-force like I have seldom seen. The wrap-up is a bit melodramatic considering the tension that came before it - but only then did I breathe normally again. If you are from New York or interested in New York in the 50's, this is an edge-of-your seat treat.

This film classic of 1958 depicts all the superstars of the silver screen very young, Angie Dickinson (Eileen Kelly)"Dressed to Kill"'80 is very hard to recognize, however, her sexual charm is always present in this film. Ingar Stevens(Mrs.John Molner)"The Farmers Daughter"'63 TV Series, was very young and beautiful as James Mason's(John Molner)"Lolita"'62 wife, Ingar Stevens was an unappreciated actress and unfortunately took her own life in 1970 at the very height of her career. Rod Steiger(Paul Hoplin)"No Way to Treat A Lady"'68 played the role of a mastermind with a fool proof way of making a half a million dollars by kidnapping Mr. & Mrs. Molner and their daughter. The black & white photography of NYC made this picture a real classic film for many future generations to enjoy and the wonderful talent of these great SUPERSTARS! Be sure to view it the next time it is on TV.

This is a really taught little thriller. I've heard it described as noir, but that isn't true. There is way too much daylight in this movie, but it doesn't in any way detract from the nail biting suspense. It's a somewhat convoluted plot about an evil psycho that lures an old army buddy into his plan to extort money from an airline by planting a bomb on one of their flights. I know that sounds like a tired plot, but this one has lots of twists. He gets the buddy to build the bomb by convincing him the Army is interested in it. He then kidnaps this guys family and forces the wife to pick up the ransom money! This is a fast paced movie and the tension just continues to build from beginning to end. There is also lots of stuff for the tech junkies.The cast is also top notch. Rod Steiger plays the diabolical psycho, assisted by his evil henchmen played by Neville Brand (what a surprise), Jack Klugman (as a shlub), and a delicious Angie Dickenson in her most delicious prime. Inger Stevens plays the terrified wife who always seems to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown, but the big surprise is the buddy played by James Mason, of all people. Character development abounds as this story progresses. Jack Klugman begins to break down when he realizes they will have to kill the kid. Rod Steiger begins to lose his cool as the plan unravels. Neville Brand becomes crazier and more menacing by the minute. The family, on the other hand, gets stronger and more resourceful as time goes by. They seem to be able to draw on an inner strength none of them knew they had. The motive for this madness is perfectly logical. They were willing to blow up an airplane for half a million dollars. In light of 9/11 we can almost look back in nostalgia at a motive that rational.1958 was a good year. This movie lets us look back on cars with tail fins, beer can openers, the West Side Highway, men who wore ties, and women who wore heels. It was also the tail end of an era where movies actually told a story - and this is a great one.