A federal agent, Tom Kaylor (Peter Graves) is posing as a long-haul truck driver because of the damage being done by truck drivers using amphetamines in order to work their exhausting hours. The only really obvious lead is a trucker named 'Mink' (Chuck Connors), a guy who very obviously uses pills because he's perennially giddy and the acting is WAY over the top! But Mink won't talk and so Tom needs to keep his eyes open and be very, very careful because whoever is supplying the junk is more than willing to kill to keep this secret...and they soon end up beating Tom's co-driver to death because he asked too many questions!While occasionally the film is obvious and anything but subtle, it is entertaining and does provide a public service. I just wish they'd made Mink semi-realistic and explained that most Amphetamine users do NOT have hallucinations or end up in the Psyc Ward! It's not nearly as silly as films like "Reefer Madness" but if should have been a tad less goofy. It's really a shame, as the topic is an important one AND most of the movie was very good. Still, overall it is never dull and certainly is entertaining!!

DEATH IN SMALL DOSES is an American B-movie crime thriller set in the world of truckers and trucking. It's nowhere near as good as that British classic HELL DRIVERS, but the plot is unusual enough to keep you watching and it could be a lot worse. Future MISSION IMPOSSIBLE star Peter Graves is tasked with investigating the prevalence of illegal amphetamines which truck drivers have been taking to keep them awake during long drives. Unfortunately the side effects include hallucinations and death, so Graves must find the supply chain and nip it in the bud before anybody else dies.What follows is your usual second-tier story with a little mystery, a little suspense, and a handful of action scenes. Graves is a perfectly likable hero but the real scene-stealer here is Chuck Connors as a beatnik-inspired loudmouth who lights up the screen whenever he appears. Mala Powers is particularly stunning as the love interest of the piece, and the stunt scenes, while hampered by the low budget, keep the production moving along nicely. The twist ending is a strong way to end the film too.

Capable genre director Joe Newman directed this magnetically tawdry tale of a federal agent trying to crack a drug ring that preys on long-haul truckers. This is no French Connection, but it's a fascinating glimpse of a bygone era, and if one has a taste for low-budget AA features of the fifties this one is definitely worth a look. Peter Graves makes a fine Viking hero. There's a pseudo-adultness here of the sort one used to find in cheap paperback novels that were basically semi-porn but masquerading (or trying to) as exposes of one sort or another. As with Dragnet, one has to have a certain kind of empathy to get into the spirit of this sort of thing. If you do, this one will reward you handsomely.

Note this commentary may contain a ***SPOILER**Another one of those "B" 1950's crime thrillers "...ripped from the pages of todays headlines." This film was inspired by a Saturday Evening Post expose about the use of amphetamines of long haul truck drivers. In this film, Peter Graves plays an FDA agent who goes undercover as a truck driver in order to get the goods on who is supplying the drivers with "bennies". Chuck Conners plays a hip talking truck driver hooked on the pills and freaks out and almost kills Peter. Mala Powers plays the widowed boarding house owner that caters to truck drivers whom Peter becomes romanticly involved. Too bad Peter never learned never to trust grieving widows who wear cocktail dresses. Robert Shayne has a small part as Peters boss. Graves gives his usual dependable performance as the determined agent. Its amazing how many of these forgotten low budget films Graves made in the 1950's. Chuck Conners however, goes way over the top as the hip talking, jazz loving amphetamine hooked truck driver. Mala Powers is attractive.