It's sad that The Day Of The Wolves was not done by a major studio with some decent scripting and editing as part of the package. Had it been the film could have been a classic. It had the makings.It's a combination of High Noon and the Phil Karlson noir classic Kansas City Confidential. Richard Egan as the local chief of police busts one of the kids of a city councilman and for his pains loses his job. He takes it philosophically.At the same time Jan Murray as Preston Foster did in Kansas City Confidential recruits six professional criminals all unknown to each other and all use numbers when addressing each other and him. They also wear gloves at all times so no fingerprints can be detected.Murray has an audacious military style operation planned to hit several locations in a small town on a pay day at the main employer which is a lumberyard. These heist commandos are trained down to perfection.But when the operation goes down it's the former sheriff Egan who springs into action, purely from reflex. What happens after that is for you to see. Martha Hyer plays Mrs. Egan and she reacts the same way to his involvement the same way Grace Kelly did.Shot completely on location in Arizona, The Day Of The Wolves shows many cheap touches, obviously because the film didn't have the budget. One thing that was terribly wrong. Egan has only a shotgun when he deals with the seven criminal commandos. No way in the world he was able to do what he did with only a shotgun which could not have been fired for distance the way it was. Maybe a bigger studio's writing and editing staff would have realized that.Still it's not a bad TV film and it really could have been a lot better.

If Quentin Tarantino has not seen "The Day of the Wolves," then he ought to watch it. This ranks as a low-budget but above average heist caper that takes place in a small, modern-day Arizona town when a gang of thieves strike without warning and rob the banks, grocery stores, and manufacturing plants of all their cash. The mastermind behind this heist is a meticulous planner known only as Number 1 (Jan Murray of "Tarzan and the Great River") who assembles a team of six crackerjack thieves, including himself. Before they convene at a desert hideout, he orders each man culivate a beard, and he furnishes them with specific instructions. Once they arrive at the hide-out, they discard their clothing and put on jump-suits and gloves. He designates each individual by a numeral, and then he outlines his audacious plan to steal over a million dollars in dough from a small town. Number One has everything laid out to the nth degree. He trains his crew and has them drill on a number of torn-up buildings that simulate the real-life setting. None of the guys are happy about the airtight security precautions, but Number One rules them with an iron hand. Each of them stands to earn at least $50-thousand dollars. Not only have they never met, but they are also prohibited from using their actual names. They are told that this is largely for their benefit. Number One blindfolded them before he brought them to their hide-out and he does the same when they leave.Meanwhile, Police Chief Pete Anderson (stocky Richard Egan of "The 300 Spartans") pulls over a couple of kids who have been joyriding recklessly around town in a dune buggy. The irate driver turns out to be the son of an influential town council member, and he complains to his father. The mayor convenes the council, and they vote to fire Anderson. Anderson's deputy Hank (John Lupton of "Jesse James Meets Frankenstein's Daughter") confides in his ex-boss that he doesn't think he has what it takes to be police chief. Anderson advises Hank to simmer down because what kind of catastrophic crime could occur in a town with fewer than 8-thousand people. Just as Hank is settling into his new position, the thieves appear like a well-oiled machine and lock up Hank and his two deputies. The thieves learn about Anderson's resignation, but they aren't prepared for it when the ex-chief grabs a shotgun and a fistful of shells and lets the lead fly.Phillipine-born writer & director Ferde Grofe, Jr., doesn't wear out his welcome with this trim 90 heist caper. Everything is basically cut and dried. The major complication here that the villains did not count on was Pete Anderson's courageous act of storming streets with a shotgun to thwart their raid. Rick Jason of "Combat" fame plays henchman Number Six. Anderson drops him and another thieve with his accurate shooting. Grofe knows when to cut away from the authorities back to the criminals. The catch here is that this thriller was produced after the Production Code Administration was abolished, so the bad guys get to carry off their loot—those that is who survive Anderson's target practice with them. There is nothing pretentious here, and this movie may even be one of the earliest where the villains wanted to impose more than the usual number of safety precautions for not getting caught. The character of Police Chief Peter Anderson owes a lot to the Gary Cooper's Will Kane, town marshal in the western classic "High Noon." Anderson has nothing but contempt for the town after the raid, and he refuses to take back his badge when they come crawling to him. The Jan Murray mastermind does a pretty thorough job of setting up the robbery. Character actor Percy Helton of "The Sons of Katie Elder" has an amusing scene as a farmer.

This is one of the most cerebral movies I have ever seen. If you loved Pi, give this one a try. Jan Murray gives one of the most compelling performances of all time. The entire supporting cast is terrific, especially noteworthy since the production budget for the whole thing was about $200. Just watch it unfold and happen to you.

This is a sleeper of a movie. Long lost for nearly 20 years, I had a hell of a time finding this one. If you can find a copy it's worth watching. Uses waycool catchy guitar theme music throughout. Cool dudes playing the bad guys. Neato uniforms and vehicles (love the station wagon scenes!!!!).Makes you wonder why someone hasn't tried to pull this job off yet?Number 8