I've seen pretty much every version of Mike Hammer on film over the decades, yet this somehow became my favorite! Biff Elliot is tough, brutal, unstoppable, yet also honest, loyal and incorruptible. Faced with an impenetable mystery-- HE figured it out! What a guy!
Margaret Sheridan ("THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD") also became my favorite Velda. Smart, dependable, and no slouch in the looks department. Preston Foster may also be my favorite Pat Chambers. He tells Mike to follow the rules... then goes out of his way to help him break them. What a pal!
When it comes to murder mysteries, I'm usually good-- but this one left me completely in the dark. It eventually made sense... after 6 or 7 viewings. But that's not what this film is about. It's all about mood, and suspense, and watching Mike steamroll his way thru suspects and beatings until he knows who killed his best friend... and what he has to do about it.
Among the supporting cast are Peggy Castle (the too-cool psychiatrist), Alan Reed (the mobster), Joe Besser (the elevator operator), Nestor Paiva (the bar owner), Elisha Cook Jr. (the innocent halfwit someone tries to frame as part of the mob).
This film is DARK, in more ways that one. Mike's office is in the Bradbury Building (also seen in such films as "MARLOWE", "BLADE RUNNER", and the Outer Limits episode "Demon With A Glass Hand") and is the scene of a BRUTAL fight scene near the climax.
WHY was this team not brought back for the other 2 Hammer films of the 50s-- or the 50s TV series? WHY has this fallen into public domain, without a proper video release? WHY is Hammer hated by so many critics, yet loved by so many fans?
For many years, I put up with a terrible TV print with commercial breaks. Now I have it on DVD, and I may never stop watching it.
Addendum / 11-19-2023: As of November 2022, ClassicFlix has put out the first-ever official release of this, a brand-new scan & restoration Blu-Ray with optional 4K and 3D versions (the latter requiring both a 3D player and TV). It's in WIDESCREEN, it's got crystal-clear picture & sound, it's absolutely-STUNNING, and it's long overdue.
And, it's got lots of extras, including the comparitively-inferior 1954 unsold TV pilot with Brian Keith. (I can see why that didn't go to series. The 1958-60 Darren McGavin series was infinitely-better. McGavin & Bart Burns are the only actors I currently like even more than Elliot & Foster as Mike & Pat!)
Margaret Sheridan ("THE THING FROM ANOTHER WORLD") also became my favorite Velda. Smart, dependable, and no slouch in the looks department. Preston Foster may also be my favorite Pat Chambers. He tells Mike to follow the rules... then goes out of his way to help him break them. What a pal!
When it comes to murder mysteries, I'm usually good-- but this one left me completely in the dark. It eventually made sense... after 6 or 7 viewings. But that's not what this film is about. It's all about mood, and suspense, and watching Mike steamroll his way thru suspects and beatings until he knows who killed his best friend... and what he has to do about it.
Among the supporting cast are Peggy Castle (the too-cool psychiatrist), Alan Reed (the mobster), Joe Besser (the elevator operator), Nestor Paiva (the bar owner), Elisha Cook Jr. (the innocent halfwit someone tries to frame as part of the mob).
This film is DARK, in more ways that one. Mike's office is in the Bradbury Building (also seen in such films as "MARLOWE", "BLADE RUNNER", and the Outer Limits episode "Demon With A Glass Hand") and is the scene of a BRUTAL fight scene near the climax.
WHY was this team not brought back for the other 2 Hammer films of the 50s-- or the 50s TV series? WHY has this fallen into public domain, without a proper video release? WHY is Hammer hated by so many critics, yet loved by so many fans?
For many years, I put up with a terrible TV print with commercial breaks. Now I have it on DVD, and I may never stop watching it.
Addendum / 11-19-2023: As of November 2022, ClassicFlix has put out the first-ever official release of this, a brand-new scan & restoration Blu-Ray with optional 4K and 3D versions (the latter requiring both a 3D player and TV). It's in WIDESCREEN, it's got crystal-clear picture & sound, it's absolutely-STUNNING, and it's long overdue.
And, it's got lots of extras, including the comparitively-inferior 1954 unsold TV pilot with Brian Keith. (I can see why that didn't go to series. The 1958-60 Darren McGavin series was infinitely-better. McGavin & Bart Burns are the only actors I currently like even more than Elliot & Foster as Mike & Pat!)