A taut thriller, "Hell's Five Hours" chills to the bone, by telling a tale about a disgruntled ex-employee planning revenge on the last place he worked, to wit a giant military plant lying next to an unremarkable and unsuspecting town. In doing so, the movie points out that it might not be a good idea to build a hugely dangerous installation next to an unremarkable and unsuspecting town. Sadly enough, later environmental disasters such as "Seveso" have proven the truth of this assertion.
Sadly for all concerned the movie was also eerily predictive in another regard : nowadays, the USA has become infamous for disgruntled employees or students expressing themselves by killing scores of unsuspecting people. This unlovely distinction seems to spring not from some fault in the American national temperament, but rather from a surprisingly lax legislation which allows any unstable person with a grudge to amass enough heavy-duty weaponry to start a war. In other countries a nasty nineteen-year-old wanting to punish his university might be carrying a knife and a cosh ; in the USA, his equivalent might be carrying a machine gun, five advanced sniper rifles and a bazooka. Try as I might, I have never understood why such an egregious scandal is allowed to go unchecked, especially since many of the victims represent the hope and flower of their nation.
But to return to the movie : "Hell's Five Hours" could have used better characterizations, but it's notable for the cleverness and originality of its plot and for the continuing pertinence of its warning. Should be made into mandatory viewing for all persons responsible for environmental and spatial planning issues related to potentially dangerous plants such as chemical plants or nuclear installations.
Sadly for all concerned the movie was also eerily predictive in another regard : nowadays, the USA has become infamous for disgruntled employees or students expressing themselves by killing scores of unsuspecting people. This unlovely distinction seems to spring not from some fault in the American national temperament, but rather from a surprisingly lax legislation which allows any unstable person with a grudge to amass enough heavy-duty weaponry to start a war. In other countries a nasty nineteen-year-old wanting to punish his university might be carrying a knife and a cosh ; in the USA, his equivalent might be carrying a machine gun, five advanced sniper rifles and a bazooka. Try as I might, I have never understood why such an egregious scandal is allowed to go unchecked, especially since many of the victims represent the hope and flower of their nation.
But to return to the movie : "Hell's Five Hours" could have used better characterizations, but it's notable for the cleverness and originality of its plot and for the continuing pertinence of its warning. Should be made into mandatory viewing for all persons responsible for environmental and spatial planning issues related to potentially dangerous plants such as chemical plants or nuclear installations.